Residents protest in Zvezda: Water project with poor standards, pipes are being covered with stones

2025-08-10 11:17:00, Aktualitet CNA

Residents protest in Zvezda: Water project with poor standards, pipes are being

Residents of the village of Zvezda in the administrative unit of Maliq protested this Sunday, expressing their dissatisfaction with the way the drinking water supply project is being implemented. According to them, the works, which started two weeks ago, are being carried out with poor standards, risking that after decades of absence, the village will once again face supply problems.

The main concerns are related to the quality of the pipes, the lack of necessary protection and protection on them, as well as the fact that the drinking water network is being installed next to the sewage network, risking pollution. Residents say that some of the pipes have been left open, exposing them to damage and contamination.

"I've seen water pipes being covered with stones, the first truck that passes will break. Without a single grain up and down, from what I've seen, granite is added to water pipes, signs are put on them to make them stand out. I believe it will break with the first truck."

"First of all, there is no work order from this tender, sewage was needed, then drinking water. How will the sewage be handled now? This is the fourth time pipes have been installed without responsibility. The 3 that were installed should be held accountable, we do not trust that this work will bring us water. If the sewage is not done, this is useless, our village has a position where you can rake stones and they come down, not with sewage. The mayor has no interest in our village and he is right that Zvezda should be with Maliqin, we do not know him. We only know Korça."

Residents speak of poor quality pipes, laid without a protective layer of gravel, exposing them to damage from heavy vehicles. In some segments, the drinking water network is being laid next to the sewage system, which they say will mix the two systems and make the water undrinkable.

Some of the works have been left open, allowing pipes to be exposed to dirt and damage. Residents also raise the issue of a lack of coordination, with the sewage system not being completed while work on the drinking water network has begun.

"Today, as residents of Zvezda, we have gathered because we are concerned about drinking water. The mayor promised us a fund, he will bring you water, and he did. Now the investments that are being made, the work that is being done by the company is not of quality. It has been 2 weeks since they started, almost a quarter of the village has been completed, the sewers have been opened. The pipeline used is not for drinking water, the granite to cover the pipes has not been put in. It is not known what they have done below, the pipes will be torn by the trucks. The water will not be drinkable, because the sewage and drinking water pipes will be mixed."

"Technically, the pipes are not laid in optimal conditions, with gravel, a protective net, the truck with gravel has just arrived when 50% of the work has been done. We want the work to be done properly. They have left the pipes open, rats and snakes will get in, I don't know why they left them out. We have been without water for 30 years and even today it is not being done properly, money is being given. We will be left without water. They are building the lines and they haven't said anything."

Residents demand that the water tank be built in Zvezda, where sufficient resources are found, and not in the village of Burimas as the current project envisages. For them, after 30 years without drinking water, this investment was a great hope, but the way it was implemented is making them believe that the history of water shortages could be repeated./ CNA