INTERNATIONAL NEWS

Archive : Pressreleases / Communiqués / Pressemitteilungen 
(all in original language, en langue originale, in Originalsprache):

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03.04.07 : France: Interdiction des phosphates dans les lessives
France : ban on phosphate in washing powder
Frankreich : Phosphatverbot in Waschmitteln

Le décret vient de paraître (1) : à partir du 1er juillet, les phosphates seront interdits dans les lessives domestiques destinées au lavage du linge. Dans un communiqué du 2 avril, le ministère chargé de l’environnement a précisé que cette mesure «permettra de diminuer d’un peu plus de 20% la charge en phosphore à traiter par les stations d’épuration».
Les lessives utilisées pour faire la vaisselle et les lessives industrielles ne sont pas concernées. Selon le ministère, il n’existe pas de produits de substitution satisfaisants pour les premières et il faudrait adapter le process industriel de lavage pour les secondes.
Rappelons que d’autres composants des lessives classiques, les tensio-actifs, provoquent des dégâts environnementaux notables (2).

(1) Décret n°2007-491 du 29 mars 2007, JO du 31 mars 2007
(2) Voir l’article du JDLE 16.10.2006 : "Les détergents, une pollution peu prise en compte en France"

Source : Journal de l'Environnement, 03.04.2007
Auteur : Agnès Ginestet

 

30.03.07 : Commission européen : Plus d’exigences sur les produits polluants dans les eaux de surface (JDLE)
EU Commission : More requirements about pollutants in surface waters (JDLE, Fr)
EU Umweltkommission verschärt Anforderungen bezüglich der gefährlichen Stoffe in Oberfächengewässern (JDLE, fr)

La Commission environnement a adopté le 27 mars le rapport de la députée européenne française Anne Laperrouze (PDE) sur la qualité des eaux de surface. Dans un communiqué, le Parlement indique que cette directive, fille de la directive cadre sur l’eau est en cours d’examen, et que les députés veulent renforcer certaines mesures proposées par la Commission européenne. Par exemple, celle-ci souhaite fixer des normes de qualité environnementale pour 41 substances polluantes susceptibles de se retrouver dans les eaux de surface. Mais la Commission environnement du Parlement veut en ajouter 28. Elle demande à la Commission européenne de vérifier si ces substances supplémentaires ne devraient pas être classées comme «substances prioritaires dangereuses» et de lui faire une proposition législative sur la classification finale dans les 12 mois qui suivront l'entrée en vigueur de la directive.

Source : Journal de l'Environnement, 30.03.2007
Auteur : Agnès Ginestet

 

26.03.2007 : lisu dam: Non-governmental organizations criticize German approval of export credit guarantee for Turkish Ilisu dam
Nicht Regierungs Organisationen kritisieren den deutschen Entscheid eines Exportrisiko - Garantiekredites für das türkische Staudammprojekt Ilisu
Barrage d'Ilisu : des ONG critiquent la décision allemande d'apporter des garanties de crédits pour le projet de barrage d'Ilisu

Today’s decision by the German Government to finally grant an export credit guarantee for the Ilisu dam in southeast Turkey has met with substantial criticism from non-governmental organizations.
"The German Government sacrifices people, culture and the environment in order to enable companies to make profits“, judges Heike Drillisch of the environmental and development organization WEED. "The pro-Ilisu decision is a shame and dishonour for Germany.“ articipation of the affected population and of the elected representatives of the surrounding municipalities was negligible. According to surveys approximately 80% of the population oppose the project. "With its decision, the Federal Government obviously has yielded pressures which the Turkish government exerted, instead of respecting international standards“, says Drillisch.
"The approval of the export credit guarantee for the Ilisu dam is more than a disappointment for us, the affected people. By its double-tongued behaviour the German government loses all credibility“, explains Ercan Ayboga, from the local Initiative to Keep Hasankeyf Alive. „The German Government is taking part in a great crime against the culture and the environment and is contributing to human rights violations against tens of thousands of people. The Ilisu dam is such a destructive project that it cannot be improved with any conditions. Therefore it must be stopped“, said Ayboga.
Regine Richter of the environmental and human rights organisation urgewald comments: "With this decision the German Government knowingly accepts irreversible damage for the biodiversity and destruction of habitat of many birds. So far no complete environmental impact assessment for the project has been done. Such a procedure would be unconceivable with any European project.“
The project may not even be compatible with Turkish laws, legal proceedings are still pending in Turkey. Thus the German Government is contradicting its own criteria for the assignment of export credit guarantees.
Only last Friday the Initiative to Keep Hasankeyf Alive opened a ‘park of hope and solidarity’ in the affected region with participation by international environmental and human rights activists, as well as European and German parliamentarians.
A recent message that the Turkish government plans to deploy 5.000 soldiers in the project area in order to ensure security highlights how disputed the project is in the region. "Our resistance will continue in any case. The German government will be confronted constantly with this irresponsible decision", the non governmental organizations declared. They are examining legal steps to be taken against this decision by the German Government.

Further information:
Heike Drillisch (WEED), +49 177 ­ 345 26 11
Regine Richter (urgewald), +49 170 ­ 2930 725
http://weed-online.org/mailman/listinfo/ilisu-info-e
for more Ilisu Information visite RiverNet : http://www.rivernet.org/turquie/welcome.htm

 

25.03.07 : India, Narmada : 58 people released; Medha Patkar and three others continue to be in Tihar jail
Indien, Narmada : 58 aktivisten wieder frei; Medha Patkar und weitere drei Perosnen weiter in Haft
Inde, Narmada : 58 activistes relâchés, Medha Patkar et trois autres personnes sont toujours en prison


Press Statement
Action 2007 issues ultimatum to UPA Government
Jantar Mantar, New Delhi / Narmada Andolan


•Action 2007 Movements and Organisations issue an ultimatum to UPA Government and demand immediate withdrawal of cases registered against activists
•End Police Regime ­ Negotiate on people's issues and struggles, Government told
•Failure to negotiate with movements will lead to UPA and Congress defeat in UP Elections and next general elections
•Agitation in Delhi to continue till Government agrees to negotiate on crucial issues
•Cultural Resistance celebrated by performances by groups from various regions


Fifty Eight activists of Action 2007 who have been in Tihar jail since their arrest on 22nd March have been released today. At about 1 pm, they were received by hundreds of activists gathered at Jantar Mantar Road, as part of the ongoing Action 2007 indefinite agitation in Delhi.
However, three of the movement representatives: Medha Patkar, Faisal Khan and Vimalbhai continue to be in judicial remand in Tihar Jail. Though they were remanded to 15 days of judicial custody, their bail application will be taken up by the magistrate tomorrow, the 26th, as per a directive issued by the High Court of Delhi.
In a public meeting held at Jantar Mantar, activists of different people's movement demanded immediate withdrawal of the false cases registered against all the activists of Action 2007 and specifically demanded that the old cases being taken up against Medha Patkar and two others be withdrawn with immediate effect. The activists demanded the union government to stop the police regime in Delhi and in different states, where people's movements and activists have been targeted for organizing democratic and peaceful demonstrations against anti-people policies.
Announcing a 24 hour fast at Jantar Mantar against the unwanted arrests and police action on peaceful demonstration of action 2007 at planning commission office, Prof. Ajay Kumar of Rashtra Seva Dal said that if the Union Government does not withdraw the cases against Medha Patkar and other colleagues, people from all over the country will start active resistance in different states. 23 activists are on the one day fast against police atrocities on protestors and demanding withdrawal of all cases filed against representatives of people's movements.
Shri. Chennaiah of the agricultural workers union of Andhra Pradesh welcomed the activists who returned from the jail and declared that the anti-people UPA will be thrown out of power by the people of this country. Ashok Choudhury of the National Forum of Forest People's and Forest Workers declared that the UP elections will be a time when UPA will be made to pay for policies like SEZ and the land grab happening in the name of industrialization.
On Sunday, Action 2007 also celebrated cultural resistance and action, by having performances from across different regions at Jantar Mantar. Groups from West Bengal, Gujarat, Delhi and Uttar Pradesh performed at the Action 2007. Theatre, plays, music and recitals followed the reception of the released (from Tihar jail) activists.
Action 2007 will launch its direct action week and negotiations with different ministries on different issues, from 26th March 2007.

On Behalf of Action 2007
Contact Phones: 9868165471 / 9910345405 / 9868099304
List of those on day long fast on 25th of March 2007:
1. Prof. Arun Kumar (Bihar)
2. Lal Babu Rai (Maharashtra)
3. Dhashrath Dadan (Maharashtra)
4. Lakhan Singh Mandal (Maharashtra)
5. Devraran Mishra (Maharashtra)
6. Bharat Mishra (Maharashtra)
7. Savitri Devi (Maharashtra)
8. Santhosh Thoart (Maharashtra)
9. Ramji Rajbhar (Maharashtra)
10 Chandrakant boba (Maharashtra)
11. Lakshmi Devi (Maharashtra)
12. Amravati Choudhary (Maharashtra)
13. A Ruben Raj (Maharashtra)
14. Jay Chandra (Maharashtra)
15. Prabhakar (Maharashtra)
16. Raju Jaiswar (Maharashtra)
17. Shubhawati Devi (Maharashtra)
18. Mohammad Salim (Maharashtra)
19. Kalawati Devi (Maharashtra)
20. Shubhawati Devi (Maharashtra)
21. Shubhawati Kumar alias Sharad Singh (Maharashtra)
22. Salim Ansari (Jharkhand)
23. Raveendra Prasad Verma (Jharkhand)

 

23.03.2007 : Contentieux nitrates (UE): un sursis pour la France
Contentious issues about nitrates (EU) : suspended sentence for France
Verstoss gegen Nitrat Richtlinie : Aufschub für Frankreich

Dans un communiqué du 21 mars, la Commission européenne a annoncé sa décision de poursuivre une deuxième fois la France devant la Cour de justice des communautés européennes (CJCE) dans l’affaire de la pollution par les nitrates des eaux de surface en Bretagne, tout en proposant un sursis d’exécution.
En 2001, la France avait été condamnée dans le cadre d’un arrêt de la CJCE pour infraction à la réglementation communautaire (1) car 37 rivières en Bretagne présentaient des concentrations en nitrates excédant la norme. Elle a depuis mis en œuvre des mesures agro-environnementales pour réduire la quantité d’azote épandu sur les terres agricoles, mais des non-conformités sont toujours observées. Des mesures supplémentaires ont toutefois été annoncées au mois de février pour permettre à la France de se conformer à la directive (2).
Selon la Commission, le délai accordé lui permettra de dialoguer plus facilement avec les autorités françaises et d’examiner le contenu des nouvelles mesures. La France risque une amende supérieure à 28 millions d’euros et une astreinte journalière de 117.882 euros.
Selon Reuters, une source gouvernementale a annoncé que des mesures incitatives pour aider les agriculteurs bretons à réduire la pollution des rivières seront annoncées avant la mi-juin. Le gouvernement prévoit des mesures agro-environnementales, dont l'indemnisation de la réduction d'azote, son transport vers d'autres régions er des aides à la réduction des effectifs d'élevage (bovins laitiers, porcs, volailles). Selon Reuters, l’objectif de la France est d’aboutir d’ici 2009.

(1) Directive 1975/440/EEC du Conseil du 16 juin 1975.
(2) Voir l’article du JDLE: «Contentieux nitrates: tensions avant la décision européenne»

Source : Journal de l'Environnement 23.03.2007
Auteur : Agnès Ginestet

 

23.03.07 : First report on the implementation of the WFD by the EU commission

COMMUNICATION FROM THE COMMISSION TO THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND THE COUNCIL
" Towards sustainable water management in the European Union"
- First stage in the implementation of the Water Framework Directive 2000/60/EC –

[SEC(2007) 362] [SEC(2007) 363] english version in pdf on RiverNet

other languages see eu Website http://eur-lex.europa.eu/LexUriServ/site/en/com/2007/com2007_0128en01.pdf
(not availabel yet)
see also : WWF Report Worlds Top 10 Rivers at risk ( March 2007), pdf

 

22.03.07 : France : Journée mondiale de l’eau: encore beaucoup d’efforts à faire
France : World Water Day : still many efforts to do
Frankreich : Welt Wasser Tag : mehr Anstrengungen gefordert

Le 22 mars, le ministère chargé de l’environnement a reçu différents acteurs pour débattre du sujet primordial que constitue l’accès à l’eau potable et à l’assainissement. Le partenariat français pour l’eau (PFE) a été lancé à cette occasion.

C'est un fait avéré: l’objectif du millénaire pour le développement qui concerne l’eau ne sera pas atteint. Il visait à réduire de moitié, d'ici à 2015, le pourcentage de la population qui n'a pas accès de façon durable à un approvisionnement en eau potable. «Nous savons comment y arriver, mais nous avons pour autant du mal à l’atteindre», a indiqué Jean-François Le Grand, président du Cercle français de l’eau.
Les acteurs présents ont malgré tout souligné les progrès réalisés ces dernières années en France. «Le droit à l’eau a été inscrit en tête de la loi sur l’eau et les milieux aquatiques. C’est une avancée juridique incontestable. Mais le droit à l’eau appelle à une mise en œuvre effective», a déclaré Henri Smets, membre du Conseil européen du droit à l’environnement. Selon lui, il faudra une nouvelle loi pour que ce droit soit opposable.
Par ailleurs, l’expérience du Partenariat français pour Mexico (PFM), qui s’était constitué dans le cadre du 4e forum mondial de l’eau de Mexico en 2006 (1), s’est avérée positive pour ses membres. Un Partenariat français pour l’eau (PFE) pérenne a donc été mis en place. Il a entre autres pour objectifs de mettre à disposition les informations relatives aux avancées vers les objectifs du millénaire, d’élaborer des messages communs et diffuser les savoir-faire de ses membres dans les événement et réseaux internationaux, et d’apporter des contributions aux représentants du gouvernement français en charge des discussions relatives aux politiques de l’eau au sein des institutions européennes.
Nelly Olin, ministre chargée de l’environnement, a insisté sur un thème qu’elle souhaiterait voir promu dans ce cadre: l’équipement en eau potable et assainissement des écoles des pays en développement. En effet, comme l’ont souligné Antoine Frérot, directeur général de Veolia eau, et Laurent Stéfanini, représentant la ministre chargée de la coopération Brigitte Girardin: l’atteinte de l’objectif du millénaire relatif à l’eau conditionne l’atteinte d’autres objectifs tels que la diminution de la mortalité infantile et la scolarisation des filles.
Egalement présent le 22 mars, Amadou Belko, maire de Torodi au Niger, a souligné les bienfaits de la décentralisation en Afrique, qui permet aux élus locaux d’assurer un contrôle rigoureux des ouvrages liés à l'eau. Il a également salué le travail de l’ONG «Eau vive», qui, dans le cadre de ses projets, responsabilise les élus locaux. «Si tous les pays européens avaient, comme la France, une loi Oudin-Santini (2), ils auraient contribué à atteindre les objectifs du millénaire», a-t-il ajouté.
Rappelons qu’à l’heure actuelle, sur notre planète, 1,1 milliard et 2,5 milliards de personnes n’ont respectivement pas accès à l’eau potable et à un assainissement de base.

(1) Voir l’article du JDLE: «L’esprit français à Mexico»
(2) Voir l’article du JDLE: «Coopération décentralisée pour l’accès à l’eau potable»
vers le site du Partenariat Français pour l'Eau

Auteur : Agnès Ginestet
Source : le Journal de l'Environnement, 22.03.2007

 

21.03.07 : Spanish industry and farmers face water tax
Spanische Landwirtschaft und Inustrie sollen für Wasser bezahlen
Les industries et les agriculteurs espagnols doivent payer l'eau


ENDS Europe DAILY 2287, 21/03/07

A tax on industrial and agricultural water use is the most controversial element of a draft water law, presented on Tuesday, which aims to incorporate into Spanish law basic principles of the EU water framework directive. Irrigators, hydroelectric generators and industry will pay between 1-2 euro cents per 100m3 or 100kWh. Irrigation currently accounts for over 60 per cent of water use in Spain. Sector group Fenacore said the tax would cost its members at least €30 million per year.

For further information : see
the Spanish environment ministry <http://www.mma.es/>,
the draft water law, <http://www.mma.es/secciones/medios_comunicacion/prensa/notas_pre/2007/03/BorradordelaReformadelaLeydeAguas.pdf>
and Fenacore <http://www.fenacore.org/>.


Article Index: agriculture, economic instruments, industry facilities, water

 

21.03.07 : Environmentalists in uproar as Iceland pays the price for green energy push
Islands Wildnis bezahlt hohen Preis wegen Boom so genannter 'grüner" erneuerbarer Hydo Energie"
Tollé des environnementalistes en Islande : le pays paye au prix fort la montée des énergies vertes


Europe's largest wilderness is paying the price of Iceland's decision
to market cheap, "green", renewable electricity to the world, as a
massive new smelter nears completion.

Across a pool of oily water deep inside a rocky cavern carved into a
mountain, two steel pipes stretch up into a black void. They rise as
high as the Empire State Building. Within weeks these pipes will be
connected to enormous turbines and some 40km (25 miles) away, the
waters of a 57 sq km reservoir will be released.

The power station in the mountain is only part of the construction
project being built in eastern Iceland. It is designed to provide
electricity for an aluminium smelter operated by the American
multinational, Alcoa. And while the generators may be hidden from
view - the source of the energy certainly is not.

An hour's drive along the new asphalt road, which winds across a
windswept plateau, you reach what was once one of the most isolated
parts of an isolated country: Kárahnjúkar. The monochromatic scenery
of black rock and white snow, under grey skies, was once dominated by
a deep fissure in the earth - a canyon carved by the waters from
Europe's largest glacier. Now that flow has dried to a trickle and
this incredible natural feature is blocked by the massive concrete
wall of a new dam.

For those building the Kárahnjúkar dam this marks an exciting new
stage in the country's development. "The hydroelectric resources of
Iceland are stranded here in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean," says
Sigurdur Arnalds, an engineer from the national power company,
Landsvirkjun.

"We cannot sell the power to other countries because we are isolated
here. The sole purpose of this is to sell electrical power to foreign
industries, in this case it's aluminium to Alcoa. If you look at it
globally this is clean energy."

Far better to build aluminium smelters in Iceland, goes the argument,
than power them with fossil fuels elsewhere. It's estimated that by
using "green" energy, carbon emissions from aluminium production are
reduced by some 90 per cent. For companies keen to stress their
environmental credentials, you can see the attraction of setting up
in Iceland. From the cold water pouring off the glaciers to the
reservoirs of hot water under the ground that can be tapped for
geothermal power, there's more green energy here than Iceland's
300,000 inhabitants could possibly need.

But if it's all so green - why is opposition to the project so
vociferous? Environmental campaigners are coming here from across the
world, the Icelandic singer Bjork has written songs about Kárahnjúkar
and politicians are highlighting the issue in forthcoming elections.

"This is the greatest environmental impact possible in Iceland," says
Ómar Ragnarsson, one of Iceland's most respected journalists. After
covering the story of the dam for the country's national broadcaster,
he became so incensed that he switched from journalism to
campaigning. "We are taking this valley from future generations just
for the benefit of some power utilisation company," he complains
angrily. "All this area will be hit with such destruction that the
Icelanders will be shy of showing it for thousands of years."

Some people already claim to be feeling the effects. Some 120km
downstream of the dam, Örn Thorleifsson farms on the island of Húsey.
The nearest village is almost two hours' drive away. It really does
feel like the end of the world. He calls it a beautiful paradise - a
haven for birds, seals bask on the beach; apart from the wind
rattling the windows, it's almost totally silent.

"Everything has changed since they began to build the dam," he says.
"They destroyed everything." He tells how sand and clay, washed down
the mountain from the construction, have ruined local fishing
grounds. The dam has also blocked the flow of glacial sediment to the
coast. Without these sediments, Mr Thorleifsson claims, his island
home could disappear.

But in this part of Iceland, Mr Ragnarsson and Mr Thorleifsson are in
the minority. You'll struggle in the villages to find anyone who has
a bad word for heavy industry. Take the pretty community of
Reydarfjordur for instance, near where the Alcoa smelter is soon to
start production. The economic benefits of having a major employer
here are tangible: there's a new shopping mall, new roads are being
built, tunnels are being drilled through the mountains to connect
communities often cut off whenever there's bad weather. Before the
smelter, the area was in terminal economic decline, people were
moving away and houses were being abandoned.

Around the headland from Reydarfjordur, the power lines from the
mountains come to an end at Alcoa's state-of-the-art smelter. The raw
materials will arrive by sea - the processed alumina powder coming
all the way from Australia. The metal is produced in 336 large vats
or pots, as they're called, working at 900C with each requiring a
staggering 180 000 amps of electricity. It's the reason the dam has
to be so big. The first pot starts production next month and by the
end of the year the plant will be producing some 346,000 tonnes of
aluminium per year. More than a tonne for every Icelander.

The process of aluminium production also generates carbon dioxide. So
while the energy may be green, aluminium can't really be described as
carbon neutral. And this isn't the only aspect of Iceland's energy
policy that isn't quite as green as it might first appear. Under the
Kyoto protocol, thanks to the country's clean energy reserves,
Iceland negotiated an increase in greenhouse gas emissions. As a
result heavy industries that locate here can produce carbon dioxide
without penalty - therefore avoiding carbon taxes or the
complications of offsetting or trading carbon emissions.

Nevertheless, Alcoa has a pretty good track record when it comes to
environmental responsibilities, with targets to reduce pollution and
greenhouse gas emissions. Its website talks of stewardship and
sustainability. But Kolbrún Halldórsdóttir, a Green MP, believes
Iceland is being taken advantage of. "We have this beautiful
untouched nature, in itself a resource that can be used for the
benefit of the nation through tourism, through science, through other
kinds of things other than selling cheap electricity to foreign
aluminium plants," she says.

Although the dam and smelter projects were approved by an
overwhelming majority in the parliament in 2002, Ms Halldórsdóttir
says a lot has changed in the past five years and people are now
coming round to her point of view.

And while it may be too late for Kárahnjúkar, it's not too late to
stop other areas being developed. The government is consulting on
building two new industrial smelters and expanding a third. If they
are given the go-ahead, at least four more dams will need to be
built. "There's no need to try to attract more and more to Iceland."
A surprising statement, perhaps, to hear from Iceland's new Minister
of Industry and Commerce, Jon Sigurdsson. "Aluminium is a good
addition to our economy; it's an important part of our development -
but only a part."

By Richard Hollingham in Karahnjukar, Iceland
http://news.independent.co.uk/environment/article2377698.ece
Richard Hollingham presents Crossing Continents tomorrow at 11am on
BBC Radio 4

 

20.03.07 : Going nowhere fast: Top rivers face mounting threats
Grosse Flüsse sind immer mehr bedroht.
Les grands fleuves font face à des menaces grandissantes.

Gland, Switzerland – Rivers on every continent are drying out, threatening severe water shortages, according to a new WWF report.
The report, World's Top Rivers at Risk, released ahead of World Water Day (22 March), lists the top ten rivers that are fast dying as a result of climate change, pollution and dams.
“All the rivers in the report symbolize the current freshwater crisis, which we have been signalling for years," says WWF Global Freshwater Programme Director Jamie Pittock.
"Poor planning and inadequate protection of natural areas mean we can no longer assume that water will flow forever. Like the climate change crisis, which now has the attention of business and government, we want leaders to take notice of the emergency facing freshwater now not later.”
Five of the ten rivers listed in the report are in Asia alone. They are the Yangtze, Mekong, Salween, Ganges and Indus. Europe’s Danube, the Americas’ La Plata and Rio Grande/Rio Bravo, Africa’s Nile-Lake Victoria and Australia’s Murray-Darling also make the list.
Dams along the Danube River — one of the longest flowing rivers in Europe — have already destroyed 80 per cent of the river basin’s wetlands and floodplains. Even without warmer temperatures threatening to melt Himalayan glaciers, the Indus River faces scarcity due to over-extraction for agriculture. Fish populations, the main source of protein and overall life support systems for hundreds of thousands of communities worldwide, are also being threatened.
The report calls on governments to better protect river flows and water allocations in order to safeguard habitats and people’s livelihoods.
“Conservation of rivers and wetlands must be seen as part and parcel of national security, health and economic success,” Pittock adds. “Emphasis must be given to exploring ways of using water for crops and products that do not use more water than necessary.”
In addition, cooperative agreements for managing shared resources, such as the UN Watercourses Convention, must be ratified and given the resources to make them work, says WWF.
“The freshwater crisis is bigger than the ten rivers listed in this report but it mirrors the extent to which unabated development is jeopardizing nature’s ability to meet our growing demands,” says Pittock. “We must change our mindset now or pay the price in the not so distant future.”

For further information:
> Lisa Hadeed, Communications Manager
WWF Global Freshwater Programme
Tel: +41 22 364 9030
E-mail: lhadeed@wwfint.org
>
Brian Thomson, Press Officer
WWF International
Tel: +41 22 364 9554
E-mail: bthomson@wwfint.org

Source : http://www.panda.org/news_facts/newsroom/index.cfm?uNewsID=96520

 

14.03.07 : Ilisu Dam Opponents Occupy Brandenburg Gate in Berlin
Ilsu Staudamm Projekt : Aktivisten für Umwelt und Menschenrechte besetzen Brandenburger Tor in Berlin
Projet de barrage à Ilisu (Turquie) : les opposants à ce projet occupent la Porte de Brandenburg à Berlin

Environment and Human Rights Activists today occupied the Brandenburg Gate in Berlin, Germany

Berlin (14 March, 2007) ­ With this action, the Environment and Human Rights Organizations have protested the impending granting of an export credit guarantee by the German government for the controversial Ilisu Dam in Turkey. The dam will block the Tigris shortly before the border of Turkey with Iraq and Syria. The German company Zueblin is to profit from the German export credit guarantee.
„We have occupied the Brandenburg Gate to show the people here in Germany, what their government is currently planning in Turkey,“ explains activist Matthias Dittmer. “We have a couple of hundred years of history here in Berlin ­ the submergence of Hasankeyf would destroy a 9,000 year-old history.”
Human rights campaigner Bianca Jagger, who has been campaigning against the Ilisu dam project for nearly seven years, comments on the project from London: “On today’s World Action Day against Dams, I appeal to the Chancellor and the German government not to guarantee the funding for the Ilisu dam project. I hope the company Zueblin will reconsider their decision to be a partner in the construction of the dam, it should follow the example of the British company Balfour Beatty; the company withdrew in 2002 due to unresolved social and environmental problems. The Ilisu dam will cause great harm to the people of the area. It will lead to the forceful relocation of approximately 50,000people. The cultural patrimony of the region will be destroyed, and as a result the people will also lose their homeland and identity. It is my hope that this project will be stopped!”
“The people in South-East Turkey have experienced enough grieve with mega dams,” says Ercan Ayboga from the local Initiative to Save Hasankeyf in Berlin. “Practically all people in our region oppose the Ilisu project. We affected people want to have a say in our future and do not want the Turkish or the German government to decide what is good for us.”
“The project violates international standards and international law,” says Heike Drillisch, a spokesperson from the German NGO WEED. “This project could never be built in Germany. Our government should not support it, only because it is in Turkey. We will hold the German government accountable for the impacts of its actions.”

For images from the occupation of the Brandenburg Gate in Berlin, contact:
> Kai Schäfer, write to kai.schaefer@weed-online.org, 0160 ­ 252 8942
For further information about the action and the Ilisu project, contact:
> Heike Drillisch (WEED) +49-177­345 26 1, write to Heike.drillisch@weed-online.org, URL : http://www.weed-online.org/ilisu
> Ercan Ayboga (Initiative zur Rettung von Hasankeyf) www.hasankeyfgirisimi.org
> Matthias Dittmer, +49-177 - 384 93 42
> Ann Kathrin Schneider, IRN, +49-163-4751284
> Regine Richter, urgewald, +49-170-2930725

 

09.03.07 Announcement : 10th World Day against large Dams the 14th March
Annonce : 10ème Journée mondiale contre les grands barrages le 14 Mars
Aufruf : Am 14 März findet der 10. weltweite Tag der Aktion gegen Grossstaudämme statt.

Fellow community leaders and activists around the world,

We are less than a week away from the 10th Anniversary of the International Day of Action Against Dams and for Rivers, Water and Life! Thank you again for all those that have contacted us about your events.
We have begun posting them on our website (www.irn.org/dayofaction) which is also a good resource for those looking for a list of actions taking place this year. We already have word from almost 30 actions taking place
in 19 different countries !

Some of these exciting events include:
In LESOTHO, the Transformation Resource Centre (TRC) is planning a march over the wall of the Katse Dam. The march will follow the theme “Water is a Right!” and will call for public involvement in water policy and against
water privatization.
In MEXICO, el Consejo de Ejidos y Comunidades Opositores a la Presa La Parota (CECOP) will be providing an offering to the Papagayo River to announce that they will continue defending its waters. Children of the community will bring small boats to release into the river whose sails will be painted with words in opposition to La Parota Dam. Following the offering, a tribute will take place in memory of Doña Margarita, a symbol of the resistence against La Parota.
In BANGLADESH, Angikar Bangladesh will lead an action against the Tipaimukh Dam called “No to Tipaimukh Dam: Yes to Clean River, Quality Water and Better Life.” They are organizing10 press conferences that will take place on boats sailing on 10 river points in Bangladesh. In each program, journalists will be invited on the boats and written press
briefings will be read during the trip.

For those that have yet to contact us about your event, PLEASE send details on your event to us as soon as possible, so we can ensure publicity on our website and/or time to address any questions or concerns you might have. Again, don't forget to include (1) title, (2) location, (3) date and time, (4) contact person, and (5) a brief description (be
sure to let us know if we should keep your event confidential). We will post it on our web site, maintain a master list, and distribute information to interested individuals.
Lastly, and perhaps most importantly, we would greatly appreciate any photographs and short summaries of your events after they take place. Good luck and please let me know if was can help in any way.

For the rivers
more information on the World Day against large Dams

05.03.07 : Spain - More water send from Tagus to dry southeast
Spanien : Weiterer Wassertransfer vom Tagus nach dem unter Trockenheit leidenden Südosten
Espane : davantage d'eau envoyée du Tage au Sud - Est asseché.

Although reservoirs at the top of Spain's Tagus River are seriously low on water, they'll have to release some to parched towns in the southeastern part of the country, decided the Ministry of the Environment in Madrid. Two large reservoirs in central Spain will send 38 cubic hectometers of water to ease drought in the Segura Basin. The Ministry also approved a deal between farmers along one stretch of the Tagus, who will give 31 cubic hectometers to their counterparts in the provinces of Murcia and Alicante.


Source: SAHRA Water News Watch
Read more...<http://www.planetark.org/dailynewsstory.cfm?newsid=40680&newsdate=05-Mar-2007>


01.03.07 : Greece - Major problems in Thessaly as illegal dams built on Pineios River
Griechenland : Illegal gebauter Staudamm am Pineios verursacht grosse Probleme in Thessalien
Grèce : La construction illégale de barrages en Thessalie provoque de gros problèmes sur la rivière Pineios

The Local Organization for Pineios Irrigation (TOEB) in northern Greece's Larissa Prefecture reported that water levels in the Pineios River were perilously low, warning cotton farmers to switch to less thirsty crops, such as wheat, this spring if they hoped to have enough irrigation supplies. Aquifers in the Thessaly Plain are also low because of a dry winter, and the Lake Plastira reservoir is at the same level that it was in September 2006. TOEB President Giorgos Ladopoulos called water forecasts "grim." He blamed part of the problem upon illegal dams in Trikala Prefecture that diverted some of the Pineios' flow.

Source: SAHRA Water News Watch
more information ... <http://www.ekathimerini.com/4dcgi/news/content.asp?aid=80682>


20.02.07: Greece - Kifissos River can take no more pollution
Griechenland : Weitere Verschmutzung des Kiffissos Flusses ausgeschlossen
Grèce : la rivière Kifissos ne peut absorber davantage de pollution

The Kifissos River in Greece's Attika Prefecture has been used as a dumping ground for construction debris for decades, with often-corrupt local officials turning a blind eye to the destruction of the river's ecosystem and the floods that have resulted from its clogged channels. Now the Association of Manufacturers and Industrialists is asking the Ministry of the Environment, Planning, and Public Works (IPEKHODE) for an extension of its present 12-year building permit. If Minister Giorgos Souflias consents, it will be the kiss of death for the river, said Panagiotis Tsitouras of the Attika Ecology Campaign, which has been fighting to preserve the Kifissos for 30 years.

Source: SAHRA Water News Watch
more... <http://www.ekathimerini.com/4dcgi/news/content.asp?aid=80300>

19.02.07 : climate change is already affecting European coasts
Klimawechsel zeigt Auswirkungen auf Europas Küsten
le changement climatique touche déjà les côtes européennes

Le 14 février, le Centre commun de recherches de la Commission européenne a publié un rapport qui conclut à la nécessité de tenir compte de l’exploitation des mers et des côtes européennes par l’homme dans les politiques visant à restreindre les incidences du changement climatique.Celui-ci a déjà eu des effets: dans certaines zones écossaises, la température des eaux a augmenté de 1°C au cours des 20 dernières années, en Méditerranée, de 0,5°C. Les mers ont globalement monté de 0,8 à 3 millimètres. Toutes ces modifications ont pour conséquence des épisodes climatiques catastrophiques tels que pluies torrentielles, sécheresses, inondations. Ainsi, au nord du Royaume-Uni, «la fréquence des tempêtes d’hiver et des conditions météorologiques extrêmes a doublé au cours des 50 dernières années».

Le rapport établit également que d’autres activités humaines que celles qui émettent des gaz à effet de serre ont des impacts sur les mers et les côtes, à commencer par la pêche, la production d’énergie, le commerce, le tourisme, etc. «Les pressions anthropogéniques peuvent aggraver l’effet du changement climatique en réduisant la capacité de récupération des systèmes marins et côtiers, les laissant encore plus vulnérables au forçage climatique», alertent les auteurs du rapport.

Auteur : Claire Avignon
Source : le Journal de l'Environnement http://www.journaldelenvironnement.net/fr/document/detail.asp?id=612&idThema=2&idSousThema=11&type=JDE&ctx=259

15.02.07 : Warming Europe 'must adapt water strategy' (Edie)
Europas Wasserstrategie muss der Erwärmung angepasst werden
La stratégie européenne de l'eau doit être adaptée au réchauffement climatique


European countries must start preparing for the water shortages, floods and droughts likely to be brought on by climate change, the EU has warned.
As representatives from member states met in Berlin to discuss the impacts of climate change on Europe's water sector this week, Environment Council president Sigmar Gabriel stressed the need to factor climate change into long-term water resource plans across the EU.
"We must learn to consistently take the impacts of climate change, especially on the water balance, into account when making long-term decisions, for example with regard to infrastructure or regional development," he said.
Global warming is already affecting seasonal and regional precipitation patterns, causing glaciers to recede in the Alps and sea levels to rise. EU member states must start preparing for more intense and frequent floods, droughts and gradual changes in the water balance that are likely to follow, Sigmar Gabriel told the European Symposium on climate change and water resources.
"Even if we succeed in reducing the increase in greenhouse gas emissions to an extent that allows the global rise in temperature to be limited to an average of 2 degrees Celsius, we will still be faced with serious consequences," he said.
The symposium precedes an EU Green Paper on adaptation to climate change that the European Commission is to publish by the end of the year.
DG Environment director-general Mogens Peter Carl said: "We first have to make more efficient use of available water resources and reduce our consumption before we start tapping new sources."
He said the Commission "is considering a range of additional measures, for example a Europe-wide initiative on saving water in all other areas such as private households and industry."

Author : Goska Romanowicz
Source : Edie News <http://www.edie.net/news//blog/blog.asp?author=2>

11.02.07 Drought in Turkey
Trockenheit in der Türkei
Sécheresse en Turquie

A three-month drought has left Turkish farmers alarmed, and reservoir levels in the cities of Istanbul and Bursa are at only 8% to 50% of capacity, reported meteorologist Professor Selahattin Incecik of the Istanbul Technical University. Flows in the Meric River on the Greek border have dropped from 730 to 100 cubic meters per second and those in the Manavgat River have dropped by 50%. In the cotton- and wheatfields of the Cukurova Valley, farmers will have to retill and replant if it doesn't rain in February, and on the high Anatolian plateau, lack of snow is allowing cold winds and frosts to kill seedlings. In December 2006, average precipitation for Turkey was 73% below seasonal norms.

more… <http://www.metimes.com/storyview.php?StoryID=20070126-073908-1322r>
Source: SAHRA Water News Watch / via EWMN

11.02.07 : Danube wetland work ahead but not enough
Donau : Fortschritte in Sachen Feuchtgebiete, aber immer noch ungenügend
Danube : des progrès pour les zones humides, mais pas assez cependant


Danube NGOs are doing good projects that help protect and restore valuable wetlands in the Danube River Basin. But more wetland projects are needed to make better use of wetlands as pollution removers, says Peter Whalley of the UNDP/GEF Danube Regional Project (DRP). Unfortunately, some 80% of the Danube Basin’s wetlands and floodplains have been lost due to past human activities over the last 150 years, from river channelling to making room for more farmland.

more... <http://www.gwpceeforum.org/?page=63&read=120>
Source: UNDP

10.02.07 : GREECE ­ Water shortages leading to blackout
Griechenland : Wassermangel führt zu Stromausfällen
Grèce : les pénuries d'eau entrainent des pannes d'électricité

Greece's National Electrical Company (DEI) admitted that water shortages were leading to more frequent power blackouts and that the situation was likely to grow worse. One problem is that the water for generating hydroelectric power, the domestic water supply for roughly 2.5 million people, and water to irrigate 5 million acres of farmland all comes from the same reservoirs. After one year of below-average precipitation, reserves will be stretched to the limit during peak hours of demand in the summer. Another problem is that former DEI head Iannis Paleokrassas never got around to modernizing four antiquated facilities that would have provided some security against grid overloads, and they won't be upgraded before 2009. According to Professor of Hydrology Mairi Mimikou of the Faculty of Civil Engineers at the Metsovo Technical University of Athens, even if it rained every day for the next two months, aquifer levels would still be 30-40% lower than normal.


more… (in Greek) <http://ta-nea.dolnet.gr/print_article.php?e=A&f=18758&m=N15&aa=1>
Source: SAHRA Water News Watch via EWMN

08.02.07 : 5th World Water Forum, 2009 in Turkey
Das 5. Weltwasserforum findet 2009 in der Tûrkei statt
Le cinquième forum mondial sur l'eau se tiendra en 2009 en Turquie

On Thursday 18 January, Turkey and the World Water Council (WWC) signed the official agreement for the organisation of the 5th World Water Forum, to be held in Istanbul from 15 to 22 March 2009.
At the signing ceremony in Ankara, Dr. M. Hilmi Güler, Turkish Minister of Energy and Natural Resources, stated that 15,000 people from 150 countries are expected to attend the 5th Forum to discuss issues and solutions regarding water in the world. Emphasizing the crucial role of water for people, life, energy and balance in the world, Dr. Güler reported that serious measures are being taken in Turkey in this respect.


Read more… <http://www.iwahq.org/templates/ld_templates/layout_633184.aspx?ObjectId=634333&articleid=655058>
Source : ERN
Read more… <http://www.emwater.org/activities/e-learning.htm>
Source: Global Water Partnership

01.02.07 SWITZERLAND ­ Shrinking glaciers thawed faster in 2005
Schweiz : beschleunigte Gletscherschmelze in 2005
Suisse : les glaciers ont fondu plus rapidement en 2005

Mountain glaciers around the world are melting more and more quickly, according to new data issued today that confirms the trend in accelerated ice loss over the past 25 years. Thinning of the ice on the majority of the world's glaciated mountain ranges averaged two-thirds of a meter (26 inches).

more information... <http://www.ens-newswire.com/ens/jan2007/2007-01-29-05.asp>
Source: ENS World News : via EMWN


28.01.07 : UK - Flood project restores London's lost river
UK : Verschwundener Londoner Fluss restaurauriert zugunsten Hochwasserschuzt
UK : un projet de protection contre les crues rend à Londre sa rivière perdue

One of London's historic watercourses was brought back to life as part of an award-winning flood defence project. The river Quaggy in Lewisham, South East London, was forced underground when the area urbanised, with most of the river's 17 kilometre course now artificially channelled underground. But the Environment Agency has now brought a section of the river back to the surface as part of a local flood alleviation scheme, using historical data to cut its channel through Sutcliffe Park in Greenwich.


more information... <http://www.edie.net/news/news_story.asp?id=12550&channel=4>
Source: Edie News Centre

23.01.07 : France : Hydroélectricité: une option qui pose question
Frankreich : Strom aus Wasserkraft - eine Option die Fragen aufwirft
France : Hydroelectricity : an option that raises matters

Le 16 janvier, le colloque «Développement durable : la réponse de l’hydroélectricité» a vanté les mérites de l’hydroélectricité. Mais les impacts environnementaux ne sont pas négligeables, et le potentiel de développement en France est discuté.

Déjà 10% de la production nationale d’électricité, une disponibilité rapide, et pas de rejets de CO2: au vu des différents discours prononcés lors du colloque organisé par l’Union française de l’électricité (UFE) et l’Agence de l’environnement et de la maîtrise de l’énergie (Ademe), l’hydroélectricité est une des solutions phares pour atteindre les objectifs de la loi de programme fixant les orientations de la politique énergétique (loi Pope) (1): réduire les émissions de gaz à effet de serre de 3% par an et produire, d’ici 2010, 21% de l’électricité française à partir d’énergies renouvelables. Le but étant de trouver un équilibre entre cette loi et la loi sur l’eau et les milieux aquatiques (2) qui contient des mesures de protection de l’environnement. Ainsi, François Loos, ministre chargé de l’industrie, a déclaré dans son discours: «Notre politique énergétique a notamment comme ambition d’assurer la compétitivité des prix et la sécurité d’approvisionnement, tout en préservant l’environnement. L’hydroélectricité permet tout cela en même temps».

Mais pour Jean Wencker, vice-président de l’association Alsace Nature, l’impact environnemental ne se réduit pas aux seuls rejets de CO2. Perte du pouvoir auto-épurateur et augmentation de la température de l’eau, impact sur la faune piscicole: l’hydroélectricité a des conséquences. «L’hydroélectricité n’est pas propre et on l’a surexploitée en France. Le plus souvent, il y a une perte de continuité écologique. Il faut des dispositifs techniques spéciaux pour les poissons qui ont besoin de migrer. Aujourd’hui, tous les barrages ne sont pas équipés de passes, et il n’y a pas encore de solution pour les anguilles», explique Jean Wencker.

«Les barrages ont aussi des effets secondaires car les sédiments se déposent et font remonter le niveau de l’eau. Il n’y a donc plus de sécurité contre les crues», ajoute-t-il. Dans son discours de clôture, la ministre en charge de l’environnement Nelly Olin a indiqué: «Il me semble indispensable de renforcer les moyens de l’évaluation environnementale et surtout d’améliorer l’intégration de cette valeur au sein de l’analyse coût-bénéfice indispensable à la prise de décision sur un projet, que ce soit un renouvellement d’exploitation ou une installation nouvelle».

Datant de mars 2006, le rapport Dambrine a conclu que la France pouvait développer un potentiel de 7 térawattheures (TWh) par an à l’horizon 2015, soit 10% de plus que la production actuelle. 2 TWh concerneraient toutefois l’optimisation de l’existant. «Les chiffres du rapport nous paraissent raisonnablement tenables», a indiqué Jean-Louis Richard, président honoraire du Groupement des producteurs autonomes d’énergie hydraulique (GPAE). Mais Jean-François Astolfi, directeur de la division production et ingénierie hydraulique chez EDF, estime que peu d’ouvrages auraient un retour sur investissement satisfaisant. «La première priorité serait de s’intéresser à ce qui existe déjà et de sécuriser ces installations-là», a-t-il confié. Un avis que partage Jean Wencker: «En France, tous les sites qui ont un potentiel économique sont déjà équipés. On ne pourra pas faire plus que 4TWh».


Source : le Journal de l'Environnement du 23 janvier 2007 <http://www.journaldelenvironnement.net/fr/document/detail.asp?id=340&idThema=2&idSousThema=12&type=JDE&ctx=259>

16.01.07 : l'Algérie : plus de barrages et de dessalement de l’eau
Algerien setzt auf Staudämme und Entsalzungsanlagen
Algeria : more dams and desalination

Algérie: problème de pénurie en eau à partir de 2025 (JDF)
Selon plusieurs sources, le ministre algérien des ressources en eau, Abdelmalek Sellal, a indiqué, samedi 13 janvier, que la moyenne de consommation, actuellement de 600 mètres cubes (m3) pourrait être réduite à 500 m3 en 2025, en raison de la pénurie et du réchauffement climatique. Le ministre souhaite donc que son pays ait davantage recours au dessalement de l’eau. «Nous sommes en phase de réaliser 14 stations de dessalement sur tout le littoral national», a déclaré le ministre rappelant la réalisation de la station d’El Hamma qui sera opérationnelle à partir d’octobre. Ces stations devraient produire environ 1,2 million de m3 d’eau potable. Abdelmalek Sellal a également annoncé qu’outre les 12 barrages déjà en cours de réalisation, des études sont entreprises pour 27 autres.

source: http://www.journaldelenvironnement.net/fr/document/detail.asp?id=297&idThema=2&idSousThema=10&type=JDE&ctx=259


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