The supply, engineering and financing contracts were signed on August 14th and 15th. Of a reported total project volume of € 1.2 billion, € 530 million in orders will go to the European supply and engineering consortium consisting of Andritz VA Tech Hydro (roughly € 235 million), Alstom, Züblin, Stucky, Colenco and Maggia. Not even a fact-finding mission of Eva Glawischnig- Piesczek, Third National Assembly President and Deputy Spokeswoman of the Green Party, could change the Austrian government’s pro-Ilisu decision.

The politician had been invited by Turkish Ilisu opponents to inspect the project site in late May, nourishing much hope among the involved NGOs. In her interview with aqua press, Glawischnig reports on her impressions and speaks about some of the strategies with which Green Party members in Austria, Germany and Switzerland are seeking to continue their fight against the project. Pro and con arguments are largely known and were outlined in the 1/2007 issue of aqua press (p. 38 ff) when conflicts reached their peak around the 2006/2007 yearturn.

Half a year later, the group of Green delegates arrived in the “natural and cultural gem on the banks of the Tigris” which, according to Glawischnig, is one of the world’s last remaining river basins with a largely pristine environment. “We met people who complained about not being properly informed about the project”, says the bearer of hope of the Austrian Greens, who also points out that most people feel insecure about the looming evacuations.

The striking differences in reported figures (about 11,000 according to OeKB and 90,000 according to Dyarbakir’s mayor) stem from two controversial definitions. The region distinguishes between settlers “partially affected” by evacuation (who will “merely” lose their land energiepolifields) and “affected” settlers who will lose both house and land. “We believe the amount of people forced to abandon their settlements will be many times more than the 11,000 reported,” says Eva Glawischnig.

Ilisu defenders, however, argue that according to a microcensus only 43,000 people inhabit the project area. An announcement of two Ilisu-opposing NGOs – Erklärung von Bern and WEED – gives a foretaste of how the Turkish authorities will carry out their evacuations. The first people removed in late October 2007, it is said, did not receive adequate alternative settlements and only little financial compensation.

As a result, the head of Ilisu village, previously a defender of the project, is now its fierce opponent! Glawischnig fears that the large number of police and military forces deployed in the project area (because of PKK) could further aggravate the project deficiencies identified by the Greens. A member of the group, a Turkish biologist, reports that he and his colleagues were confronted with “pressure” and “impediments” on the part of the authorities while taking stock of animal and plant species in the area of the hydropower plant to be constructed.

Glawischnig is primarily concerned about the state export credit guarantees granted by Austria, Germany and Switzerland. Similar to previous WWF reports, she also claims that Turkey and the Ilisu Consortium have used “tricks” so as to proudly announce that the eligibility criteria for an export credit guarantee – the standards set by the World Bank – are met.

“None of the evacuation, ecology and cultural heritage preservation reports submitted by the Ilisu Consortium comply with the criteria of an Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) as envisaged by the World Bank”, says the Deputy Spokeswoman of the Austrian Greens. For Eva Glawischnig, this rules out the granting of an export guarantee. She also doubts the energy benefit drawn from the project, considering the invariably high grid losses in Turkey: “This is why the Greens have proposed to Turkey to use other alternative energies, such as wind power, which also Austrian companies could benefit from.”

Glawischnig admits that in terms of employment, East Turkey will draw a short-term benefit from the the Ilisu project. “But I am strictly against the practice of securing Austrian jobs (through supplies) at the cost of violating human rights in other countries!” Ilisu Consortium fends off accusations Alexander Schwab represents Andritz VA Tech Hydro in the Ilisu Consortium.

Asked about the alleged evacuations, he says: “The export credit agencies and Turkey have agreed to establish an independent committee of international experts to discuss these and other issues. This committee has started its work in early December and will meticulously investigate such reports. Wherever action is required, experts are entitled to step in.”

Schwab rejects the argument of the Greens that “tricks” have been used. “Quite on the contrary! Ilisu is a fine example to show that even in threshold countries ecologically sound large hydropower projects are feasible. Here, this has been accomplished by (western) standards that exceed the Turkish legal requirements by far.” Schwab is convinced that the Updated Environmental Impact Assessment developed by experts also complies with these standards; otherwise the project would not have received backing from export credit agencies.

The same goes for the Updated Resettlement Action Plan (RAP) and the Cultural Heritage Action Plan. As regards the number of people affected by evacuation, Schwab refers to the aforementioned microcensus-based RAP, which is a novelty in the region. According to the latter, slightly more than 11,000 people will be directly and another 32,000 indirectly affected by dam construction. “Those who come up with higher figures simply ignore scientific evidence”, he says.

Schwab also reports that an agreement has been reached with the Turkish Ministry of Environment’s Water Engineering Division (DSI) to introduce additional mandatory inspection procedures, the so-called Terms of Reference (TOR), which further support compliance with western standards protecting humans and the environment. The TOR have been developed together with highly reputed and also critical experts such as Michael Cernea, Robert Zwahlen and Klaus Nohlen, who are also members of the independent expert committee in charge of pursuing and documenting project progress in Ilisu.

Their reports can be viewed and downloaded from the Ilisu website. Schwab explains that the grid losses in Turkey mainly result from the huge distances between hydropower plants and consumption centres. What adds to this problem are the country’s low household energy consumption rates compared to Europe; if consumption were equal, larger distribution networks would be needed. In view of the massive illegal electricity consumption in the poorer regions, loss reduction would moreover have dramatic social consequences.

Alexander Schwab also points out the large number of positive side effects of the Ilisu project, such as the construction of several sewage treatment plants negotiated with builder-owner DSI. For the project operators and OeKB, Ilisu is one of the most scrupulously assessed projects of its kind and therefore suited to set new standards in threshold countries.

Eva Glawischnig, however, warns that these standards are still inadequate and demands that uniform EU criteria be developed and applied before other similar projects are launched. After failing to prevent export credit agencies from issuing their guarantees, the Greens are now closely monitoring all steps consented by the Ilisu Consortium to ensure their flawless execution. In case of the slightest deviation, pressure on Finance Minister Wilhelm Molterer will be renewed to make Austria back out of the Ilisu project.

In Switzerland, massive continuing pressure has already caused one bank to withdraw its export credit guarantee. “In Austria, we have not yet succeeded in pursuading BA CA to do the same”, says Glawischnig. She also announces the Greens’ move to amend the Austrian law on export funding to prevent other projects from following the example of Ilisu.

Whether there is compliance with World Bank standards and whether constant adjustments during the completion process of a hydropower project really produce optimal results is a matter difficult to assess by outsiders.

Fact is, the operator consortium is putting so much know-how and commitment into the project that Austria’s Federal Chancellor Alfred Gusenbauer and Vice-Chancellor Wilhelm Molterer (apart from a clear economic interest) have decided it is better to have Austrian experts do the job rather than passing the matter into the hands of bunglers. After all, the Turkish government is in favour of Ilisu – and it is therefore primarily their business to engage in a democratic confrontation with the affected population.

(Source: aqua press Int. 4/2007, Mag. Christof Hahn)