United Nations International Educational, Scientific and Hydrological Cultural Organization Programme INTEGRATED RESOURCES MANAGEMENT PLAN (IRMP) FOR THE BUNA/BOJANA AREA INTEGRATED RESOURCES (Albania and Montenegro) MANAGEMENT PLAN (IRMP) The Transboundary Integrated Resource Management Plan for the Buna/Bojana Area, prepared in the framework of the MedPartnership project, is the practical application of the Integrative Methodological Framework (IMF) in the transboundary area of Albania and Montenegro. The Plan considers upstream impacts from agriculture, tourism and urbanisation on coastal FOR THE BUNA/BOJANA AREA and water resources, and marine impacts on the river delta and coastal aquifers. This multi-sectoral approach resulted in measures for strengthening cooperation for restoration and safeguarding of the Area’s ecosystems, increasing resilience to climate change and supporting creation of jobs and social welfare. The central measures relate to the establishment of a transboundary governance mechanism to ensure that relevant issues of transboundary importance are considered and acted upon bilaterally. Furthermore, the project resulted in drafting and initiating official consultations between the two countries on a Framework Agreement for the Sustainable Management of Skadar/Shkodra Lake Basin and Buna/Bojana Area. This is one of the few international examples of a legal agreement for an integrated approach for the management of river basins, coastal and marine areas thus demonstrating the new water management paradigm - “ from source to sea” - on a transboundary level. The UNEP/MAP - GEF MedPartnership (2009 – 2015) was a collective effort of leading organizations (regional, international, non-governmental, etc.) and countries sharing the Mediterranean Sea, towards the protection of the marine and coastal environment of the Mediterranean. The MedPartnership was led by UNEP/MAP and the World Bank and financially supported by the Global Environment Facility (GEF), and other donors, including the EU and all participating countries. INTEGRATED RESOURCES MANAGEMENT PLAN (IRMP) FOR THE BUNA/BOJANA AREA Editors and main authors: Dimitris Faloutsos, Marina Marković and Brian Shipman National coordinator for Albania: Zamir Dedej National focal point for Montenegro: Jelena Knezević Authors of Part C “Water Resources Management: Situation Analysis”: Dimitris Faloutsos, Nikolaos Skoulikidis, Elias Dimitriou and Konstantinos Gritzalis Authors of thematic studies used for preparation of the Integrated Resources Management Plan: Lavanya Anneboina, Irakli Beka, Hamdi Besku, Vasilije Bušković, Zamir Dedej, Damiano Delrosso, Thanas Goga, Antonio Guarnieri, Fjoralba Hanxhari, Jadranka Kaludjerović, Đuro Karanikić, Genti Kromidha, Vesna Mačić, Anil Markanya (supervision and support of the thematic study on climate change risk assessment), Miriam Ndini, Franka Paloka, Darko Pekić, Nadia Pinardi, Dragana Radević, Dragan Radojević, Valbona Smixiu, Tim Taylor and Jovana Vujačić Reviews and contributions to the preparation of the measures: Matthew Lagod, Jelena Knežević, Andrea Merla, Michael Scoullos and Željka Škaričić Editing: David McDonald Translation: Esmeralda Subashi (Albanian), Azra Kosovac and Jelena Pralas (Montenegrin) Graphic design and layout: Anna Mortreux The views expressed in this document do not necessarily represent the official views of UNEP, UNESCO, GEF and MAP. This document does not put in question international frontiers or boundaries, or the legal status of any territory, city or area presented. The cited institutions fully disclaim any liability that is in any way related to the use of the contents of this document. The preparation of this document was initiated by GWP-Med, PAP/RAC and UNESCO-IHP and coordinated and published under its leadership. ©2017 GWP-Med, PAP/RAC and UNESCO-IHP For bibliographic purposes this document may be cited as: GWP-Med, PAP/RAC, UNESCO-IHP (2015): Integrated Resources Management Plan (IRMP) for the Buna/ Bojana Area. Paris, France SC-2017/WS/3 TABLE OF CONTENTS List of figure . 5 List of tables . 6 List of boxes . 6 Abbreviations . 7 Context . 9 PART A. THE PLAN 1. THE FOUNDATIONS OF THE PLAN: ESTABLISHING THE PROCESS . 13 1.1 Scoping . 13 1.1.1 Key issues and concerns . 13 1.1.2 The practicalities of plan-making . 13 1.2 The preliminary vision for the area . 13 1.3 Defining the boundary of the transboundary zone . 15 1.4 Governance of the plan-making process . 16 2. ANALYSIS AND FUTURES . 16 2.1 Analysis . 16 2.2 Analysis summary . 16 2.2.1 The importance of water . 16 2.2.2 The relationship between the plan area, the wider catchment and the marine zone . 17 2.2.3 Climate change and hazard risks . 17 2.2.4 Impact of socio-economic trends . 17 2.2.5 Urbanization and planning . 17 2.2.6 The natural environment and wildlife biodiversity . 18 2.2.7 Tourism . 18 2.2.8 Infrastructure . 18 2.2.9 The institutional and legal context . 18 3. SETTING THE VISION . 19 4. DEVELOPING THE PLAN: IDENTIFYING DRIVERS, PRESSURES AND IMPACTS . 19 4.1 Driving forces . 20 4.2 Pressures . 21 4.3 Key statistics: the current state . 22 4.4 Impacts on the area . 23 5. DEVELOPING THE PLAN: THE OBJECTIVES . 24 5.1 Plan objectives . 24 6. REALIZING THE VISION . ..