Eco-awareness welcomes the government's decision to revoke the concessions of the small hydropower plants in the territory of the Shar Planina National Park, but also calls on the Ministry of Environment and Spatial Planning to make a decision to revoke the concessions of the small hydropower plants in NP Mavrovo.

According to Eco-awareness, small hydropower plants cause irreparable damage to rivers and ecosystems and must not be built in protected areas.

- The government yesterday made a very important and "revolutionary decision" to terminate seven concessions for small hydropower plants in the newly established Shar Mountain National Park, and with this step it was possible to protect important locations for the aquatic and coastal biodiversity of Shar Mountain. Once again, we unequivocally welcome the decision on Shar Planina and call on the Ministry of the Environment to make a decision to revoke the concessions of the small hydropower plants in NP Mavrovo. Such a decision will be the first and most important step in starting the process for the re-proclamation of our oldest national park, in which for more than ten years, as a result of unsustainable management, huge damages have been caused to the ecosystems, biodiversity and values ​​of the park, states Eco-svest.

Gjorgi Mitrevski from Eco-awareness believes that the withdrawal of the concessions of small hydropower plants in the territory of the Shar Planina National Park is only the first step.

- Concessions have also been issued in NP Mavrovo, which must be terminated as soon as possible in order to enable sustainable and integrated management of the park, said Mitrevski.

This, he adds, can be a turning point in the approach to the protection of nature, and above all of rivers.

- In our legislation, but also through ratified international conventions, we have strong mechanisms that, if properly applied, can help us throughout the country to have clean and healthy rivers. They can be protected for various reasons – because of their importance for local communities, the importance for protecting biodiversity or because of the uniqueness of the landscape that they have created over the millennia, says the Executive Director of Eco-awareness Ana Čolović Lesoska.

Eco-awareness underlines that unobstructed rivers are one of the most important elements for the health of ecosystems. National parks and protected areas are key to protecting and preserving biological diversity, and they also play an invaluable role in maintaining and improving the quality of the water we drink, protecting groundwater and improving air quality.