Objection to panel of experts in Canal İstanbul case
* Photo: Archive - AA
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In the lawsuit filed against the Canal İstanbul project, which foresees an artificial sea-level waterway between the Black Sea and Marmara Sea, a panel of experts has been appointed to examine the issue.
Submitting a petition to the court hearing the case filed against the positive Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) report given for the project, the Union of Chambers of Turkish Engineers and Architects' (TMMOB) İstanbul Provincial Coordination Committee has objected to the panel of experts, raising their concerns that the experts are not objective or impartial.
In their petition to the İstanbul 10th Administrative Court, the TMMOB has stressed that some of the academics in the panel of experts are known to be close to the Justice and Development Party (AKP) government, some have approved of cyanide use and allegedly threatened students.
The union has also noted that the panel of experts has been appointed among the faculty members of İstanbul Technical University (İTÜ) and İstanbul University (İÜ), who offered consultancy services for the Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) report of the Canal İstanbul project.
'They should be dismissed'
The TMMOB has reminded the court of its duty to take the necessary measures to ensure the impartiality and objectivity of experts.
"Given that the selected experts cannot prepare an objective report for the aforementioned reasons, they should be dismissed from duty and new experts should be appointed in their place," the union has emphasized.
'Some expressed their opinions before'
The petition of the union has noted that some of the experts in the panel cannot act objectively, considering the reports that they previously prepared in favor of the project. The TMMOB has indicated that Prof. Abdullah Karahan and Assoc. Prof. Halit Özen, who are also the members of the panel of experts, expressed their opinions about the Canal İstanbul project, which has shown that they have lost their impartiality.
Panel of experts
As reported by Gökay Başcan from daily BirGün on December 19, the panel of experts consists of the following persons:
* İstanbul Technical University's Secretary General Prof. Mustafa Sait Yazgan, who threatened the students in the first week of the university, saying, "Don't join the protests, you will get punished."
* Prof. Süleyman Övez, who signed a report that says that extracting gold by using cyanide was harmless. Övez was also selected to the panel of experts to evaluate the objections against the 3rd İstanbul airport.
* The academics who issued a declaration of "1,071 academics" against the Constitutional Court's verdict of acquittal for Academics for Peace and pro-government academics are also in the panel: Prof. İsmail Toröz, Prof. Ali Osman Atahan, Prof. Mustafa Yanalak and Doç. Dr. Şenel Özdamar.
The full panel of experts is as follows:
Prof. Süleyman ÖVEZ (Biologist, Sea Pollution), Prof. İsmail TORÖZ (Water, Waste Water, Noise), Prof. Kadir ALP (Air Pollution), Prof. Ali Osman ATAHAN (Traffic), Prof. Cengiz KUZU (Explosive Excavations), Prof. Mustafa YANALAK (Land), Prof. Şevkiye Şence TÜRK (Urban and Regional Planning), Prof. Hayrullah AĞAÇCIOĞLU (Hydrology, Water Structures), Prof. Hüseyin Barış TECİMEN (Forestry, Forest Ecology, Plant Nutrition) Prof. Abdullah KARAHAN (Geophysics), Prof. Necmi KARUL (Archaeologist), Prof. Mustafa Sait YAZGAN (Agriculture), Doç. Dr. Şenel ÖZDAMAR (Geology), Doç. Dr. Hüsne ALTIOK (Marine Sciences and Management, Physical Oceanography), Assoc. Prof. Onur GÖNÜLAL (Marine Biology).
Latest developments about Canal İstanbulTender won by Rönesans GroupThe tender lodged by the Ministry of Transport and Infrastructure Directorate General of Highways for constructing the "Northern Marmara Highway (including 3rd Bosphorus Bridge) Project Nakkaş-Başakşehir (including link roads) section" with build-operate-transfer model is won by Rönesans Group, which also undertook the construction of Presidential Complex in Ankara. Afterwards, it has been understood that these roads are the roads of "New City" (Yenişehir) which will be constructed as part of Canal İstanbul. Nadir Ataman, an İstanbul Metropolitan Municipal Council member from the main opposition Republican People's Party (CHP), has said, "With the road tender lodged with the model of build-operate-transfer, it is seen that citizens will pay even to see the Canal İstanbul New City." Drinking water basin zoned for constructionAccording to the 3rd stage plans of Canal İstanbul project covering 10 villages, Sazlıdere Dam, which partly meets İstanbulites' water needs, will be completely destroyed as it will be a part of the canal. With these plans, the drinking water basins around the dam will also be zoned for construction. It is understood that when plans were still pending evaluation and objection, annotations were put on the title deeds of citizens. The plans also foresee the construction of buildings with "a ground floor + 3 floors" around Canal İstanbul. İt is also seen that no solutions have been developed to save the Şahintepe - Yarımburgaz Cave, where the first settled life started in the region 400 thousand years ago. In the current situation, Yarımburgaz Caves might be destroyed as a result of the project. The 3rd stage plans of the project cover an area of 5 thousand 893 hectares and 10 villages, namely Çilingir, Dursunköy, Hacımaşlı, Hadımköy, Haraççı, Sazlıbosna, Güvercintepe, Kayabaşı, Şahintepe and Şamlar. The village settlements it Hacımaşlı, Sazlıbosna and Çilingir and agricultural fields in Dursunköy and Şamlar are also a part of the plan. An agricultural field of 10 thousand hectares will be lostWith these plans, several agricultural fields, pasturelands and several other sites have been zoned for construction. While a road is to be build on Çilingir Village Cemetery, the villages on the route of Canal İstanbul project have been completely changed with the new plans. According to the data of the İstanbul Metropolitan Municipality, when the 1 to 100,000 Scale Environmental Plan for İstanbul dated 2009 is examined, it is seen that the total amount of agricultural land was 11 thousand 218 hectares. However, when the plan change as to Canal İstanbul in 2020 is examined, this figure drops to 733 hectares. In other words, an agricultural field of 10 thousand 485 hectares will be lost as a result of the project. In the plan dated 2009, the total amount of forestland was indicated as 2 thousand 984 hectares; but, when the plan change dated 2020 is examined, it is seen that this figure also drops to 2 thousand 134 hectares. So, with Canal İstanbul project, a forestland of 850 hectares will be lost. As for pasturelands, it will drop from its former amount of 497 hectares to zero (0) in 2020. That being the case, the villagers living in the region will no longer have lands to graze their animals when the project is completed. While the planned land in the project site was 12 thousand 509 hectares, it has increased to 35 thousand 714 hectares after Canal İstanbul project, which will lead to construction in and around the project site. While an area of 2 thousand 526 hectares is now open to construction in the region, this figure has reached 9 thousand 446 hectares with the project. It foresees 1.2 million additional population to come to the city. CLICK - What does draft legislation on Canal İstanbul foresee? What are the latest developments? |
(TP/SD)
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