Tirana and Durrës drowned in garbage, but the incinerator received 7 million euros in January-July

In the inner streets of the Allias neighborhoods in Tirana these hot summer days, garbage stays for days without being collected, covering the bins and the space around them.

Nearby families have thrown chlorine around to avoid toxicity, as the heavy smell of waste is everywhere.

Even in the neighborhoods around the center of Tirana, garbage stays in piles all day long, draining polluting liquids and heavy smells, in the eyes and feet of tourists. In previous years, some cars used to sweep and wash the main boulevards of Tirana, but they don't come out anymore.

In the area of ​​Golem these days when the hotels are full of tourists there are not enough bins and the waste accumulates on the corners of the streets or sidewalks, offering a contrast with the investments made by the accommodation units.

The decline in the quality of cleaning is happening at a time when Tirana and Durrës have become the main destination for foreign tourists coming to Albania.

On the other hand, budget payments for Tirana's incinerator are progressively increasing. Only in the period from January to July 24, 2024, 700 million ALL were released from the state budget as payments to Integrated Energy BV SPV, the company that manages the incinerator.

Treasury data generated by Open Data Albania show that from the beginning of the year until July 18, about 36 transactions with an amount exceeding 6.9 million euros have been made to the incinerator that is now administered by the Seized Assets Agency. This value represents the payments from the municipalities of Tirana, Kamza, Durrës and Kavaja for the transportation of waste to the Sharra landfill.

While the issue of the incinerator has taken on the proportions of a corrupt investment that has led a series of high officials behind bars, on the other hand, Tirana, Durrës are in an environmental emergency, since the malfunction of the incinerator has brought waste management to the starting point.

According to data from the balance sheet in 2022, the company that manages the incinerator, Integrated Energy BV SPV, secured a profit of 685 million ALL. The rate of profits before taxes was 41 percent, while in 2021 it was 48%.

So the transport of garbage from Kavaja and Durrës to Tirana has put coastal municipalities in difficulties, as they are taking most of their income for cleaning services, while there is no new solution on the horizon for the issue of waste management in the most populated area of ​​the country.

In 2023, the Municipality of Kavaja and that of Durrës accounted for 27 percent of the total expenses for waste cleaning, and had the highest share of expenses for this item among all other municipalities.

Despite the high costs, the main cities of the country, Durrës and Tirana, are now at the height of the tourist season everywhere choked by trash, which is turning into the biggest enemy of tourism and affecting the quality of life for the residents./ Monitor