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When sand becomes a luxury: Millions of euros to restore the lost beach of Durrës

Politiko 2024-11-03 14:15:00

When sand becomes a luxury: Millions of euros to restore the lost beach of

Vacationers and residents of district 13 have not been able to walk on the Durrës beach for several days. The entire sand area has been turned into a construction site with heavy machinery. This area is undergoing an ambitious intervention: adding a strip of sand and widening the beach by about 30 meters, along a 3.4 kilometer coastline, from the eastern wall of the harbor to the fence that separates it from the Government House, in an attempt to revitalized what has long since disappeared under the shadow of concrete and iron. This coastal revitalization aims to offset decades of uncontrolled construction for sea-view hotels and apartments, which have reduced the country's largest and oldest beach to a narrow strip of sand.

Meanwhile, the expansion of the sand area towards the sea has raised quite a few discussions. Lorenc Facja, director of the Directorate of Projects and Public Infrastructure in the Municipality, told BIRN that "currently, work is being done to create the conditions for the construction of the coastal promenade, in the area known as the "Teuta" sector, from the "Canal Grande" hotel to the eastern wall of the port. The project was designed by a studio contracted by the Municipality and financed by the Albanian Development Fund," added Facja. According to him, the growing demand for vacations on the Durrës beach has influenced the project aimed at the uniformity of the sand space on the beach, with a filling width of about 20-30 meters, which in some areas can reach 100 meters.

A specialist who asked not to be identified told BIRN that, after testing samples of unsuitable sand in the area of Porto Romano and near the village of "Rinia" in the north, the specialists decided that the sand should be brought by trucks from Vilë Bashtova, 30 km away from Durrës, where the river Shkumbin separates the municipality of Rrogozhina and Divjaka.

Tomorr Spahiu, port engineer, told BIRN that the central part of Durrës Bay is currently undergoing strong marine erosion. "The sea has gained ground over the land in the tourist area of Mount Rob and beyond," said engineer Spahiu, adding that this is a consequence of the lack of coastal monitoring, an annual national survey that was discontinued in the late 80s. Endless constructions and interventions in the river bed have influenced the nature's behavior towards the coast.

According to Spahiu, "although the area where the current project will be implemented is less endangered, the large amount of sand that will be deposited on the coast requires new engineering methods to ensure its permanent presence. Underwater ambushes are an opportunity to protect the new coast from sea waves, while a solution must be found for coexistence with the new beach that is being created within the "Durrës Marina" project, added engineer Spahiu.

Durrës has the largest and oldest beach in our country. About 100 years ago, wooden lodges were built over the sea, which were removed for environmental reasons. In the mid-1930s, a group of urban planners drew up the master plan of Banja, which enabled the construction of the first one- or two-story dwellings, very few of which survive among the multi-story buildings.

The best-known period of the beach remains that of the 70s-80s, when the beach was filled with wooden cabins, umbrellas and a small number of buildings, including a group of five hotels, with the "Adriatic" in the center. The current project aims to increase the capacity of the country's largest beach and improve the quality of holidays for local and foreign visitors who choose to stay in Durrës.

Several tens of thousands of cubic meters of sand will be added to the current beach, while the project will last 18 months. Meanwhile, the surface near the eastern wall of the harbor has been filled with inerts as part of the "Durrës Marina" project. "The 'Durres Marina' project aims to create an artificial beach near the port wall, within which the first buildings are being built," said Facja, adding that the natural beach of Durres will maintain continuity between the two surfaces.

The director of the municipality, Lorenc Facja, emphasized that the third element of this project is the restoration of 41 facades of the same number of buildings located on the first line of the beach. According to director Facja, some technical elements are being discussed by a group of engineers of the Albanian Development Fund, including the need for the demolition of concrete barriers at the "Teuta" and "Apollonia" plants. There is still no final decision on the demolition of the four tourist tracks built before the 90s.

"The full value of the investment amounts to about 6.3 million euros, while the project is being implemented by the company 'Fusha,'" concluded director Facja./ BIRN