THE COMMODITY ISSUE
VICTORY FOR
MONTENEGRO’S
BIRD PARADISE!
For the past 15 years, our Montenegrin Partner CZIP has fought tirelessly to block a
controversial building development poised to destroy one of Europe’s most important
migratory bird resting and breeding sites. Now, at long last, the salt pans of Ulcinj Salina have
been declared a national protected area
or almost a century, salt – the
precious ‘white gold’ of Ulcinj Salina
– ensured that life here was good
for birds and people alike. The huge
salt production complex, in operation from the
1920s until 2013, miraculously transformed the
landscape around the small coastal town of
Ulcinj into a living expression of harmonious
coexistence between nature and people. With
40,000 tons of annual salt production came
employment and prosperity for the local
F
Gui-Xi Young
CZIP and its partners
have been closely
monitoring Ulcinj Salina’s
birds so they can tackle
threats in real time
Photo BirdLife International
1
community, along with thousands of migratory
birds attracted by the unique, biodiversity-rich
ecosystem created by the man-made salt pans.
Breathtaking flocks of Greater Flamingo
Phoenicopterus roseus and Dalmatian Pelican
Pelecanus crispus, along with over 250
different bird species, earned Ulcinj Salina its
international reputation as a great bird paradise
of the Adriatic. But in 2005, the golden age
of Ulcinj came to an end. The salt pans were
privatised and the new ownership’s agenda
was soon revealed when it won governmental
approval for its controversial plans to drain
the site and build a luxury tourist resort. When
the company went bankrupt in 2011, over 500
workers lost their jobs and the salt pans were
left to fall into ruin. The water pumps - essential
for maintaining water levels for nesting and
foraging birds – were turned off overnight.
Their abandonment has had hugely damaging
consequences for the site’s fragile man-made
ecosystem: nests have been flooded and
noticeably fewer birds have been coming with
each passing year.
Thankfully, CZIP (BirdLife in Montenegro) has
spent the last decade fighting tirelessly to block
the resort development and see the resumption
of salt production, without which they offered