Ervin Koçi
From a distance, the Ishëm River Delta on Albania’s Adriatic coast may seem like a wild and untouched landscape. But a closer look, even from a Google Earth satellite, reveals a different, much more disturbing reality. The coastline is covered in an endless carpet of plastic waste. On the ground, the scene is apocalyptic. An entire stretch of coastline on both sides of the delta is buried under tons of plastic, bottles, bags and, most alarmingly, medical waste, syringes and IV bags scattered on the sand and swaying in the waves.
This environmental disaster is a visible symptom of a deeper crisis emanating from the heart of Albania. The Ishëm and Erzen rivers, which flow through the country’s most populous and industrialized areas, are transporting a toxic cocktail of urban, industrial, and agricultural waste directly into the Adriatic Sea. This research reveals a history of systemic government failure, squandered public funds, and a looming health catastrophe that threatens not only Albania’s ecosystem and thriving tourism industry, but also its relations with its European neighbors.
At the heart of this failure lies a rusting, abandoned structure just a few kilometers from the sea. In 2017, former Minister of Tourism and Environment, Blendi Klosi, inspected the inauguration of a new waste treatment plant, presented as a measure to reduce pollution in the river mouth. A 2 million euro investment, inaugurated with fanfare in 2019 and designed to capture waste before it reached the coast, has not been operational for a single day. Today, it stands as a silent monument to broken promises, while the pollution it was supposed to stop continues to flow unhindered.
Source: "Biologically dead" waters
The Adriatic Sea is the ecological and economic lifeblood of the Balkan region, home to over 7,000 species. However, this precious ecosystem is under direct attack from the Albanian coast. The main culprits are the Ishëm and Erzen river basins, near which live about a million people, including the capital, Tirana.
Official data from the National Environmental Agency (NEA) paints a grim picture. Monitoring stations along the Ishëm River consistently classify its water as “Class V – Bad Condition”, the lowest possible rating. In contrast, the Erzen River starts out with “Class II – Good Condition” at its source, but degrades to “Class III – Average Condition” downstream. According to the NEA, Class III is the absolute limit of acceptable water quality. The Ishëm, however, is beyond any acceptable standard.
A study by BOKU University in Vienna identifies the Ishmi as the most polluted river in Europe, discharging an estimated 733,000 kilograms of solid waste into the Adriatic Sea each year. This 79.2-kilometer-long river, with a catchment area of 673 km², is crossed by its tributaries Tirana, Tërkuza and Zeza, and is filled with untreated wastewater from Tirana, Kamza and Fushë-Kruja. Once essential for agriculture, fishing and livestock, the Ishmi now flows into ecologically sensitive areas such as the Patok-Fushëkuqe-Ishëm Marine Protected Area and the Cape Rodoni Nature Reserve, both of which are under serious threat.
“The Ishëm River is biologically dead; there is no more aquatic life,” says Lulzim Bauman, an Albanian expert on the environment and waste management. “It is among the most polluted rivers in Europe. It cannot be compared to any other on the continent. The closest comparisons are with the heavily polluted rivers in India or Bangladesh. In the European context, it is an extreme case that requires urgent intervention.”
The source of the pollution is known. According to the EU-funded project EU4Rivers, “both the Ishëm and Erzen basins receive large amounts of untreated wastewater, resulting from rapid urban growth, uncontrolled development and gaps in infrastructure.”
Bauman adds: “Wastewater from households and businesses is discharged directly into streams and rivers without any treatment.” This is compounded by around 100 illegal landfills along the Ishmi, where uncollected municipal waste is dumped directly into the riverbed.
Authorities had announced plans to build two large wastewater treatment plants: one in Kashar, for Tirana, and another in Kamëz, for the surrounding areas. However, even if they were built and fully operational, environmental assessments suggest that they would not be enough to lift Ishmi out of the “Class V – Bad Condition” category.
Albanian rivers are drowning the Adriatic with pollution. The Ishmi and Erzeni carry sewage, industrial chemicals, agricultural pesticides, plastics and medical waste directly into the sea. The Ishmi, once a source of life, is now considered biologically dead, one of the most polluted rivers in Europe. Scientists warn that this pollution is choking habitats with plastic, poisoning marine life with heavy metals and feeding algal blooms that are depleting the water of oxygen, causing massive fish kills.
UNDP project on marine protected areas confirms that the high volume of pollution and illegal dumping ensure that the Ishmi remains among the most degraded rivers in Europe. Without effective treatment, wastewater will continue to flow into the Adriatic, filling it with toxins. Albania risks remaining one of the region's biggest polluters, a direct threat to biodiversity and public health across the Adriatic.
The 2 million euro fiasco
The shocking amount of plastic pollution prompted what was supposed to be a solution. In February 2017, the Ministry of Environment announced the tender for the project “Ishëm Estuary Cleaning Plant and Coastline Requalification.” The project, worth about 2 million euros, was intended to install a system of floating barriers and a conveyor belt for collecting solid waste.
The official tender documents described a two-station system for the recovery and disposal of waste. After years of delays, the plant was inaugurated in the fall of 2019. Government ministers at the time stated that the project aimed to clean up the river and the Adriatic Sea.
Nearly eight years after conception, a visit to the construction site in the village of Gotull reveals a total failure. The main gate is locked. Inside, the machinery and mechanisms are missing. All that remains are a few rusty metal structures that are being invaded by nature. The plant never fulfilled its purpose. The investment has been completely wasted and the river mouth has become the landfill it was supposed to prevent.
The air above the estuary is often filled with thick smoke as locals set fire to piles of garbage along the riverbanks. This desperate act adds another layer of pollution, releasing dangerous dioxins and fine particles into the air, which then fall into the water or spread to the land.
Responsibility for this disaster is shared. The Delta is located between two municipalities, Kurbin and Durrës. Ironically, the Durrës side has been declared a Protected Area near Cape Rodoni. However, there is no coordination between municipalities, ministries or national agencies to address the crisis.
The Invisible Threat: A Chemical Time Bomb
While plastic waste creates a shocking sight, a more invisible danger lurks in the water. Industrial facilities along the riverbanks discharge a flood of chemicals and heavy metals. These toxins accumulate in the riverbed and then end up in the sea, with fatal consequences for marine life.
“The pollution is dangerous, containing heavy metals such as cadmium and lead, as well as other organic and chemical residues,” warns Bauman. “Recent studies show that cadmium levels are up to 100 times higher than international norms. This is directly linked to the risk of cancer, as well as damage to the kidneys, brain and nervous system.”
The EU4Rivers project confirms that water quality in the river consistently exceeds acceptable limits for ammonia, nitrite, nitrate and phosphorus, elements that cause eutrophication, a process that depletes oxygen in water and eliminates aquatic life.
The Ishmi Delta has now become a makeshift parking area for fishermen’s boats. Local residents, who once fed their families from these waters, can no longer fish in the delta. “It’s impossible to fish here,” one of them says, pointing to the lifeless water. “We have to sail miles further north, just to hope that something is left in the nets.” Although the losses are heavy, many of them avoid speaking publicly, fearing the consequences or simply losing faith.
This chemical pollution has destroyed the livelihoods of local communities and continues to threaten the food chain and coastal economies throughout the Adriatic.
A regional problem and a European headache
The environmental consequences do not stop within Albanian borders. It is estimated that around 700,000 tons of waste from these rivers flow into the Adriatic Sea every year. Carried by sea currents, a large part ends up on the shores of Croatia, an EU member state.
“Plastic pollution from Albanian rivers is a regional threat,” says Bauman. Croatian authorities have repeatedly filed official complaints with EU institutions about this phenomenon, showing that plastic pollution is no longer just a national problem, but an issue that affects neighborly relations and the shared Adriatic environment.
In 2022, Croatian MEP Karlo Ressler (EPP) raised the issue in the European Parliament, noting that over 90% of the plastic waste washing up on Croatian shores comes from southern Europe, mainly Albania. Ressler noted that every year around 229,000 tons of plastic end up in the Mediterranean, and sea currents push it through the Strait of Otranto towards the Croatian coast, including Dubrovnik, the Mljet National Park and the protected Neretva Delta. Despite promises of investigations by the Albanian government over the past decade, no clear conclusion has been reached.
The European Commission, represented by Virginijus Sinkevičius, responded that it is actively engaged with Albania to approximate and implement EU regulations on the environment, including water, waste and marine ecosystems management. Through pre-accession programmes such as IPA, Albania benefits from support for integrated management systems, regional cooperation on transboundary pollution and initiatives for the circular economy and green growth. The Commission also highlights Albania’s obligations under the Barcelona Convention for the Protection of the Mediterranean Sea and regional plans for marine waste management.
This exchange shows that the pollution of Albanian rivers is not simply a local environmental problem, but an issue of European importance that affects policies and international cooperation for the protection of the Adriatic.
This transboundary pollution directly undermines Albania’s EU membership aspirations. The situation is at odds with key EU legislation, in particular the Water Framework Directive and the Bathing Water Directive. While water quality in other parts of the Adriatic meets EU standards, the Albanian segment falls far short. These directives require all surface waters to achieve at least “good status” and impose on states the protection of waters used for recreation. However, according to the NEA, the Ishëm River remains in “Class V – Bad Status”, continuously discharging sewage and solid waste into the Adriatic.
Interestingly, official monitoring of bathing waters in Lalzit Bay, a popular tourist area, shows “good” or “sufficient” quality during the summer season, based on tests for E.coli and enterococci. But experts warn that this is a fragile and deceptive calm. The large volume of pollution from rivers would be enough for a heavy rainfall or a change in sea currents to contaminate the beaches, endangering public health.
As the EU4Rivers project office points out: “Pollution from direct wastewater discharge… threatens the potential for sustainable tourism development… Contaminated beaches and degraded marine ecosystems can damage Albania’s image as a developing tourist destination and undermine local economies.”
A way forward?
The crisis of the Ishëm and Erzen rivers is a typical example of systemic failure. It is a story of a complete lack of wastewater treatment for over a million inhabitants, a lack of basic waste management, and the spectacular failure of a multi-million dollar project advertised as a solution.
Initiatives like the EU4Rivers project offer a ray of hope. By helping Albanian authorities develop comprehensive river basin management plans and investing in monitoring infrastructure, the project aims to build the foundations for long-term sustainable change. But these are goals on the horizon.
Meanwhile, the Ishëm River continues to pour poison into the Adriatic. Its delta remains an open wound on the Albanian coast, a living symbol of environmental destruction, wasted public funds, and a clear and immediate danger to the health of the population, the economy, and the slowly poisoning common sea. The question that remains is whether the political will will ever arise to close this wound before the damage becomes irreversible.
This article was produced with the support of the Internews Earth Journalism Network.
