Western financial institutions have ploughed hundreds of millions of dollars into building dams in the Balkan region, arguing that hydropower is a green energy source that offers poor countries a way out of energy insecurity. According to RiverWatch there are 435 dams planned in Albania quite e few of them are located within national parks and protected areas.
By 2027, Europe?s water framework directive will require all countries? bodies of water to be of a good ecological status. For Albania to fulfill its aspirations of EU accession, it may need to roll back the effects of a hydropower boom that the EU?s investment banks have foisted upon them.
The bad quality of EIAs that accompanied these investments is one of the reasons to be blamed for the environmental licenses that were issued for these hydro plants. Currently the public debate lacks direct hard facts regarding the impact these objects have over the hydrologic regime of the rivers as well as the impact on the biota