Destruction of Rivers

A global problem!

What is the water pollution?Water pollutionincludes all of the waste materials that cannot be naturally broken down by water. In otherwords, anything that is added to the water, above and beyond its capacity to break it down, ispollution. Pollution, in certain circumstances, can be caused by nature itself, such as when waterflows through soils with high acidities. But more often that not, human actions are responsiblefor the pollutants that enter the water.

But the declining health of almost all the world's major river ecosystems is a key factor in many of the most important symptoms of the global environmental crisis, from the collapse of coastal fisheries to the spread of waterborne diseases; from steadily worsening flood disasters to the deterioration in drinking water supply; from eroding shorelines to the loss of wetlands; from the extinction of river dolphins to the pollution of estuaries.

Fig.2

In 1992 the United States National Academy of Sciences' report The Restoration of Aquatic Ecosystems was unable to find any systematic analysis of the extent of the destruction of river systems in the United States.

Fig.3

River ecosystems can be degraded by:

Many human interventions,

Including pollution,

watershed destruction and channelization.

Many human interventions(see fig.4):

Fig.4

Including pollution(see fig.5)

Fig.5

watershed destruction and channelization(see fig,6)

Fig.6

But it is the impact of large dams that is now having the most immediate and far reaching effects. They cause huge changes in flows, transforming the character of such major rivers as the Nile or the Indus(fig.7&fig.8).

Nile River(fig.7) Indus River(fig.8)

The Use of the Rivers in Kosovo

Kosovo has a lot of rivers which can be found in most of the parts of the land. The rivers in Kosovo are divided in 4 main basins and in different regions: Drini i Bardhe, Ibri, Morava e Binçës and Lepenci (each having a sub-basin of their own). Being located in the center of the Balkans, Kosovo’s rivers flow into 3 different seas which are: the Adriatic, the Aegean and the Black Sea.

Rivers in Kosovo are mainly used for drinking water, agriculture, industry; however, the level of pollution is being higher and higher each day, which is a very serious concern for the citizens of Kosovo.

In order to get an idea of the water (river) distribution, in particular the 4 main basins in Kosovo, the following map shows details:

Source: Establishing of Monitoring Network on Kosovo River (Drini I Bardhe, Marova e Binces, Lepenc and Sitnica) [Kosova map] Retreived Oct 10, 2012 (fig.9).

Water Resources , Pollution and Quality

Kosovo is a place with limited water resources. There are few rivers that pass through Kosovo, and even fewer that have their sources in Kosovo. The number of natural lakes is also very low. Being in such a state, Kosovo is in great need for drinkable water, which especially escalates during the heat of the summer months, where there is almost no rainfall to feed the temporary river, and there is not enough water for everyone.

Even though the problem of water supply has been very acute and grows more and more from year to year, the citizens of Kosovo create an additional problem of polluting water, thereby decreasing the already low amount of drinkable water further.

Water supply works in Prishtina (fig.10).

Water Quality

Kosovo has a lot of problems with rivers pollution, this problem is due to non-existing wastewater treatment and waste disposal. The lowland rivers are the rivers that have the most pollution.

In Kosovo only about 28% of all the homes are connected to a sewage system. Makes you think what happens to all the other 72%? Yes it’s just what you think, that sewage is disposed into different downstream rivers, contaminated surfaces and ground water and this usually leads to wells having very poor drinkable water (Kosovo State of The Environment Report, 2003,fig,11.).

Fig,11

Drini i Bardhë river, is known to be the longest river in Kosova; which has length of (122 km), unfortunately it is being destroyed form the high exploitation of its bed, done form the private companies (using for private needs) that are taking quartz gravel from it. This river continues being with no protecting from the government . Besides damaging the natural beauty of this river, there are recognized many other problems that were caused: problems with ecosystem, damage of agricultural lands, water supply, and flood risks, too.

Drini i Bardhë

Source: Drini I Bardhe (2011) Retrieved Nov. 02, 2012.fig12

In the future we have to do more to protect our

rivers , because our life is depending by them.

If we don’t have caution for our ambient the earth

will go forward destruction , and the

primary factor on this is human being.

We have to do more to purify them with hydro factory , who take care about maintenance of the pollution water .

Worked by: Valmir Daqaj Edon Morina

A presentation in English Language;

Date:25/11/2014