Today, environmental water degradation all over the world comes about due to the growth of urban, industrial and agricultural activities. As a result of these discharges without any prior treatment, the quality of river waters in Kosovo has deteriorated greatly. On the basis of the research that has been done so far in the rivers of Kosovo, it was shown that Drenica is one of the rivers that are constantly exposed to the discharge of industrial waters. Therefore, the purpose of this research was to analyze the impact of water discharged from Feronikeli on the water quality of the Drenica River and the possibility of its protection. The realization of this study is focused on the evaluation of physico-chemical parameters of the water of the Drenica River, the content of heavy metals in the water, the analysis and comparison of the results obtained using the standard for the assessment of the ecological status of surface waters of Romania (GD 161). Laboratory assays were developed according to standard analysis methods (APHA). The results obtained, analyzed and compared with the values of the parameters according to the standard referred to in this research, confirm that the water of the Drenica River belongs to the class of water with "good quality" only in the source area, while in other flow stations river, especially in the third station S3 (Ferronikel industrial zone), water has "poor quality", passing into the category of "very poor quality". Therefore, in order to improve the current situation, it is recommended to apply the best environmental practices and proper management of industrial waste.

The circulation of heavy metals in nature is characterized by high toxicity. However, the effects depend on the amount of toxic, the form of exposure to toxicity, the types of species exposed, age, sex, genetics and nutritional status, and on the consequences in ecosystems. With the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, the environmental situation in some regions has deteriorated even more due to poor monitoring by state institutions. The challenges that await us in the future are complex and hence we risk not knowing how to meet the future challenges. The situation with toxicity and pollution is complicated by the COVID-19 pandemic, which for the first time in this century has turned into a global pandemic. Although we were not prepared to cope with this pandemic, still we succeeded to manage it better than the previous pandemics. High concentrations of heavy metals such as arsenic, cadmium, lead, and nickel are among the metals that are dangerous for the public health of citizens. Metallic elements are characterized by toxic effects, especially with the consumption of food products. High concentrations cause great damage to human and animal organs but sometimes even small concentrations of it can have harmful effects. The increase in toxic concentration has affected industrial development, poor waste management, the release of toxic gases from industrial activities, as well as use of pesticides and herbicides in agriculture. High toxicity causes health damage, e.g. resulting from human exposure to metal toxicity and the use of contaminated foods. The heavy metals present in the environment such as Cu, Fe, Mg, Mn, Ni, Se, Zn, Co, Cr, are essential nutrients required for various biochemical and physiological functions.

This paper presents the results of the heavy metals accumulation (Cd, Cr, Pb, Cu, Zn, Mn, and Fe) in soils and plants (Typha angustifolia L., Urtica dioica L., Ranunculus sardous Crantz and Rumex Crispus L.) collected along the banks of the Sitnica River, which flows through various cities of Kosovo and is quite stressed due to the discharges of urban, industrial, and agricultural pollutants. The aim of this research was to verify the accumulation of heavy metals in water, soil and plants, since vegetables that used as food are cultivated in the vicinity of sample collection. The analyses were conducted with applied methodology in the analytic laboratory of Kosovo Agriculture Institute by using MP-AES 4200 for Cd and Cr, ASS-Scientific for Zn, Cu, Fe, Mn and Pb in plant samples, whereas 4100 MP-AES was used for determination of metals in soil. The results show variations in different metal values found in the samples of the analyzed soils and plants. The lowest values accumulation of the metals analyzed were recorded at A1 (Devetak Station) near the river source and did not contain anthropogenic influences, whereas the highest values were recorded at A3 (Kuzmin Station), which belongs to the middle flow of the Sitnica River that is polluted by wastewater (urban) discharges.

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