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Figures, 136 dams in the country have lost their function, Albania has no decommissioning

2024-10-23 07:27:00, Ekonomi CNA

Figures, 136 dams in the country have lost their function, Albania has no

Climate changes, but also the most extreme natural phenomena as their effect, have turned attention everywhere in the world to the measures that must be taken, for the potential risks that come from these developments.

In Albania in recent years there is also a constant emphasis on the measures that must be taken regarding large dams which have different functions.

An institution that has repeatedly emphasized in documents the attention that this aspect should have is the Committee of Large Dams, which estimates that there is a need for concrete measures in some regions.

But a recent presentation at a symposium on Dam Safety by the president of this institution, Arjan Jovani, estimates that there are at least 136 non-functional dams in the country as far as their main purpose is concerned, why they were built according to the original project.

Of these, there are 35 large dams and 101 smaller ones. According to the study, 9 small dams do not exist from a structural point of view, while another 17 have been accepted by the municipalities to be decommissioned. The figures show that 46 other dams lack coordinates, while in 8 cases the reservoirs have turned into agricultural lands.

According to the official figures presented, there are at least 650 dams (350 large and 300 small) that have been built for various purposes, starting from irrigation, which includes 626 dams and which also include other integrated functions such as tourism, fishing, recreation and addressing the problems of high water flows at certain times. At least 24 other dams have as their primary function the production of energy, but they also serve in the function of transport, fishing and tourism. Two other dams are intended for water supply.

According to the head of the Dams Committee, currently the legal framework for decommissioning dams is in order, but guidelines and technical standards for the process of dam decommissioning or 'elimination' must be prepared.

According to the law and the decision of the Council of Ministers No. 147, dated 18.03.2004, the dams will be decommissioned at the moment when they will have lost their main functions and the reservoirs will be filled with sediments. Currently, no dam decommissioning has been done in Albania, as many dams are very old, i.e. over 50 years old, and many reservoirs are filled with sediments, posing risks for the communities downstream./ Monitor Magazine