Vjosa

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Jump to navigationJump to search
"Aous" redirects here. For other uses, see Aous (disambiguation).

Vjosa
Αώος (Aoös)
Bãiasa

Vjosa near Tepelenë

Location

Countries Albania and Greece

Physical characteristics

Source

• location Pindus, Greece

Mouth
 • location Adriatic Sea, Albania

40°38′34″N 19°19′2″ECoordinates:
• coordinates
40°38′34″N 19°19′2″E

• elevation 0 m (0 ft)

Length 272 kilometres (169 mi)

Basin size 6,706 km2 (2,589 sq mi)

Discharge
• average 195 m3/s (6,900 cu ft/s)

The Vjosa (Albanian: [ˈvjɔsa]; indefinite form: Vjosë) or Aoös (Greek: Αώος) is a river in
northwestern Greece and southwestern Albania. Its total length is about 272 kilometres
(169 mi),[1] of which the first 80 kilometres (50 mi) are in Greece, and the remaining 192
kilometres (119 mi) in Albania.[2] Its drainage basin is 6,706 km2 (2,589 sq mi) and its
average discharge is 195 m3/s (6,900 cu ft/s).[1] The main tributaries
are Voidomatis, Sarantaporos, Drino and Shushicë.
The Aoös arises in the Pindus mountains of Epirus, Greece, and generally flows
northwest. It enters Albania near Çarshovë, and empties into the Adriatic Sea just north
of Vlorë. Generally wild and unpolluted, the river is surrounded by the Vikos–Aoös
National Park in Greece and the Vjosa-Narta Protected Landscape near its mouth. In
December 2020, the Albanian portion of the river was designated a "Managed Nature
Reserve" by the government. There is a campaign by the environmentalist groups to
designate the whole Albanian part of the course a national park, to guard against the
prospective hydroelectric projects.

Contents

 1Name
 2Geography
 3Antiquity
 4Conservation
o 4.1Greece
o 4.2Albania
 5See also
 6References
 7External links

Name[edit]
The river is known by a number of different names. In antiquity it was
called Aoös (Ἄωος, Ἀῶος, Ἀῷος) in Greek, and Aous in Latin. In Albanian it is
called Vjosë or Vjosa, while in Greece it is known by its ancient name (Αώος in modern
orthography), in medieval Latin maps was called Viossa as well as Vovousa (Βοβούσα)
or Aias (Αίας, Αἴας).[3] In Aromanian, the river is known as Bãiasa.
Vjosa is a common female Albanian given name.[4][5][6]

Geography[edit]

The area in yellow represents the drainage basin of the Vjosë and its main affluent, the Drino; the red line
delineates the border between Albania and Greece.

The Aoös arises in the Pindus mountains of Epirus, Greece, near the village
of Vovousa.[7][8] An artificial lake has been constructed at an elevation of 1,350 metres
(4,430 ft),[9] where a hydroelectric dam has been in place since 1987. The river flows
through the canyons of Vikos–Aoös National Park, and then through the town
of Konitsa, where it is joined by the Voidomatis. It enters Albania near Çarshovë, where
it is joined by the Sarantaporos, and then continues northwest through Përmet, Këlcyrë,
and Tepelenë (where it is joined by the Drino), Memaliaj, Selenicë and Novoselë. It then
flows into the Adriatic Sea northwest of Vlorë. The river's mouth is located within the
boundaries of the Vjosa-Narta Protected Landscape. In December 2020, the Albanian
portion of the river was designated a "Managed Nature Reserve" by the government. [10]
The main tributaries of Vjosa are the Sarantaporos and Voidomatis in Greece, and
the Drino and Shushicë in Albania,
The main cities and towns along the river are, in downstream
order, Vovousa and Konitsa in Greece;
and Përmet, Këlcyrë, Çarshovë, Tepelenë, Memaliaj, Selenicë and Novoselë in Albania.

Antiquity[edit]

The old Konitsa Bridge over the Aoos River, just before the Vikos–Aoös National Park
In Greek mythology,[11] Aous is an epithet or name of Adonis.[12] Aous was also the name
of the first king of Cyprus.[citation needed] A river and a mountain[13] in Cyprus were also
named Aous.[11]
Hecataeus (550–476 BC) refers to the river as Aias (Greek: Αἴας), the
name Anios (Greek: Ἄνιος) is used
by Plutarch in Caesar,[14] while Polybius, Livy and Strabo use the term Aoös.
The Thesprotian tribe of Parauaioi received their name from the river, as those living
beside it.[citation needed] Pausanias writes of "sharks"[15] (Greek: θηρία) in the river, as it flows
through Thesprotia. It is mentioned as Avos (Greek: Αύος) by Stephanus of
Byzantium[16] in the 6th century AD.
In 274 BC Pyrrhus of Epirus defeated Antigonus II Gonatas near the river's banks. In
198 BC, Philip V of Macedon and the Roman Titus Quinctius Flamininus, clashed in
the Battle of the Aous. In 170 BC[17] a plot to kidnap Aulus Hostilius Mancinus was foiled
by Molossians by mistake. In antiquity the river passed more to the north[citation needed],
towards where Fier lies today. Owing to an earthquake[citation needed] in the 4th century, it
changed to its present course. The earthquake and changed river course led to the
decline of the ancient Greek city of Apollonia.[citation needed]

Conservation[edit]
Greece[edit]
The Vikos–Aoös National Park (Greek: Εθνικός Δρυμός Βίκου–Αώου Ethnikós Drymós
Víkou–Aóou), created in 1973, is a national park in Epirus in northwestern Greece. The
national park encompasses 126 square kilometres (31,135 acres) of mountainous
terrain, with numerous rivers, lakes, caves, canyons, and coniferous and deciduous
forest. The core of the 3,400 hectare park [18] is the Vikos Gorge, carved by the
Voidomatis River, while the Aoos Gorge, Mount Tymfi, with its highest peak, Gamila, at
2,497 metres (8,192 ft), and a number of settlements forming the park's peripheral zone.
Albania[edit]

The Vjosë upstream from Tepelenë

View of Vjosë and the Nemerçkë Mountain near Çarshova

Vjosë Valley

In February 2005, the Albanian government made the Vjose-Narte wetlands a protected
area. This legislation followed Albania's ratification of the Kyoto Protocol in December
2004. The river contributes water to the Vjosë-Levan-Fier irrigation canal, a canal that
was built in the 1950s to irrigate the Myzeqe. In December 2020, the Albanian portion of
the river was designated a "Managed Nature Reserve" by the Albanian government. [10]
The Vjosa's potential for hydropower has attracted developers to submit proposal to
planning authorities for dam projects along the river and its tributaries. By 2017, over
2000 dam projects had gained governmental approval on stretches of river throughout
the Balkans, including the Vjosa's channel. [19] Developers have met with opposition from
European nature organisations including RiverWatch, EuroNatur,[20] and EcoAlbania.[21]
A 2012 study assessed the hydromorphology of the Balkan's rivers, taking into account
the structural status of 35,000 river kilometres. The study showed that the region's rivers
are largely intact, with 30% deemed pristine and 50% slightly modified. [22]
In February 2020, a campaign to elevate the status of the Vjosa watershed to Vjosa
National Park gained approval from 20 environmental groups under the leadership of
EcoAlbania. The effort to create Europe's first wild river park and save 300 km of rivers
and streams targeted several projects identified in a February 2021 proposal. [23]
In September 2020, Albanian Prime Minister Edi Rama announced that a protected
area will be created around the Vjosa. In December 2020, the Albanian government
designated the Vjosa River as a "Managed Nature Reserve" or nature
park.[10] Environmental groups are skeptical of the level of protection afforded by
"protected" status. A national park designation would prohibit hydroelectric projects,
airports, and other development; a protected area designation would not.[2]
In April 2021 a petition signed by Vjosa River scientists was delivered to Albanian
President Ilir Meta.[24] The scientists immediate concern is a plan by a Turkish-Albanian
venture, Ayen ALB, to build a 50-metre high hydroelectric dam. It would be the first
development to change the course of Albania's 200 kilometre portion of the river. The
dam would flood areas populated with the 1,175 animal and plant species—some
endangered. It would inundate farmland, destroy the river's fishery, and force thousands
from their homes. Activists maintain that the government should focus on other less
damaging renewable energy sources.[2]

See also[edit]
 List of rivers of Albania
 List of rivers of Europe
 List of rivers of Greece

References[edit]
1. ^ Jump up to:a b Cullaj, A., Hasko, A., Miho, A., Schanz, F., Brandl, H. & Bachofen, R. (2005). "The
quality of Albanian natural waters and the human impact". Environment International. 31 (1):
138. doi:10.1016/j.envint.2004.06.008. PMID 15607787.
2. ^ Jump up to:a b c Mema, Bresiloa; Boyle, Joseph (14 May 2021). "Undammed, undimmed: The battle
over a unique European river". Bangkok Post. Agence France-Presse. Retrieved 14 May2021.
3. ^ Λαμπρίδης Ιωάννης "Ζαγοριακά", Τυπογραφείον Αυγής, Αθήνα, 1870
4. ^ From 20000 names babynames website
5. ^ From Aboutnames babynames website
6. ^ Albanian names website
7. ^ Acta Hydrochimica Et Hydrobiologica. VCH Verlagsgesellschaft. 2001.
8. ^ William Bowden (2003). Epirus Vetus: the archaeology of a late antique province.
Duckworth. ISBN 978-0-7156-3116-4.
9. ^ Egnatia Municipality Archived August 2, 2009, at the Wayback Machine
10. ^ Jump up
to:a b c http://planifikimi.gov.al/index.php?eID=dumpFile&t=f&f=6099&token=cc165dfe23b6652028a4de
33944dee2fca23bd8f
11. ^ Jump up to:a b Parthenius (of Nicaea) (1999). Parthenius of Nicaea: The Poetical Fragments and the
Erōtika Pathēmata. Clarendon Press. p. 182. ISBN 978-0-19-815253-8.
12. ^ Yves Bonnefoy (1992). Greek and Egyptian Mythologies. University of Chicago Press.
p. 135. ISBN 978-0-226-06454-3.
13. ^ Joseph Eddy Fontenrose (1981). Orion: The Myth of the Hunter and the Huntress. University of
California Press. p. 103. ISBN 978-0-520-09632-5.
14. ^ Dictionary of Greek and Roman Geography (1854)
15. ^ Paus. 4.34,"But the rivers of Greece contain no terrors from wild beasts, for the sharks of the Aous,
which flows through Thesprotia, are not river beasts but migrants from the sea."
16. ^ Ethnica Epitome,"Παρά τον Αύον ποταμόν"
17. ^ A History of Macedonia: 336-167 B.C, Nicholas Geoffrey Lemprière Hammond, Frank William
Walbank, 1988, ISBN 0198148151, p. 520
18. ^ Trakolis: p. 3
19. ^ Ross, Will (22 March 2017). "Rising On Edges: Anti-Damming on the Wild Rivers of the
Balkans". Zafiri. Retrieved 14 May 2021.
20. ^ "Vjosa National Park NOW". EuroNatur. Retrieved 14 May 2021.
21. ^ "Profile". EcoAlbania. Retrieved 14 May 2021.
22. ^ Schwarz, Ulrich (March 2012). "Balkan Rivers - The Blue Heart of Europe; Hydromorphological
Status and Dam Projects Report" (PDF). Balkan Rivers. FLUVIUS. Retrieved 14 May 2021.
23. ^ "Proposal for establishing the Vjosa Wild River National Park" (PDF). EcoAlbania. February 2021.
Retrieved 14 May 2021.
24. ^ "Petition of Scientists of the Vojsa River handed to Albanian President". Tour du Valat. 2020-04-01.
Retrieved 2021-04-18.