Albanian environmentalists are blocking a torrent of dams

THE SILOS at the building site at Kalivac once held concrete for what was to have been a big hydroelectric plant. Now they echo with the squawks of the many birds that have taken up residence on them. Cement-mixers and earth-movers still stand ready to roll. But a court ruling in late May may keep them stationary for ever. The plaintiffs in the case included ecologists who have been battling against the plant for years. They are trying to prevent new dams from being built along the Vjosa, Albania’s second-longest river.