Munich City Council will decide tomorrow, Tuesday, on a petition concerning the construction of an airport in Albania. The airport is to be built in the middle of a nature reserve. Flughafen München GmbH (FMG – the limited company operating Munich Airport) is involved in an advisory capacity in the project.
Two flocks of greater flamingos, with the control tower of the planned airport under construction in the background. The construction of the airport in the immediate vincinity of Narta Lagoon is not only a disaster for birdlife in the area, but also questionable in terms of flight safety.
© Zydjon Vorpsi/ PPNEA
At the Vlora airport construction site, work is now being carried out day and night.
© Annette Spangenberg/ EuroNatur
Vlora airport seems to be the prelude to a large-scale tourism initiative by the Albanian government in the country’s south. This pristine stretch of beach near Zvërnec has also attracted the attention of foreign investors.
© Annette Spangenberg/ EuroNaturMunich, Radolfzell, Vlora. Construction work on Vlora airport near Narta Lagoon in Albania is progressing despite a call by the Bern Convention to halt construction and protests by nature conservation organisations. Albania’s second international airport is currently being built in an outstanding nature reserve of great importance for international bird migration – with the involvement of Munich Airport International GmbH (MAI), a subsidiary of FMG. According to its own statement, MAI is active “in an advisory capacity.” The petition calls on Munich mayor Dieter Reiter to speak out on FMG’s supervisory board in favour of the withdrawal of MAI from consulting and management services for the planning and operation of Vlora airport, which is currently under construction.
“The meeting agenda of the city’s responsible economic committee has already recommended a rejection of the petition,” Christian Hierneis explains, chair of BN’s Munich district group. “The City of Munich is a 23 percent shareholder in Munich Airport, it cannot simply shirk its responsibility. Albania may be far away, but that does not mean that one may turn a blind eye here in Munich to this enormous destruction of nature!”
BN’s chief policy officer Martin Geilhufe explains: “BUND Naturschutz was on site in 2023 to gain a first-hand impression. We have seen the flocks of flamingos living in Narta Lagoon – the airplanes would fly right through this protected area.”
The international nature conservation organisation EuroNatur has been active in Albania for many years and supports its project partners on the ground, also with legal action. Gabriel Schwaderer, EuroNatur’s executive director, explains: “In addition to the Bern Convention, the European Parliament and the European Commission have strongly criticised the construction of the airport in a European nature reserve. We call on the Albanian government to stop this ecologically harmful and, in our view, illegal project. The City of Munich, the Free State of Bavaria and the Federal Republic of Germany should take appropriate action and withdraw completely from the project.”
Background information:
- Narta Lagoon: Narta Lagoon is situated in the Vjosa delta, directly on one of the last unspoilt parts of Albania’s Adriatic coast. In 2023, the river Vjosa achieved wider recognition: after ten years of campaigning by EuroNatur and its partner organisations Riverwatch and EcoAlbania, it was declared the first European wild river national park and put under protection by the Albanian government. The construction of Vlora airport was promoted at the same time.
- Munich Airport operating company: Munich Airport International GmbH (MAI) is a wholly owned subsidiary of Flughafen München GmbH (FMG). Shareholders of FMG are the Free State of Bavaria (51 percent), the Federal Republic of Germany (26 percent) and Bavaria’s capital, Munich (23 percent).
Queries:
Christian Stielow, EuroNatur
Tel: 07732-927215
E-Mail: christian.stielow(at)euronatur.org
Felix Hälbich, Pressesprecher, Referent für Medien und Kommunikation
Tel. 089 / 514 69 76 11; 0171 / 337 54 59
E-Mail: felix.haelbich(at)bund-naturschutz.de
Katharina Horn, Geschäftsführerin BN-München
Tel.: 0172 / 6956329
E-Mail.: katharina.horn(at)bund-naturschutz.de