The HEC destroyed Valbonne, these photos talk a lot.

The road in the Valley of Valbonne is not what it used to be. The loud noise of the river's stream has faded away by extremes and bulldozers, which are breaking through mountainsides and sides of the river. Hundreds of meters of concrete channels, construction camps are located along the axis, and pines along the side of the road are covered for several miles with plastic coating used on fronts with construction. A group of Czech tourists who are visiting Valbona for the seventh year in a row are sad. No explanation locals give for building the HECs can be understood.

Work is currently under way in the Dragobia area, where the three most beautiful rivers of the valley, Motine, Cherem, and Valbonne are united. Locals say concrete channels will take water from the springs of rivers to produce energy in the winter months, but they say it will seriously harm biodiversity as exploitation in this way drains the springs of the area in summer and therefore the environment will no longer be accessible to tourists and living things will be destroyed

Environment alert

Rivers of the Alps, Cem, Vermosh, Lepushes, Shales, Gashi, Tropoja, preserve to date strong natural characteristics and constitute an extraordinary asset for maintaining biodiversity and developing sustainable tourism, but while the biggest Vabon River between them is losing its naturality due to the HECs that have already begun to build. The alert regarding the destruction of the Valbona River by the HECs gave the Environment Ministry in the Environmental Strategic Rating for “The National Tourism Sector Plan for the Albanian Alps Region”.

Research on Strategic Environmental assessment says HEC effects can be harmful because they can bring about strong hydrological, lymphological and biological changes.

The Environment Ministry refers to the proposed HECs for construction on the Valbona River as being around 11, where 8 of them have obtained construction permits along 25km of the Valbona Valley.

Currently, a (4 MW) hydro power plant has started its construction since 2013 at a very slow pace, while two other HECs (27 MW) began building this year (the project on the Dragobian helmet).

The government document finds that in the absence of adequate public consultations it is difficult to find accurate data on them.

“also needs to be stressed that the construction of the HECs in Valbonne has faced opposition from local residents, numerous intellectual and environmentalists who have protested their construction.

Among the main influences mentioned: The destruction of the area's landscape as natural habitats lose as land connections fragment. Through dam construction, water flows, sewers and tunnels are directly affected by key aspects of the” landscape, the government's document on the development of alpes says.

Decreasing water in the main stream causes increased water temperature and damage to basic living conditions.

Loss of water flow-Dealing Water Diversity leads to loss of water diversity, where rare fish, such as Trout, can be eliminated because of the obstacle of migration routes to the species. Also, all species are threatened by lungism after crossing into turbines.

The HEC's construction risks increasing erosion. As a result of earth's excavations, forest cuts around, extinctions that vegetation will increase in erosion phenomena, especially in areas where the impact of erosion is high, resulting in loss of land, loss and change of biodiversity, and so on.

Effects That Create River error and barriers building

The flow of rivers creates a decline in the amount of sedies that pass to the lower part of the stream.

The deviation also creates a direct loss of river slopes, specific side habitats. Depositment claims cause problems in the lower part of the stream, to the effect of unbalancing the bed with the surrounding environment.

Construction of barriers on the other hand affects the loss of cultural traditions in the use of natural resources and changes ecosystems as a result of construction and water change.

Other HECs in the Alps

In Alps' territory even without the new HECs, a considerable number are found HECs, which for the most part are small HECs with a capacity of 0.115- 1.4 MW except for the Fierze, Koman Hydro-Verdrorals of the Vaut of the Sea, which joins the HEC group with capacity of 250 MW to 500-600MW.

Among the functional HECs located on Alps territory, we mention: Fierza hydropower plant (with capacity of 500 MW, of the Koman (600 MW), of the Way of the Sea (250 MW), Ashta's HEC, consisting of power station Ashta 1 and Ashta 2 (The full capacity of the two HECs is 53 (MW), as well as the Hidrocentrals that are found in the villages of Tamara, Selca, Curray, Interly, Vukel, Cerem and Lekby (all with Capacity 0.1-1.4) MW). Monitor/