TIRANA, April 18 – The serious pollution of Fierza Lake in north-eastern Albania with organic and plastic waste prompted authorities in Kukes to declare a state of local emergency.
Immediately after, a cleanup operation involving several troops and boats provided by the armed forces has begun.
The operation started near the White Drin bridge in the north-eastern town of Kukes, where pollution is at higher levels.
The lake clean-up is being supervised by the General Director of Civil Emergencies Shemsi Prenci.
For weeks now, the entire surface of Fierza Lake had been covered with floating trash, mainly plastic bottles, not only polluting the lake but also creating a very unpleasant view and also undermining local efforts to promote tourism in the area.
Experts say there have been several efforts to clean up the lake in previous years, however such initiatives have only tackled the problem temporarily and the situation keeps repeating year after year.
The construction of two dams made of metal nets to prevent trash thrown in rivers to end up in the lake is seen as a potential solution to keep Fierza free from plastic waste.
The waste that covers the lake almost every year comes from Kukes villages near its shores and also from Kosovo. The situation is created as a result of poor waste management on both sides of the border and the lack of proper methods of waste disposal.
Two years ago, the prefect of Kukes said that negotiations had started with the Kosovo side in order to cut down on the waste dumped into the Fierza Lake, but it appears that a permanent solution to the problem is yet to be found.
