REPUBLISHED

Landfill fires return: Bushat joins Vlorë and Elbasan

Erblin Vukaj · Originally published: 21 April 2026

The Bushat fire and the response

The fire that engulfed the Bushat waste disposal site in Vau i Dejës appears to have been brought under control. Firefighters’ intervention and local rainfall this morning seem to have eased the alarming situation that began around midday on Sunday. But the course of the incident makes clear that waste management remains a problem for northern municipalities, too.

Teams from several municipalities, including Shkodër, Lezhë, Kamëz and Tirana, took part in the operation to cover the burning areas. Although under control, the situation remains problematic.

Strong winds had helped the flames spread. In several statements to the media, Vau i Dejës deputy mayor Elvis Preçi insisted that nearby homes were not at risk and that, following checks of security camera footage, deliberate arson was not suspected.

But despite initial suspicions of an accidental cause, environmental and urban planning experts such as Imeldi Sokoli have said openly that the incident requires a thorough investigation. The landfill operates with limited capacity and is close to being full, increasing the risk of such incidents.

“The good practice of setting waste disposal sites on fire has reached Shkodër, too. Bushat is approaching capacity as a disposal site, and at some point the need arises to take a shortcut [by burning it] and reduce the amount of waste there,” Sokoli wrote ironically on Facebook.

Hazardous waste, such as hospital or construction waste, is not deposited in Bushat. But pollution from the burning over recent days has had a major environmental impact, with thick smoke hanging over surrounding areas for around three days.

The landfill and waste management

The episode brings renewed attention not only to the management of the Bushat landfill, but also to how Albania’s entire waste system works.

On paper, this landfill was built to replace old disposal sites and provide a more advanced standard of management. It also receives waste from Shkodër Municipality, which has struggled to heal the old wounds of illegal dumping, including the waste site near the Kir River.

In earlier correspondence with Citizens.al, the municipality confirmed that the former landfill site near the Kir had been out of operation for around 15 years, but that its rehabilitation had still not been carried out because of the high cost.

On paper, the transition to Bushat was supposed to mark a move towards more modern waste management and the rehabilitation of old sites. In practice, it appears simply to have moved the problem, without solving it.

Recurring fires and waste policy

The Bushat fire follows a series of similar incidents across the country. Fires at the Elbasan landfill and in Vlorë last year exposed the same weaknesses in a waste management system that relies almost entirely on disposal. Treatment and recycling remain minimal, while processing or incineration capacity is limited or non-functional, as investigations into the Elbasan, Fier and Tirana incinerators showed.

The solution considered appropriate in Elbasan last year was simply to expand the landfill onto another plot of land. A similar approach has been taken in recent years at the Sharrë landfill in Tirana, despite years of debate over the policy of waste incineration. Investigations by the Special Anti-Corruption Structure, SPAK, found a fraudulent scheme, since the waste was merely being deposited. In principle, incineration should have reduced the need for expansion and new landfill space.

In this context, independent environmental journalist Artan Rama argued in an editorial for Citizens.al that Albania’s waste management system has failed and needs to be completely rethought. In his view, the problems concern not only technical capacity, but also the absence of a consistent policy and the influence of interests that have shaped the sector’s development.

Meanwhile, legal efforts to reform the field have produced no visible changes in practice. Bills that have been approved or are still being considered have drawn criticism over a lack of transparency and the risk of favouring private interests, while monitoring mechanisms remain weak.

Against this backdrop, the fact that the Bushat fire was brought under control does not diminish its significance. On the contrary, it makes the cyclical nature of the crisis clearer. A system reaches its limits, produces incidents and then “dozes off” as though it had returned to working order, without addressing the underlying causes.

But as long as there is no reconsideration of waste management policy leading to fundamental change, fires like those in Bushat, Elbasan, Vlorë and elsewhere seem likely to continue.