Author: Dallandyshe Xhaferri
Midnight covered everything except noise pollution. It is 02:15 in the morning and in the villages near the Metallurgy of Elbasan, the sounds of the unloading of the irons that then end up in the melting machine are heard.
Even when the day breaks, 3 kilometers away, in the village of Vidhas, residents can see the smoke with their naked eyes. A gigantic mass that after coming out of the industrial plants slowly disperses occupying the sky of Elbasan.
With the conviction that the metallurgy of Elbasan is working at full capacity at night, Erald Vaja has posted on the platform "Sinjalizo" photographs that prove this process.
"When we wake up in the morning we find ourselves covered in smoke, while at night we drive in a haze of smoke.", Vaja says, emphasizing that the ferrochrome plant, the steel processing plant, "Kurum International" and the oil refinery operate in the former Metallurgical Plant of Elbasan. The opening of the latter in June 2016 was met with protests by the residents of the area.
"They pour the industrial waste into the irrigation canal and the plants don't even grow anymore”,- says Vaja, showing that for the villages around the Elbasan Metallurgical plant, the problem is not only air pollution, but also water pollution.
"In Balldren, in our village, Vidhas, even our plants don't grow anymore", the resident further explains, according to which the spilling of industrial waste from the oil refinery damaged their crops. Residents have often reacted with protests not only for economic damage, but also for health.
"Only two of my family members died of lung cancer, while 60% of people I know have lung problems, cough",- concludes Vaja.
Dirty Elbasan
Air pollution measurements carried out by the Ecological Club of Elbasan show that in the areas around Metalurgjik, the pollution is twice as high as in the city. The situation becomes even more alarming if compared to the standard of the European Union countries. Environmentalist Ahmet Mehmeti speaks with the language of facts.
"Within the city, the most polluted areas are the road intersections, the railroad crossing area and the place called 'Tek Lulet'", - says the expert, adding that the level of Carbon Dioxide (CO2) in the city goes to 531 μm 3 from 350 μm 3 which is the value of the European standard, - "while the average value reaches up to 860μm3, he concludes.
Of concern remains the level of PM particles, which are small matter with a very small diameter ranging from 10 microchromes to 2.5 microchromes. Continuous exposure to them as a result of substances released from industrial activity and transport by means of cars (especially old ones), causes the appearance of various diseases in the respiratory tract, skin, etc.
"Of the 47 monitored points in Elbasan, in 25 of them the level of PM 2.5 particles was within the norms, while in the other 22 the level was exceeded, reaching 30-180 μm 3", Mehmeti informs for "Sinjalizo".
Tirana 2022/ Worst quality air, where there is traffic and construction
Arriving late at the destination seems not to be the only consequence of heavy traffic in Tirana. According to measurements made by Green Lungs, the areas with the worst air quality in Tirana are also those where the traffic is heaviest during daylight hours.
"Crossroads, 'Elbasan Street', 'Zona e 21', part of the former train station are considered areas with a high level of pollution",- says Arion Sauku, environmental expert, for "Sinjalizo".
"The 'Great Ring' that has been under reconstruction has twice the dust particles", he adds, emphasizing that apart from CO2 (carbon dioxide), car gases and NO are spread in the air of Tirana2 (nitrogen dioxide).
"The norms of the European Union during the implementation of the works in the 'Great Ring' were exceeded by two or three times"- he says, adding that old vehicles still remain a problem for air quality in Tirana.
"All the vehicles that were manufactured before 2005 are the biggest air polluters and then comes the many constructions that are being done in the capital", Sauku emphasizes, indicating that during the works for the reconstruction of the 'Air Albania' stadium in 2020, the level of PM 2.5 and PM 10 dust particles was very high.
Tirana is officially presented as clean
The municipality of the capital presents a clean Tirana. And unpolluted. But during the alternative measurements carried out by the professor of the Department of Biology at the Faculty of Natural Sciences in Tirana, Aleko Miho, by his colleagues and students, it turns out that the values of the level of pollution in the area located in the northwest of the center of Tirana are different from what Tirana Municipality has published.
In the 48 ha area, part of Administrative Unit number 9 and number 10, air measurements were carried out by the students of this department in 2019 and 2020 during the morning and afternoon, for several consecutive days.
"PM10 exceeds the norm in 8 stations in the morning, and 14 stations in the afternoon, where the high levels of particles at the entrance to the Jordan Misja road and at the former train station are of concern. CO2 and NO2 significantly exceed the Albanian norm in all stations (22 in total) where the measurements were carried out", - says the study.
"Our goal has not been to monitor, but to see and be clearer about what the air around us is like", Professor Miho says, adding that the data reported by the Municipality of Tirana for the same period do not match the conclusions drawn from the measurements made by the students.
"Regarding air quality, for 2019, only data for SO2, O3, CO, NO2 are given for Tirana, but not for particles; for NO2 an average value of 37.85 is given µg/m³(in the norm), while the average value of 22 measurements by us for the area in February 2019 is very high 125.7 µg/m3, or 214% above the norm. These data are reported in Tirana for the period 2012-2019 at or near the norm.”,- it is stated in the student's paper, which highlights the fact that KMA (National Environment Agency) and the Municipality of Tirana do not include in the report the time of the measurement, often in the location and method.
"Another problem of official reports is the non-inclusion of noise, acoustic pollution, particles in the air which must be included in reports on the state of the environment.",- says Miho, showing that during the work with the students, it was noticed that the total green surface in this area was about 13,500 m2 (2.81% of the study area), or 1.23 m2 per resident, while in 2007 the green area in this area was about 22,200 m2, which means that the green area has decreased by 40% in the last 13 years.
"Greening is important to the area as it releases O2, absorbs CO2, enables water retention, helps in sound insulation", explains Professor Miho.
Kuçova and the problems that oil brings
The exploitation of oil in Kuçovo started in 1934, thus marking the oldest oil extraction area in the country.
Today, 88 years later, a good part of the area's wells still work with the technology of the 30s.
A. Xhelili, a resident of the village of Kozarë, tells "Sinjalizo" that oil is extracted from wells in the village at full capacity, but air pollution measurements have never been made in the village.
"My house is located a few meters away from this oil well (points with finger) but I have never seen the institutions come and measure the air quality", he says, adding that there have been no shortage of cases where oil has leaked from pipelines.
"The pipelines are from the time of Italy, that's why they sometimes break and the oil comes out on the surface of our backyards, but the company employees come and cover the holes again", he says, while a worker of "Albpetrol" says on the condition of anonymity that they cover the pipelines with gravel.
"In case of fire we have a fire extinguisher here", he says, adding that employees are on guard 24 hours a day at the place where oil is extracted.
In the official response to "Sinjalizo", the Municipality of Kuçovo has made the company "Albpetrol" responsible for the pollution, while admitting that there has been no air monitoring in the city of oil workers for years.
"Measures have also been taken by the company that is responsible for the pollution, 'Albpetrol', but the very fact that the extraction network and logistics are outdated makes it very difficult to finally solve this problem",- says the written answer.
According to the residents of the village of Kozarë, who refuse to be identified because they have not yet legalized their homes near the oil wells, there are almost 400 active oil wells in this administrative unit, which affects the spread of air, soil and water pollution. the smell of oil.
Lung diseases, like pollution, are slowly "dying" Albanians
Release of poisonous gases, dust particles, CO2, NO2, PM 10 are some of the main causes of diseases in the respiratory tract and skin.
According to the report published by the World Bank, in Albania, in 2019, 2 people lost their lives as a result of environmental pollution outside and inside the home. In other words, 257% of the total deaths in the country came as a result of pollution.
According to the report, most deaths from air pollution are closely related to the release of particulate matter known as PM 2.5.
"Elements such as particulate matter (small pieces of dust in the air) including PM10 and PM2.5 cause long-term damage because they can penetrate deep into our lungs and some can even enter the bloodstream"- says professor Miho for "Sinjalizo", who adds that the non-treatment of water flowing into rivers affects the high level of phosphates in river waters, as well as in the sea.
"Untreated waters discharge high nutrient contents such as: Nitrogen (N), Phosphorus (P4), which are the cause of what we call euturfification, which is accompanied by a lack of oxygen and algal blooms, a lack of animal life in the waters. The waters flow to the coast where some of the algae can be poisonous to fish and therefore to humans."- he concludes.
According to the official response from KTA, this institution performs monitoring of urban air only in 6 (six) main cities, such as Tirana, Elbasani, Durres, Shkodra, Fieri and Korça.
In the National Monitoring Program for 2022, KTA complains that in Elbasan and Tirana, the situation is critical due to the violation of laws and the exposure of the population to pollution.
" Area B, which includes the municipal units of Fier, Durrës, Vlora, Shkodra, Korça, Patos, Ballshit, Kamza and Paskuqani, determined either by direct measurement, or as a result of local studies, by effective overflow, or high risk of overflow of pollution limits, from at least one polluter,”- it is then stated in the Monitoring Program.
How to get rid of pollution?
According to the Elbasan Ecological Club, the main role in reducing air pollution would be played by the use of filters in industrial factories as well as the use of quality fuels. Also, non-use of old vehicles and maintenance, use of biomass according to technical standards for combustion.
Environmentalist Ahmet Mehmeti sees as very important the interaction of the local and local government with the civil societies, the community to undertake joint activities to maintain the air in the parameters of the EU.
"During these years we have held advisory sessions from time to time with the Municipality and the Prefecture for the improvement of air quality", Mehmeti says, although the level of air pollution due to industrial activity in cities such as Elbasan and Kuçovo remains high.
