Convenient fires/ Ina Zhupa: A single match can turn a protected area into a resort under Law 21/2024

Ina Zhupa, chairwoman of the Committee on Culture, Tourism and the Diaspora, has reignited the debate over the consequences that, in her view, Law 21/2024 could have for protected areas, particularly when these territories are affected by fires.

In a video published from her April 2024 interpellation with Mirela Kumbaro, the Minister of Environment and Tourism, Zhupa explains that the principle of “adaptability” could be used to change the designation of an area damaged by flames.

According to her, instead of restoring a burned territory to its previous condition through reforestation, it could be used for the construction of hotels, resorts, photovoltaic parks or wind farms.

Zhupa previously challenged Law 21/2024 before the Constitutional Court as well, but her request to repeal it was rejected. Meanwhile, she has submitted a new initiative to Parliament aimed at repealing the law.

Ina Zhupa’s full statement:

Law 21/2024, which Ina Zhupa describes as unconstitutional and scandalous, allows, according to her, fires to serve as a starting point for changing the designation of protected areas. Hotels, resorts, photovoltaic parks and wind farms could appear in these territories.

Zhupa is calling for the repeal of Law 21/2024, arguing that this would mean there would be even fewer “convenient fires.”

During her April 2024 interpellation with Mirela Kumbaro, she illustrated her concern by using a lighter and a match that costs 50 old lek. According to Zhupa, either one would be enough to turn a protected area into a construction site.

She refers to Article 2 of the law, which establishes the principle of adaptability. According to her interpretation, if a protected area changes over time and no longer has this status, there is no obligation to restore it to its original condition.

To make her argument clearer, Zhupa mentions the case of Pishë Poro: if the forests there were burned by a fire started with a lighter or a match, the principle of adaptability could favor the construction of a resort instead of reforestation. According to her, this is the protection that the “construction” minister, Mirela Kumbaro, offers to protected areas.