GUIDELINES FOR OPTIMAL MANAGMENT OF LAKE SKADAR
The concept of a “Lake Contract” is similar to that of a “River Contract”. It is best described as an
instrument to allow “the adoption of a system of regulations which prioritizes public use, economic
yield, social value and environmental sustainability when researching effective solutions”, 2000.
The River Contract therefore enters into a regulatory context represented by European Directives
2000/60/EC (EU Water Framework Directive) and 2007/60/EC (Assessment and Management of
Flood Risks), Law 14/06 (which ratifies the principals of the European Landscape Convention) and
of Italian state regulations such as: Legislative Degree 152/60 and Law 183/89.
“Lake Contracts” are negotiated planning instruments necessary for optimal strategic planning in
lake and river basin requalification. The adjective “strategic” indicates a course of “collaborativeplanning” in which methodology and course of action are divided amongst all interested parties.
This process of strategic planning is aimed at creating enduring development scenarios for the
basins, developed with equal contribution from all interested parties, and aimed at the recovery of
local environmental criticalities. Since the very beginning it was clear that meeting this objective
would require state intervention and a greater cultural awareness to ensure that aquatic
environments and, more generally, basin territories be perceived and governed as “living
landscapes”. The cultural approach is borne both out of the European Parliament’s policies on
water resources and, on an international level, the guidelines promised by the United Nations. The
UN in fact, has chosen the hydrographic basin as a reference model for policies promoting
sustainability and biodiversity.
Some European countries already have consolidated experience in river contracts based on national
laws that regulate the promotion of voluntary agreements for the requalification, territorial
development and environmental protection of river basins. The “contrat de riviere” was established
for the first time in France in 1981. Its original objective was to combat the degradation of water
quality. Since the fist river contract, signed in 1983 for the basin of the “LaThur” river, around
fifteen other contracts have been drawn up which now cover an area of more than 10% of the
country. In Italy, one of the first regions to set up a framework of development for water bodies
was Lombardy followed by Piedmont and Emilia Romagna.
The term “requalification of basins” is to be interpreted in the broadest sense since it refers to a
wide range of environmental-landscape aspects as established by both national law and the
European Landscape Convention. The creation of enduring development models of underbasins
involves the adoption of environmental landscape requalification processes that are sensitive to the
“founding matrices”, that is the intrinsic characteristics of the territory (its hydro-geology,
geomorphology, evolution of its natural and anthropic ecosystems). As such, the analysis of a
territory and any course of action must be carried out with an understanding of the “local history”.
The River Contract is therefore the signing of an agreement that allows for a system of rules in
which the criteria of public use, economic performance, social value and environmental
sustainability are priorities in the search for effective solutions for the requalification of river
basins. The three elements in this agreement are:
 community (municipalities, provinces, regions, associations, companies, citizens, etc.)
 territory (land, water bodies, settlements, etc.)
 a range of various policies and projects
The methodology behind establishing a Lake Contract can be divided into progressive steps:
 the construction of a framework of local knowledge that includes environmental criticalities
and environmental and landscape values alike and that bases a plan of action on local
policies and projects.
 creation of a medium-long term strategic model
 devising, and subsequently applying, a multi-purpose evaluation model to evaluate current
and future policies
 the proposal of a plan of action to put strategic models in place and to ultimately achieve the
shared goals of environmental and land requalification.
 the implementation of educational programs to inform the local community.
The size of the territory participating in a Lake Contract is naturally defined by the size of its
hydrographic basin and therefore the area could include several towns, provinces, regions and even
states. In cases where the area included in the contract contains a lake not only should the lake
itself be taken into consideration but also its banks, tributaries and effluents.
LAKE SKADAR CONTRACT
Lake Skadar is the largest lake in the Balkan Peninsular. It is named after the city of Skadar which
straddles the border between Albania and Montenegro and is located on the far south-east side of
the lake. The lake sits on a karsic depression and the depth of the lake can vary enormously (from 6
to 60 metres, the average being 44). Its surface area also varies greatly according to season, the
average surface area is estimated at between 370 and 450 km². The lake is fed by different torrents
and water ways all the way from east Montenegro to east Albania. The Buna River is the only
effluent of Lake Skadar and joins the river Drin after around 1.5km.
The Lake Contract requires the active participation of all interested parties and is based upon the
following ideological principals.
Horizontal and Vertical Subsidiarity
The coordination of the various institutional bodies participating in Lake Contracts is based on the
principal of horizontal and vertical subsidiarity. Horizontal subsidiaries include smaller local
institutions of a comparable level, but which operate in different areas and/or in different fields of
expertise. Vertical subsidiaries include larger institutional bodies that have much greater powers.
The principal of horizontal subsidiarity requires that, on a local scale, there is collaboration between
the administration, citizens and local collectives. Vertical subsidiarity is based on the principal of
subsidiarity between institutions (Local Councils, Parks, Provinces, Regions, Basin Area
Authorities, Central Government, European Union), and encompasses various territorial levels.
Shared Local Development
A successful governance of intervention for hydrographic basin territories which takes an ecosystemic approach must seek the support of local communities. In this case that includes the greater
region of Skadar, the city of Skadar itself, the nearby municipalities of Shiroka and Zogaj as well as
those located on the eastern banks of the river. All should actively participate in deciding the best
course of action to take in order to meet the proposed requalification objectives.
Sustainability
A local debate on requalification of the basin territory must identify the best methods to achieve the
so called “Equilibrium of the three E’s”; ecology, equity, economy. The local community
collectively decides on a course of action for the requalification of the land that does not pose a
threat to eco-systems nor to built-up land.
By implementing policies and fostering cooperation and shared responsibility amongst the various
levels of government and governmental bodies the Lake Skadar Contract aims to achieve the
following objectives:
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water quality control
risk prevention and reduction
sustainable land management
sustainable use of water resources
expansion of recreational-tourism sector
Lake Contract management
The methodology to implement the Lake Contract includes the following phases:
 In-depth local analysis to create a framework of local knowledge: a clear evaluation of
the local area to determine if there are any possible threats or natural risks present is
indispensable. Consequently, all proposals for planned action must be in line with target
objectives.
 Fostering Collaboration: all parties belonging to the contractual agreement must play an
active part in all decision making.
 Project Management: To reach the strategic objectives and implement the courses of action
set out in the contract a coordinator has been appointed to oversee the project and work
closely with all the interested parties.
The contract can be undersigned by Public Bodies or Non-profit Private Organizations, monitoring
of the projects will be based on indicators aimed at assessing the correct implementation of the
policies set out in the contract.