Overflowing bins and scattered rubbish across Skopje amid summer heat

Summer heat and long collection intervals have left many container sites across Skopje piled with rubbish, even as streets look emptier than usual. Municipal crews are stretched, while residents in several neighborhoods say scattered trash and bulky items have become a recurring problem.

During a walk-through of busy urban areas, two small unofficial dumps were found in Madžir Maalo. A vehicle from the Public Enterprise Komunalna Higiena was collecting waste when observers arrived. An employee who refused to speak on camera said residents sometimes toss garbage out of their windows, even when there are bins in front of their buildings.

In the Kapištec neighborhood, alongside ordinary trash bags teams recorded mattresses, wardrobes, pieces of furniture and toilet bowls left on the street. The Municipality of Aerodrom showed a similar picture: bulky household items dumped beside regular municipal waste.

At several spots the bins themselves appeared nearly empty, yet trash lay scattered around them. Under the United Nations bridge in Karpoš old clothes and sacks of garbage were left on the ground. Neighbors urged more frequent collections.

“Waste is a problem that I think we don't notice because we are constantly surrounded by so much waste. I haven't noticed that anything significant has been done regarding the waste,” said one woman. Another resident commented, “The waste is collected when, however.” A different woman pointed out: “Overfilled containers, things scattered around them.”

Officials at the Public Enterprise Komunalna Higiena say the core issue is lack of long-term investment in equipment, vehicles and staff. Mitkovski, director of the Public Enterprise Komunalna Higiena, defended the crews' work while warning about structural limits: "The situation in the area that is the competence of Komunalna Higiena, meaning the emptying of containers, has greatly improved. We are not saying it is ideal. There are certain shortcomings because we have an awful situation, years without any investments, neither in vehicles, nor in staff, nor in equipment, nor in containers, however we are trying to maintain that level," he said.

Storm damage still visible in parts of the city

Beyond the rubbish, parts of several neighborhoods still show the aftermath of a storm that hit about one month ago, leaving fallen trees and broken branches. Dejan Mitevski, mayor of the Municipality of Aerodrom, said crews are removing the larger debris but that the scale of the damage requires time and heavier machinery.

“Intensive work is under way. In Aerodrom more than 120 trees had fallen. 120 trees are not removed in one day. All access streets, all paths, all parking lots are completely cleared. What remains are larger trees that require different machinery for removal, mostly in parks, where they do not interfere with the everyday functioning of citizens. And today we are working in cooperation with the public city enterprises, such as Parks and greenery and Komunalna Higiena, and we will continue in the coming period,” Mitevski said.

The storm left fallen trees, branches and damaged facades on some buildings; municipal services say cleanup will continue over the coming weeks as they coordinate with city enterprises and request more resources to speed up collections and remove bulky waste.

Photo: press material from the event