You could tell by the sound. It was night and they just said: "Get up!" It took us from morning until tomorrow night to get it out. We didn't know what to do with so many fish. We sent it to Dubrovnik to be sold..."
One of the most experienced Montenegrin fishermen, Dželal Hodžić, with many stories about the night between October 20 and 21, 1971, when only one calimer caught 23 tons of fish on Bojana. "It was possible. The fish migrated to spawn," says Hodžić, who is also the executive director of the non-governmental organization "Zeleni Korak".
Today, Montenegrin fishermen can only reminisce about the strength of the migrating flock, but also about the former richness of the fish stock in Lake Skadar. Metal constructions interlaced with ordinary fishing nets, placed along the entire width of the Bojana riverbed in Shkodra, prevent the migration of fish in both directions and return them to harsh reality.
The nets are set up in the shape of the Latin letter "V" which drives the flocks straight into the trap, from where the fishermen catch them with improvised callimers. Montenegrin fishermen and ecologists have been pointing out for a long time that these barriers, or remotes, as they are called in Albania, are one of the main reasons why there are fewer migratory species in the lake every year.
In the end, they note, this can lead to an ecological disaster and the disappearance of certain species, such as the case with the Adriatic sturgeon, which has not been in Lake Skadar since the XNUMXs.
Montenegrin fishermen consider the reduction in the catch of grasshoppers, carp and similar species, which migrate upstream from the sea to Skadar Lake for spawning purposes, upstream of the Bojana River. The damming also has a bad effect on the already endangered eel for which Lake Skadar is famous, and which in its reproductive period crosses an incredible path to the Sargasso Sea.
Although shared, Europe's fisheries policy leaves it up to countries to regulate freshwater fisheries individually. The unhindered migration of fish, or the ban on fencing, is an implied rule of every European document and a good practice that policy makers rely on.
Remotes, as a traditional fishing tool, have been used in Albania for centuries. Through different periods, there was always a great interest in owning this hunting ground. More than half a century ago, it was also used for industrial fishing.
Testimonies and studies show that until the late 80s and mid-90s, the Albanian authorities controlled the operation of those "gates" in Bojana, so that after dramatic social and political events and changes in Albania, a period of completely closed passage followed, which, without institutional supervision , used by local Albanian families.
Today, they are distributed in the hands of concessionaires, under the supervision of competent services and inspections. The rules are established by law, but, according to the testimony of individuals, the possibilities of abuse are still high. The inhabitants of Shkodër are reluctant to talk about it, accustomed to the fact that the network is almost always broken.
We visited Daljane in August, when, according to the law, the pass must be open. The removed parts of the metal structure confirmed this, but not the crucified Calimer hanging in the air. A few days later, we did not find the net, and our attempts to record that part of the river with a camera were prevented by two young men who approached in a boat and threatened that we should not film private property.
Everything according to the law, and there are fewer and fewer fish
The Albanian government claims that in recent years this fishing tool has been managed exclusively by law. "And the law is very clear," points out Roland Kristo, Deputy Minister of Agriculture in the Albanian Government.
"There are two basic principles that we must respect. The first is the time when the remotes should be open, without any kind of nets and the fish can move freely. The second, the size of the openings in the networks and the networks that are put on remotes", he explains in an interview for the Center for Investigative Journalism of Montenegro and the Balkan Research Network (CIN-CG/BIRN).
According to the Law on Fisheries of Albania, the dalani on Bojana must be open from March 15 to August 31, to be closed in the second half of the year. The concession is granted for two years, and the current concessionaire, they claim, adheres to the rules, which is taken care of by the Organization for the Management and Protection of Lake Skadar.
"Dalani are not from today, it is a tradition. Since 2016, they have been the responsibility of our organization. They are open for half a year and then closed. And in those six months when they are closed, there are days when it should be open. These days we are in control. We don't do it, "luckily", or to favor someone. We just want to support the multiplication of fish in Lake Skadar", explains the head of the organization, Arijan Cinari.
The stakes, he believes, are too high for anyone to dare to break the rules. "I don't think there are any heroes who would risk their license for a day, two, or a week of poaching," says Cinari.
Ichthyologist Danilo Mrdak explains that such rules do not contribute much to restoring the fish stock. He describes the essence of the tool itself, which is to stop and catch the fish right at the time of migration.
"I don't know their regulations and I don't know what time the bars are closed, but I guess it's the middle of the year when migration takes place. Because no one is crazy to keep those devices closed when the fish are not migrating," says Mrdak.
The grid problem has been going on for too long He and the Montenegrin fishermen do not have a dilemma: remoteness is the main reason why the grasshopper does not enter Lake Skadar and why there are almost no cipola and kuble.
"Albanians have closed the lake, no one can pass through it." Ever since the time of Enver Hoxha, it has been closed and hunted and they don't allow fish here... We have nothing this year; gambora, face... nothing. Once with sticks, now with nets. Only a little kubla," Marko Mašanović, a member of the Professional Fishermen's Association of Ulcinj, told CIN-CG/BIRN.
Precise catch statistics for the last 40 years do not exist. When the social company "Industriaimport" that managed fishing on the lake collapsed and the "Ribarstvo" factory in Rijeka Crnojevića closed, the only reliable register of catches on Lake Skadar disappeared. Relatively reliable data for the catch in the period 1947 - 1976 indicate that in that period the catch of species that migrate from the sea to the lake decreased dramatically from year to year. "In the last 50 years, not only the total amount of catch has varied, but the share of individual species in the total catch has also varied. This particularly applies to two of the four most important species (the mullet and the sablefish), as well as to the presence of some species that are not interesting for fisheries (eel, flounder, grasshopper, chub, trout and sturgeon)", states the study "Assessment of the impact on the environment". between the Morača dams on the fish fauna of the Morača River and Lake Skadar (Danilo Mrdak, 2009). Even after a decade, its author has no dilemma. "There is no other reason why the grasshopper, that is, the flounder, does not enter and is no longer present in the quantities that fishermen are used to, in Lake Skadar. There is no other reason why there is no kubla. "Since democracy came to Albania, our fishermen are in constant trouble, because we have a constant decrease in catches... Only in years when the water level is above the bars does something manage to get through... But we depend on God," says Mrdak. Given that Lake Skadar is the common territory of two states, it must be a common concern and interest. The rules between the two countries must be harmonized. The Montenegrin Law on Freshwater Fisheries, adopted in March last year, recognizes fishing tools and equipment. It, in contrast to the Albanian one, in Article 19 prohibits any water partitioning with permanent or temporary facilities that prevent the free passage of fish and other aquatic organisms.
"The truth is that this problem has existed for a long time and that it is trying to be solved. We separately initiated the initiative at the joint session of the two governments on July 3 last year and suggested that it be approached systematically, not "ad hoc". An agreement should be made on the management of resources in the lake and Bojana", says Slavica Pavlović from the Montenegrin Ministry of Agriculture. Montenegro will request that through the third phase of the project Preservation and sustainable use of Lake Ohrid, Prespa and Skadar, which is carried out by the German organization GIZ, a scientific assessment will be made on whether and in what way the dams on Bojana affect population reduction.
"It is evident that there is a decrease in cipola and kubla and we need to get precise data in order to prepare a plan for the management of the lake. Anything that prevents the unhindered movement of fish is prohibited. "Freshwater fishing is primarily a national issue, but if it manifests itself outside the borders, it must be resolved by certain agreements and there must be clear rules - one country cannot suffer because of the negative decisions of another," Pavlović is categorical.
Red-listed eel
It is especially important to protect the eel, which has been on the IUCN, The International Union for Conservation of Nature, red list of endangered species since 2010.
The recommendations of the European Union and the General Commission for Fisheries in the Mediterranean for constant monitoring of eels are also clear. It is on Annex III of the Barcelona Convention, and there is a separate EU directive on eel (EC No. 1100/2007). Fishery data indicate that it is at an all-time low.
"We have to have a common approach. To create a joint management plan for the eel as a resource. When she comes in February, March, April as a younger one, she can enter Bojana and our system fills up, but the problem is that we don't allow her to leave," says ichthyologist Danilo Mrdak.
"It is found all over Europe. There are many more on the Atlantic coast, so this is a little bit to prevent a "drop in the ocean". But it is not right that we reap the benefits of a good number on the Atlantic coast, and we don't really care, we don't know if our younger eel is from Spain, Albania, Greece. We take good catches from various sides, but we don't let 40 percent come back and try to spawn."
Nikola Vujanović, who has been casting traditional net traps for eels for ten years, confirms that the number of eels in the lake is decreasing year by year.
"More and more new tools and knowledge are needed to capture something. I remember when I started, I hunted ten times more than now," says Nikola, talking about the period fifteen years ago.
As the reason for the decrease in the amount of eels in the lake, he cites, among other things, the barriers on Bojana: "They stop everything that goes to one side of the river or the other." Thus, all the eels that go to the sea to spawn in autumn are caught in their nets. This must be reflected in the general situation", he explains.
The Albanian Government rejects such claims: "The eel is endangered all over the world, the reasons are hard to find", says Roland Kristo, Deputy Minister of Agriculture in the Albanian Government. "The fact is that there are no fewer eels only here. It is less in the Mediterranean Sea as well. And as far as exports are concerned, neither Albania nor Montenegro can export it to European countries, because it is forbidden for EU countries to buy eel from countries outside the Union, and Montenegrin and Albanian markets are small, "explains Kristo and adds that it is nobody's business interest to work illegally. As for the relationship between the two sides of Lake Skadar, Montenegro is blamed for pollution, poaching, and non-compliance with numerous established rules. Koce, the traditional way of hunting eels in Montenegro, is prohibited in Albania.
"We found that two or three rows of nets were being placed under the water, and the width of ten meters that we initially allowed, reached one hundred meters and that's when we said "stop". However, we were not convinced of that during the filming in Shkodër. Arijan Cinari explained to us this summer that their organization removes illegal tools from the lake and that the work will be completed in a few days. It didn't happen even a month later.
Environmentalist Dijana Beko explains that eels are threatened by pollution, poaching and climate change. When asked about the influence of Daylan, he diplomatically answers:
"Dam management, according to regulations or not, significantly affects the number and species of fish. If it is managed well, it affects the fish, if not, it affects the fish and the life in Lake Skadar".
They mention the problem, but they don't solve it
There are numerous issues that the two parties need to coordinate and resolve for sustainable fisheries management. The problem of the bars on the Bojana River was repeatedly mentioned at meetings, seminars and workshops where the Albanian, Macedonian and Montenegrin sides met within the framework of the GIZ project.
Sustainable fisheries management of Prespa, Ohrid and Skadar lakes is possible, but has never been initiated. The result of those talks indicated that this problem should be solved at a higher level between the states. It is an interstate problem that cannot be solved by talks between fishermen, fishing societies or ichthyologists.
That "poaching and the use of illegal means of catching fish in the Bojana River, especially the use of fish traps, had a negative impact on the migratory species of fish in the lake", was stated in the Management Plan of Skadar Lake in Albania. In a study prepared by Albanian, Montenegrin and international organizations under the auspices of the EU, it was also stated that the management of the fish stock in the lake further aggravates the lack of effective cross-border planning.
The National Parks of Montenegro note that in the coming period, a targeted research should be carried out that will provide precise data on the number of migratory fish in Lake Skadar, and after that, an interstate commission composed of ichthyologists, representatives of fishing associations, the National Park should be formed, which would visit locations where there are grids on Bojana that would give an opinion on the situation on the ground, the extent of the problem, and after that at the level of the ministries of agriculture, and perhaps at the level of high state representatives of the two countries, discuss solving the problem. The Montenegrin ministry will demand exactly that.
"The request from our side will be for science to answer whether and in what way grids affect population reduction," says Slavica Pavlović.
The doge's and sultan's coffers were filling up
The value of the Bojana lake and basin is exceptional in the economic sense. Throughout history, attempts have been made to regulate the use of remotes. It is recorded that in 1908 the municipality of Skadar earned 36 thousand French francs from it, which was a lot of money.
Journalist and publicist Mustafa Canka tells how throughout history that area has always been interesting: "If you know that you can fish in that area all the time, that there is a constant migration of fish, then you also know the value of that." In the cadastre of Shkodër from 1416, remote villages were entered. Hunting grounds are located in the cadastre of the municipality of Skadar. You have it right there recorded who they belong to. They could be leased, the annual fee was determined, as well as the total income of the state. It was said that it brought profit to the Venetians, and when the Ottomans occupied Skadar, it was said that they brought significant income. It went to the state coffers, to the sultan. The whole space was always interesting and valorized, as we would say today." He notes that during the Principality of Montenegro, there was an agreement with the Skadar Sanjakat that on three days a year, when eels and grasshoppers migrate, fences would be erected so that the people of Ulcinj could also hunt.
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