Rijeka Residents Rise Up to Save Their River
The "Save the Ričina" Association is raising the final 3,000 euros to bring a Scottish expert and create a revitalization plan.
The "Save the Ričina" Association is raising the final 3,000 euros to bring a Scottish expert and create a revitalization plan.
A citizens' initiative and the association "Save the Ričina" are warning that the Rječina River, the lifeblood of Rijeka and a Natura 2000 protected area, is on the brink of ecological collapse. To prevent further devastation, they have launched a revitalization plan with leading European experts, and only 3,000 euros are still needed to make it happen.
According to local activists, responsible institutions and contracting companies have been ravaging the riverbed and banks of the Rječina for years. The work is carried out without a long-term vision, the natural riverbed is being filled in, and native habitats are being destroyed, creating a constant need for new interventions and the spending of public money. Although the entire Rječina area is formally protected within the European Natura 2000 ecological network, in practice this legal recognition is ignored. The 20-kilometer river, which has carved an impressive canyon over millennia, is being turned into a concrete-lined channel next to the road.
Few people know that the Rječina is a key point of European biodiversity. It represents the most important European home of the strictly protected white-clawed crayfish (Austropotamobius pallipes) and its source point for the entire continent. In addition, the Rječina canyon is home to rare and endemic trout species and a rich biological world that is now directly threatened.
The "Save the Ričina" association, a team of experts with unyielding determination, has been fighting tenaciously against devastation for years. From organizing a scientific roundtable in Zagreb to processing thousands of pages of documentation, they have prepared the ground for the most important step so far: a comprehensive revitalization plan for the Rječina from source to mouth. In October 2026, one of Europe's most prominent experts in river restoration from Scotland will arrive in Rijeka. His task, in collaboration with the local team, is to create an irrefutable, professionally grounded, and feasible river restoration project that will be submitted to the Primorje-Gorski Kotar County, the City of Rijeka, and all relevant institutions.
The association, its members, and supporters have so far funded most activities with their own resources. To enable the Scottish expert's visit and the creation of the official revitalization plan, only 3,000 euros are still needed. Whether it's a donation of 5, 10, 20, 50, or 100 euros, the most important thing is that citizens unite and make this historic step for Rijeka and its surroundings possible. Donations can be made to IBAN: HR96 2402 0061 1011 9254 6, with the note "Donation for revitalization project services for the Ričina."
"Beneath our feet, it quietly flows, the Rječina brings life, but never imposes."
From the association, they say: "The ultimate goal of this citizens' struggle is the permanent protection of the Rječina and its designation as a Nature Park. Let's go, people, let's go, Rijeka and its surroundings!"
