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Turkey's drying wetlands

December 14, 2010

For years, bogs were drained for irrigiation and to reclaim land. Now a rethink is underway.

https://p.dw.com/p/QWya
Image: picture-alliance/dpa/dpaweb

Project Goal: Protecting lakes and peat bogs, raising awareness of environmental problems
Climate goal: Preserving the function of wetlands as carbon sinks
Project Scale: Lake Yenicaga in northern Anatolia and Lake Akgol in central Anatolia
Project Investment: 990,000 euros ($1.331,97)

Wetlands provide a habitat for numerous types of flora and fauna, and are also valuable carbon sinks. But in Turkey, drainage of wetlands for land reclamation and extraction of groundwater to irrigate agricultural land is upsetting the ecological balance. The German GTZ cooperation for sustainable development has joined forces with the International Climate Initiative to compile a comprehensive study of Turkey's wetlands. The results are sobering. The Turkish government is now raising awareness of the wetlands' environmental significance, with the aim of enlisting public support to help preserve them.

A film by Bettina Thoma

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