„The biggest ecological shield.“ „A historic change.“ „A cleaner Vardar for the generations to come.“ Skopje mayor Orce Gjorgjievski lined up all the right words yesterday for the wastewater treatment plant - a project that, to be fair, is genuinely needed. There's only one question, and it gets awkward once you read the number at the end: when?

The answer is 2030. Construction is about 40 percent complete, the full build is planned for the first half of 2028, and then come two years of trial operation - which means the plant will only actually start working in the first half of 2030. In other words, the Vardar will keep swallowing Skopje's wastewater for at least four more summers.

What's telling is that even the mayor openly admits the delay. „After the initial standstill, caused by unfinished administrative procedures, unadopted detailed urban plans, land expropriation and late payments to the contractor“ - he says - „today the construction is proceeding at an accelerated pace.“ So: an admission that the project already ran late because of administration, plans that were never adopted, and bills that weren't paid on time. A classic Macedonian infrastructure story, wrapped in the language of success.

The project covers around 60 structures and really is the largest of its kind in the country. Once it's up and running, the effect on the Vardar and on the health of Skopje's residents will be real - that's not in dispute. What is in dispute is whether the „accelerated pace“ will survive the test of time, or whether 2030 turns into 2032, the way these things tend to go.

A treatment plant that actually works is worth more than every press conference held about it. That's why the only indicator that matters isn't the percentage today, but the date when the city's wastewater stops flowing straight into the river. Until then, the „biggest ecological shield“ is concrete under construction - a worthwhile project, but still only a promise.