Bisht Kamëz

Bisht-Kamëz Protected Landscape is an IUCN Category V "aquatic/terrestrial" protected landscape on the Adriatic coast of Durrës County, Albania. The Council of Ministers declared it as a protected landscape of 491.5 hectares (about 4.9 km²) covering forest, wetland, scrub and a strip of coastal sea water. ^[1] Its boundary points, as listed in the decision, lie between about 8 and 13.5 km north to north-north-east of central Durrës. It should not be confused with the village of Bisht-Kamëz, in the Katund i Ri municipal unit of Durrës, which shares its name. ^[2]

The decision protects habitat through its rules: hunting, collecting wild animals (except for research or breeding), habitat fragmentation, planting monoculture forests and cultivating invasive or non-endemic species are all prohibited. ^[1]

Forest is the largest land-cover class at 133 ha (27.1% of the area), followed by wetland at 107 ha (21.8%), sparsely vegetated ground at 102 ha (20.8%) and scrub at 77 ha (15.7%). ^[1]

The decision's land-cover table records a coastal mosaic of wetland (107 ha), forest, scrub, sparsely vegetated ground and 33.9 ha of sea water. ^[1]

Nearby Durrës has a hot-summer Mediterranean climate (Köppen Csa), with predominantly hot, dry summers and relatively mild winters. ^[1]

Private landowners hold property inside the boundary, and the decision requires the management plan to be drawn up in consultation with them, with the municipalities and with the public. The land-cover table shows modest farming and grazing: 3.2 ha of cropland, 28.3 ha of heterogeneous agricultural land and 6.9 ha of pasture, against only 0.1 ha of urban area. ^[1] The nearby city of Durrës was founded around 627 BC as Epidamnos by colonists from Corinth and Corcyra. ^[2]

The site was declared a protected landscape by decision no. 592 of the Council of Ministers, dated 25 September 2024 and issued under Albania's law no. 81/2017 on protected areas. ^[1] The decision was published in the Official Gazette (Fletorja Zyrtare) no. 165 of 2024 and took effect on publication; the gazette register lists it as a base act, not an amendment of an earlier designation. ^[2] It applies the third level of protection, requires the National Agency of Protected Areas to prepare a management plan within two years of the decision taking effect, and sets a combined state, municipal and private form of management. ^[1]

The decision lists hiking and walking paths, cycling trails, boat trips, diving to explore underwater life, and traditional artisanal and recreational fishing among the permitted activities. ^[1] The site has no documented marked trail network or named visitor attraction.

The landscape lies north of Durrës, which is linked to Tirana by National Road 2 (SH2), a 33 km dual carriageway. ^[1]) The protected landscape has no documented visitor centre, entrance or other visitor facilities.

The decision allows some development inside the boundary: construction, farm wastewater treatment, navigation canals, motorways and urban areas are permitted if the applicant holds a permit from the National Territorial and Water Council, and renewable-energy installations are listed as permitted activities. ^[1] The Albanian Ornithological Society names Bisht-Kamëz among ten approved draft decisions in an article criticising changes that allow construction, operation and transmission projects within protected landscapes. ^[2] At 491.5 ha the site is small.