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The most polluted place in Albania: Footage of the environmental disaster at the Ishmi estuary (VIDEO)

2025-10-29 22:29:35Aktualitet SHKRUAR NGA REDAKSIA VOX
The most polluted place in Albania: Footage of the environmental disaster at the
Despite alarming pollution, a herd of cows graze amidst the garbage

We are located at the mouth of the Ishëm River into the Adriatic Sea, one of the most polluted rivers in Albania.

The area is located between Cape Rodoni and the Patoku lagoon. The pollution there is catastrophic. The beautiful sandy coast that winds on both sides of the river has disappeared from the mountain of garbage that the river brings with it.

Plastic waste, clothing, various chemicals we use in the house cleaning process, and pharmaceutical waste all come together, turning this unique area into a giant garbage dump. Despite this alarming pollution, a herd of cows graze among them.

"Look at the cows, then they sell the milk in the market and say we have organic milk ," said Qemal Jangu, a resident of Ishëm. 

Classified by the National Environment Agency as one of the most polluted rivers in the country, its waters are in category 5 - Bad Condition. This river ends up with sewage and all types of urban waste that the flow brings with it. From the Brari Bridge, it passes through the urbanized area of ​​Tirana, Kamza, Vora, Fushë-Krujë and other surrounding areas.

"Even the sofa has come to this river from Tirana, what doesn't come here," said Qemal Jangu, a resident of Ishëm.

Qemal Jangu, an indigenous resident, has sadly experienced the drastic transformation of the area as a result of pollution. He remembers with nostalgia the times when they used to bathe in the waters of Ishmi and come to the beach, right here, a gem now under the power of waste.

"We bathed in the river, it was clean, the whole area came here for the beach," said Qemal Jangu, a resident of Ishëm. 

As a result of the pollution, the entire river has died, and fishermen are now seeking their daily work at sea.

The report estimates that at the reference stations the rivers are clean, while passing close to residential areas the impact of urban discharges which flow directly untreated brings this classification with high pollution. Therefore, immediate intervention is suggested for the treatment of urban wastewater. They are considered the main cause of river pollution.

"The biggest problem with waste is its dumping in streams everywhere in Albania. We have many streams and rivers and the dumping of waste exceeds even the cases that can be corrected by landfills," said Qemal Jangu, a resident of Ishëm. 

The government has made several efforts and invested millions of euros in the so-called waste capture plant on the Ishme River. In 2017, former Minister of Environment Blendi Klosi, during an on-site inspection of this plant, said that it would put an end to the pollution of the Ishme. The investment, which cost 2 million euros, was completed in 2019, but it did not operate for a single day.

The Ministry of Environment did not respond to a request for information from Inside Story about the causes of the failure of this investment, nor about strategies for cleaning up this estuary. 

Experts consider the actions of institutions to clean up the estuary as a show, as it cannot be cleaned without solving the issue at the source.

"Take the Ishmi estuary, which is the mirror where we see ourselves and we are truly ugly. Never to this day have policies been taken to clean it, not at the estuary, because you cannot clean it at the estuary with volunteer work. The Ministry of Environment should build policies on how to clean the environment in a large territory such as a river bed, it should start at the source, but after a month or a year the situation will be the same because you have not solved the problem at the source", said Flora Xhemani Babani, environmental expert.


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