VOA标准英语2009年-Funds for Turkey's Ilisu Dam Dry Up

Turkey's controversial Ilisu dam project has been dealt a severe blow. An international consortium of German, Austrian and Swiss companies withdrew their financial support last week, accusing Turkey of failing to meet environmental concerns and commitments to relocate people affected¹ by the dam. The dam if completed would be one of the largest in the region. But it is the center of a growing national and international campaign by environmentalists to stop it.

A Turkish bulletin has announced that an international consortium had pulled out of the Ilisu dam project. The consortium made up of German, Swiss and Austrian financial institutions said it is concerned about the project's effect on the environment.

The $1.6 billion Ilisu dam, if completed, would flood one of the country's most important conservation areas, including the 10,000 year old town of Hasankeyf.

The lake would also flood an area of more than 300 square kilometers, which would force the relocation of 10,000 people from 80 surrounding villages by its scheduled completion in 2013.

National and international environmental groups have joined forces to stop the dam. Guven Erken the head of the Turkish environmental group Doga Dernigi says the consortium's withdrawal² is a major blow to the project.

"It is very significant this is the second consortium that collapsed³. Turkey has to establish a new consortium. And that will certainly cause further delay in the construction of the project," Erken said.

Set to produce 3.8 billion kilowatt⁴ hours of electricity a year, the project is part of the Turkish government's plan to boost economic prosperity in the country's less developed south-eastern region.

The Environment Minister Veysel Eroglu earlier this month wrongly predicted the consortium wouldn't withdraw from the project. But he also said any withdrawal would not mean an end to the dam.

"We have the power, financial sources and capabilities⁵ to build this dam, but I am confident we will find other international resources," he said.

In a statement following the decision, the environment ministry⁶ reconfirmed its commitment to the dam's completion. Gun Kut of Istanbul's Bosphorus University is an expert on water issues. He says Turkey overcame similar problems in building another dam.

"In the Ataturk dam the same problem was there. Nobody wanted to fund it. The World Bank didn't want to fund it. So Turkey built from its own resources. So that is feasible. In the end you are expecting some returns that are not only economically but also socially and politically important," he said.

But with the Turkish government facing a growing budget deficit⁷, analysts⁸ say it may be reluctant to try and fund the dam. One alternative is tapping weathier Middle Eastern countries to fund the project. The ruling AK party has strong ties in the region and it could well turn to them for support.

But analysts say that may not be so easy. Iraq, Turkey's neighbor, is strongly opposed to the new dam because it would control the Tigris River, a key source of water for its agriculture.

This year Baghdad has accused Ankara of causing widespread drought because of Turkish dams failing to release enough water. Ankara denies the charge. But Kut says the sooner the dam is completed along with the larger Southeastern Anatolia Project, or GAP project, the sooner tensions will ease.

"The longer it takes Turkey to complete the GAP, the more there are problems with the neighbors. Once GAP is completed everyone will know how much water is there , how much is to be utilized⁹ by everyone, the capacity. And then it will be possible to find a lasting¹⁰ solution," Kut said.

But opposition¹¹ to the Ilisu dam is also growing within Turkey.

One of Turkey's biggest pop stars Tarkan, is singing about the dangers of dams to the environment. With the likes of Tarkan and numerous other pop stars and writers, joining the campaign to stop the the Ilisu dam, it has become a cause celeb among many of the country's large young population.

Environmentalist Doga Dernigi says the delay of the project means pressure on the government will likely grow.

"It will allow Turkey to reconsider the whole Ilisu dam idea and take a better decision. Because so far this project was put forward as must to the Turkish public," Dernigi said. "But now Turkey has learned more about the project and we have learned so much lesson from other dams. It did not bring the proposed economic income and it had major major ecological¹² effects."

With the government facing opposition from environmentalists and human rights groups both at home and abroad along with pressure from its Middle Eastern neighbors, analysts say the government is aware that with every delay to the Ilisu that pressure can only grow.

1 affected   

adj.不自然的，假装的

参考例句：

• She showed an affected interest in our subject.她假装对我们的课题感到兴趣。
• His manners are affected.他的态度不自然。

2 withdrawal   

n.取回，提款；撤退，撤军；收回，撤销

参考例句：

• The police were forced to make a tactical withdrawal.警方被迫进行战术撤退。
• They insisted upon a withdrawal of the statement and a public apology.他们坚持要收回那些话并公开道歉。

3 collapsed   

adj.倒塌的

参考例句：

• Jack collapsed in agony on the floor. 杰克十分痛苦地瘫倒在地板上。
• The roof collapsed under the weight of snow. 房顶在雪的重压下突然坍塌下来。

4 kilowatt   

n.千瓦

参考例句：

• They pay thirty fen per kilowatt hour.他们每度电付三角钱。
• The watt is a small unit of power so that we use the kilowatt instead.瓦特是小功率的单位，因此我们用千瓦代之。

5 capabilities   

n.能力( capability的名词复数 )；可能；容量；[复数]潜在能力

参考例句：

• He was somewhat pompous and had a high opinion of his own capabilities. 他有点自大，自视甚高。 来自辞典例句
• Some programmers use tabs to break complex product capabilities into smaller chunks. 一些程序员认为，标签可以将复杂的功能分为每个窗格一组简单的功能。 来自About Face 3交互设计精髓

6 ministry   

n.(政府的)部；牧师

参考例句：

• They sent a deputation to the ministry to complain.他们派了一个代表团到部里投诉。
• We probed the Air Ministry statements.我们调查了空军部的记录。

7 deficit   

n.亏空，亏损；赤字，逆差

参考例句：

• The directors have reported a deficit of 2.5 million dollars.董事们报告赤字为250万美元。
• We have a great deficit this year.我们今年有很大亏损。

8 analysts   

分析家，化验员( analyst的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• City analysts forecast huge profits this year. 伦敦金融分析家预测今年的利润非常丰厚。
• I was impressed by the high calibre of the researchers and analysts. 研究人员和分析人员的高素质给我留下了深刻印象。

9 utilized   

v.利用，使用( utilize的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• In the19th century waterpower was widely utilized to generate electricity. 在19世纪人们大规模使用水力来发电。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The empty building can be utilized for city storage. 可以利用那栋空建筑物作城市的仓库。 来自《简明英汉词典》

10 lasting   

adj.永久的，永恒的；vbl.持续，维持

参考例句：

• The lasting war debased the value of the dollar.持久的战争使美元贬值。
• We hope for a lasting settlement of all these troubles.我们希望这些纠纷能获得永久的解决。

11 opposition   

n.反对，敌对

参考例句：

• The party leader is facing opposition in his own backyard.该党领袖在自己的党內遇到了反对。
• The police tried to break down the prisoner's opposition.警察设法制住了那个囚犯的反抗。

12 ecological   

adj.生态的，生态学的

参考例句：

• The region has been declared an ecological disaster zone.这个地区已经宣布为生态灾难区。
• Each animal has its ecological niche.每种动物都有自己的生态位.