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Box 3: Albania as coastal tourist destination

In 2015, almost 40% of bathing waters (31 bathing sites) in Albania were classified as ‘poor’. A great majority of these bathing water sites were situated on the coastline of Durres, one of the main tourist and country’s second largest city (EEA, 2016a). The national authorities have paid significant attention to the water sector in the Durres area in recent years. The World Bank also supported investments in the Durres water supply network, and the construction of water transmission pipeline to link villages to the city’s water supply system and reduce losses in the water distribution network. In addition, the local sewage network and its transfer capacity from the tourist beach area to the wastewater treatment plant were also enhanced (World Bank, 2014). In the recent years, five wastewater treatment plants providing treatment for almost half a million residents have been constructed in Albania (EEA, 2018).

These measures gradually contributed to better bathing and overall water quality in Albania. In 2019, only 7 bathing water sites (or 5.9%) were classified as ‘poor’ which is a significant reduction since 2015 when 31 bathing water sites (almost 40%) were assessed as ‘poor’. Improvement of bathing water quality offers great potential for coastal tourism. The tourism industry in Albania contributes more than 8% of the country’s GDP. Improving bathing water quality by ensuring clean and safe bathing waters is paving the way for Albania to become an established and well recognised tourist destination.

Map 1: Bathing water quality in Albania in 2015 (left) and 2019 (right).

Source: National boundaries: EEA; bathing water data and coordinates: reporting countries' authorities.