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Birdlife Turkey - still a relatively young organization - is working for the conservation of birds and their habitats in designated Important
Bird Areas (IBAs) in Turkey.
Their work in four IBAs is threatened by the vast Ilisu hydroelectric dam project, which, in the absence of World Bank support,
has attracted a consortium of investors from Austria, Germany, and Switzerland in addition to Turkey itself.
The Ilisu project has largely been criticised because of its impact on the cultural heritage in the project area, while its
environmental impacts have so far been greatly neglected.
These impacts are not clearly documented in the Environmental Impact Assessment Report (EIAR) and thus, mitigation measures
and the Environmental Action Plan (EAP) of the project fall short of the relevant international requirements e.g. those given
in World Bank Operational Policies, particularly, OP 4.01, Environmental Assessment and OP 4.04, Natural Habitats.
As far as birdlife is concerned, the dam construction will, in the estimation of BirdLife Turkey, threaten the extinction
of the complete breeding population of red-wattled plover (Vanellus indicus) and 20% of the European pied kingfisher (Ceryle
rudis) breeding population. For biodiversity as a whole, one of the most intact river ecosystems in the world an area of 313
km² will be flooded to create the catchment capacity of the dam. For those seeking more detailed information see the PDF file
download* at the bottom of the page.
WHAT CAN YOU DO?
BirdLife Turkey (through a Proact member) has requested support for a protest petition to the governments of the consortium
member countries.
You can best support the campaign, organised by Atlas Magazine and supported by Doga Dernegi, BirdLife Turkey, by adding your
name to the petition (with already over 26,000 signatures) at:
CAMPAIGN PETITION (click here)
WHEN YOU HAVE SIGNED THE PETITION, and if you have time, you are invited to send a copy of the draft Proact protest below
to:
To:
bilgi@basbakanlik.gov.tr, InternetPost@bundesregierung.de, post@bka.gv.at, webmaster@admin.ch
cc:
stavros.dimas@cec.eu.int
bcc:
iletisim@hasankeyfesadakat.com, info@proact-campaigns.net
MAIL TO GOVERNMENTS
DRAFT TEXT
CONSTRICTION OF HASANKEYF AND THE TIGRIS VALLEY BY THE ILISU HYDROELECTRIC DAM PROJECT
By electronic post to (postmasters please forward to addressees):
Mr. Recep Tayyip Erdogan
Prime Minister of the Turkish Republic
Mrs. Angela Merkel
Chancellor of the German Federal Republic
Mr. Wolfgang Schüssel
Chancellor of the Austrian Republic
Ms. Annemarie Huber-Hotz
Federal Chancellor Swiss Confederation
cc. Mr. Stavros Dimas
EU Commissioner for the Environment
Dear Prime Minister,
Dear Chancellor,
Dear Commissioner,
We are writing to support the appeal by thousands of Turkish citizens and others to abandon plans for the project to build
a hydroelectric dam in the River Tigris valley including the site of the ancient city of Hasankeyf.
Such a vast and controversial project would have far-reaching and irreparable negative effects on the culture, social
fabric and wildlife of the region.
We appeal to the governments of Austria, Germany and Switzerland to use their political influence to stop investment in
this project. We appeal to the Turkish government to cancel the project and to invest instead in the social, historical and
natural resources of the region.
In the hope that your action can prevent costly and irremediable damage to the social fabric, and historical and natural
wealth of the area I/we remain,
Yours faithfully,
(Name and address)
Proact 2006
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