Environmental analysis news: Montenegro government urged to consider dam alternatives

The government of Montenegro is being urged to reconsider its plans to construct four dams along one of the country's most scenic rivers.

According to the World Wildlife Fund (WWF), a petition containing almost 15,000 signatures has been handed in, calling for officials to look at alternatives.

Initial plans for the dams on the Moraca River were drawn up 40 years ago.

"Montenegro declared itself an ecological state in 1991 and the country now has a unique opportunity to take a leadership for sustainable hydropower development in the western Balkans," said Francesca Antonelli, head of the WWF Mediterranean Freshwater Programme.

The government should abandon its 40-year-old REP plan and come up with a modern way of generating power that does not involve harming the environment, she added.

Established in 1961, the WWF is currently active in more than 100 countries around the world and employs 300 people.

Written by Joseph Hutton