INTERNATIONAL NEWS

AFTER A 51-YEAR-LONG ABSENCE, SALMON ARE BACK ON THE ELBE RIVER

 Fifty-one years after the last salmon disappeared from the Elbe river, about 30 salmon measuring between 60 and 70 cm were seen on a tributary of the river, located between Dresden and the Czech frontier, in the Saxonian state. The 26th of october 1998, the inhabitants of the village of Rathmannsdorf noticed the presence of the king of freshwater fish below a small weir, on a stream with a predestined name : « Lachsbach », which means in German « the salmon’s stream» !

 After examination of four specimens, it was confirmed that they were indeed salmon which had been released in the Elbe since 1996, as part of the « Elbe-Salmon 2000 » program. The salmon actually came back near the area were they had been released, a place located about 10 km from the salmon hatchery used for the breeding. Intiated by the Saxonian state’s Agency for Agriculture and Fisheries, and supported by the « Living Elbe » coordination, the « Elbe-Salmon 2000 » program began in 1995 when eggs started being produced, notably from wild Swedish stocks. The salmon experts based their work on the hypothesis that Elbe salmon were genetically closer to Baltic salmon stock - which can live in rivers prone to freezing - than to Loire and Allier salmon. In 1996, the first juveniles were released, and then began their long journey to Hamburg on the estuary, and then to the open sea, off the shores of Groenland in the North Atlantic.

 This first success demonstrates, if necessary, that one needs only a few things to have salmon back on a river : no or few dams and a fairly clean river ! The main course of the Elbe has indeed only one dam between the mouth of the river and the upper part, upstream from Dresden, which is located on the estuary and has been equipped with an efficient fishladder. As for water quality, it improved spectacularly since Germany’s reunification in 1989. In the post-war era, the Elbe was turned into a sewer with the construction of huge chemical « Kombinats » - it became the most polluted river in Europe. Since 1989, a depollution program was launched, which included the construction of about 70 purification plants.

 But this success also required - and this is the most important - a real political will behind the decision that it was important to have salmon back on the river and behind the breeding program. And if the first positive steps have been achieved rapidly, as the salmon were released only two years ago at most, lots of determination will still be needed to confirm this come-back. The next step will be to see if salmon reproduce naturally in the « Lachsbach ». If this is the case, it will be possible to consider that the natural cycle has resumed and that there is good hope to see a healthy salmon population settle back on the Elbe basin on the long term.

 The goals are now to continue improving water quality and reintroduce salmon in other tributaries of the Elbe, in Germany and in the Czech Republic, notably in the Saxonian Switzerland National Park which straddles the two states. The question will then be the decommissioning of small or middle-size dams which keep salmon from migrating up many streams and sterilize hundreds of hectares of spawning grounds. Following the example of the demolition of the Saint-Etienne-du-Vigan and Maisons-Rouges dams on the Loire basin in France, the Saxonian state’s Agency for Agriculture and Fisheries and the Living Elbe coordination have already asked that some dams be dismantled to open up their ancient spawning grounds to salmon.

ERN European Rivers Network
Main & Westeuropean Office:
8 Rue Crozatier,  43000 Le Puy,  France
Tel +33 (0) 471 02 08 14    Fax  +33 (0) 471 02 60 99
    www.rivernet.org

deutsche Version: (noch nicht voll uebersetzt)

26.10.98 : Lachse sind nach 51 jähriger Abwesenheit wieder in die Elbe aufgestiegen !

Die sächsische Landesanstalt für Landwirtschaft (Referat Fischerei) meldet einen Riesenerfolg ! An die 30 ausgereifte Lachse von 60-70 cm Länge sind im sächsischen "Lachsbach" beim Aufsteigen zu den Laichgründen beobachtet worden. (der Lachsbach befindet sich bei Bad Schandau). Dies ist ein erster Erfolg der langjährigen Wiederansiedlungsmassnahmen ! Die zurückgekehrten Lachse waren vor 4 Jahren fast an derselben Stelle als Jungslachse von einigen Centimetern Länge ausgesetzt worden. Die  Elbe ist wieder ein Stück lebendiger !
Mehr Einzelheiten werden wir in den kommenden Tagen an dieser Stelle melden !
Kontakte: Sächsischz Landesanstalt für Landwirtschaft, Referat Fischerei, Dr  Füllner.

ERN European Rivers Network
Main & Westeuropean Office:
8 Rue Crozatier,  43000 Le Puy,  France
Tel +33 (0) 471 02 08 14    Fax  +33 (0) 471 02 60 99
     www.rivernet.org

Version français:

APRES 51 ANS DE DISPARITION, LE SAUMON EST DE RETOUR SUR L’ELBE !

 Cinquante et un ans après avoir disparu, le saumon a fait son retour sur l’Elbe. Le 26 octobre 1998, en effet, une trentaine de saumons, mesurant entre 60 et 70 cm, ont été observés sur un affluent du fleuve, entre Dresde et la frontière tchèque, en Saxe. Ce sont des habitants du village de Rathmannsdorf qui ont remarqué la présence du poisson-roi en dessous d’un petit seuil, sur un ruisseau prédestiné puisqu’il s’appelle le
« Lachsbach », ce qui signifie en allemand « le ruisseau du saumon » !

 Quatre specimens ont été capturés pour être observés, ce qui a permis de confirmer qu’il s’agissait bien de saumons réintroduits depuis 1996 sur l’Elbe dans le cadre du programme « Elbe-Saumon 2000 ». Les saumons sont d’ailleurs revenus tout près du lieu des lâchers, lui-même situé à 10 km de la salmoniculture qui sert à repeupler le cours de l’Elbe. Initié par l’Agence pour l’Agriculture et la Pêche de la région de Saxe, et soutenu par la coordination Elbe Vivante, le programme « Elbe-Saumon 2000 » a débuté en 1995 avec le lancement de la production d’oeufs, à partir de souches sauvages suédoises en particulier. Les experts se sont en effet basés sur l’hypothèse que le saumon de l’Elbe était plus proche du saumon de la Baltique, habitué à des fleuves pouvant geler, que du saumon de la Loire et de l’Allier. En 1996, les premiers tacons ont été relâchés, pour ensuite commencer leur longue route vers Hambourg sur l’estuaire, puis le large du Groenland dans l’Atlantique Nord.

 Ce premier succès démontre, s’il en était encore besoin, qu’il suffit de relativement peu de choses pour que le saumon revienne : pas ou peu de barrages et une rivière à peu près propre ! Le cours de l’Elbe ne compte en effet qu’un seul barrage entre l’embouchure du fleuve et l’amont de Dresde, situé à l’estuaire et doté d’une passe à poissons efficace. Quant à la propreté des eaux, elle s’est améliorée de façon spectaculaire depuis la réunification de l’Allemagne en 1989. Après-guerre, avec la construction d’énormes « Kombinats » chimiques, l’Elbe s’était transformée un véritable cloaque, devenant au fil des ans le fleuve le plus pollué d’Europe. Depuis 1989, d’importants efforts de dépollution ont été entrepris, avec notamment la construction de près de 70 stations d’épuration.

 Mais il aura fallu aussi - et c’est bien le plus important - une volonté politique réelle pour lancer la production de saumons et se fixer l’objectif de son retour. Et si les premiers succès sont rapides, puisque les saumons qu’on a observés n’ont été lâchés qu’il y a deux ans tout au plus, il faudra encore beaucoup de détermination pour confirmer ce retour. Le prochain test sera déjà de voir si les saumons se reproduisent naturellement dans le « Lachsbach ». Si c’est le cas, on pourra déjà considérer que le cycle naturel a repris et qu’il y a bon espoir de voir une population saine de saumon se réinstaller durablement sur le bassin de l’Elbe.

 Les objectifs sont ensuite de poursuivre l’amélioration de la qualité de l’eau, et de repeupler d’autres affluents de l’Elbe en Allemagne et en République Tchèque, notamment dans le Parc National de Suisse Saxonne, à cheval sur les deux états. Se posera alors la question du démantèlement d’ouvrages de petite et moyenne importance, qui barrent de nombreux cours d’eau et bloquent des centaines d’hectares de frayères potentielles. Inspirées par l’exemple de la démolition des barrages de Saint-Etienne-du-Vigan et de Maisons-Rouges en France, sur le bassin de la Loire, l’Agence pour l’Agriculture et la Pêche de la région de Saxe et la coordination Elbe Vivante ont d’ores et déjà demandé que certains ouvrages soient détruits pour rouvrir leurs aires de reproduction aux saumons.

ERN European Rivers Network
Main & Westeuropean Office:
8 Rue Crozatier,  43000 Le Puy,  France
Tel +33 (0) 471 02 08 14    Fax  +33 (0) 471 02 60 99
    www.rivernet.org

EU-Commission has prepared a paper on the implementation of the WaterFramework Directive. This document is a summary of issues that should be tackled in a work programme for implementation of Water Framework Directive. EU-Commission asks NGOs for comments on this document. Please let us know whether you are interested in this 12 page paper so that we
could fax it to you.
If you are interested, we could meet on this issue in Brussels to discuss our views.
Best regards,
Dieter Boymanns
Co-ordinator EEB Water Campaign
 Bureau Europeen de l'Environnement
European Environmental Bureau
 34, Boulevard de Waterloo
  B 1000 Bruxelles
   T 0032 2 2891090
  F 0032 2 2891099
   Email: eu.policy@eeb.org
     Web: http://www.eeb.org/
 

28.09.98 : Water in Spain : Spain to upgrade national Water resources
from: ENDS daily
The Spanish Parliament has approved a series of major investments in the country's water infrastructure, much of
which will be funded through the EU's cohesion fund.  A decree mandating the works was passed as a matter of urgency
to meet EU deadlines for applying for cohesion fund financing, following government approval of the measures on
28 August.  Environment minister Isabel Tocino said in the parliament that work should commence within a few months.
The investments, which will be carried out under the aegis of the central government, are aimed at Spain's "autonomous
communities".  Ten regions will share a total of SPta216bn (Ecu1.3bn); Andalucia and Aragon will take the lion's share
of this with SPta80bn and SPta46bn million respectively, followed by Valencia and Extramadura, which will receive
about SPta30bn pesetas each.  The funds will be put into constructing and renovating reservoirs, irrigation canals
and pipelines, upgrading and guaranteeing drinking water quality, improving wastewater treatment and implementing
environmental and public safety measures.
Contacts:  Spanish environment ministry (http://www.mma.es),
tel: +34 91 597 6800.

28.09.98 : EU must insist on effective clean-up of Coto Doñana toxic spill 
from:  WWF-Canon/J Bartolome
Unless effective clean-up measures are in place, the European Commission should withhold further financial assistance for cleaning up one of Europe's largest toxic spills which has seriously affected the famous Coto Doñana nature reserve in Spain, a WWF report said today.

Five months ago, a storage dam at the Aznalcóllar mine (Andalucia, Spain) broke releasing toxic sludge. The spill covered approximately 5,000 hectares including parts of the Doñana protected area. This is one of the largest protected areas in the EU, and a Ramsar and World Heritage Site. It is recognized as a special area of conservation under the EU Habitats Directive. The mine produces zinc-, lead- and copper-concentrates and is owned by the Swedish-Canadian company Boliden Apirsa.

WWF commissioned the report to assess the progress of the current clean-up activities. Its main message is that the clean-up of the affected areas needs greater coordination and urgency.

“The clean-up operations are far from complete,“ said Tony Long, Director of WWF European Policy Office. “In fact, unless we see greater coordination and urgency of restoration efforts, the onset of the autumn rains may seriously undermine the whole clean-up operation. The remedial measures must be carried out effectively and efficiently in line with the Commission's environmental policies and procedures under the Structural Funds.“

The WWF report calls for greater coordination between the Spanish national government, the regional authorities and the company responsible for the incident. WWF also calls for urgent measures to increase the rate of clean up, reduce the damaging effects of toxic dust in the cleaning-up process and reduce the impact of water erosion which could lead to the spreading of toxics.

WWF has asked the European Commission to help ensure an independent assessment on the quality of the clean-up, a crucial step for the success of the restoration plan. A single management authority in the area should be established to improve the coordination of efforts among all the stakeholders involved.

Further EU funding for the region should be made conditional to the progress of the clean-up as monitored by environmental indicators, Mr Long added.

For further information and photographs please contact: Guido SCHMIDT, WWF/ADENA coordinator for Doñana, mobile: +34 989 050781 (English, Spanish, German) or tel: +34 1 308 2309/10 (office); or

Alessandra POGGIANI or Giulietta RAK, WWF Mediterranean Programme Office - mobile: +39 347 2370456 (English, Italian) or tel: +39 06 84497425 (office).
 
 
 
 

22.09.98 : MEKONG: Asian Development Bank plans
from: Bob Stensholt - Mekong Research Network 
ADB News Release No. 56/98
New Cooperation Plans on Agenda of Greater Mekong Subregion Meeting at ADB To counter effects of the "Asian contagion," new approaches to joint projects will be discussed at the 8th Conference on Economic Cooperation in the Greater Mekong Subregion (GMS) at the Asian Development Bank in Manila from 30 September to 2 October 1998.

Building on the framework of existing GMS projects such as transport corridors, one new concept that will be discussed is the development of "economic zones" such as industrial estates which could be located near the border of neighboring countries. Adjacent countries such as Thailand and Lao People's Democratic Republic (Lao PDR), for example, could exploit comparative advantages in capital, natural resources and labor for mutual benefit. Investors, both domestic and foreign, could invest in an industrial estate on either side of the border, combining relatively cheap labour and raw materials from Lao PDR with technology and higher skills from Thailand, producing for the GMS subregional markets and beyond. This will assist in the diversification, development and restructuring of both economies, the ultimate objective of GMS cooperation.

The meeting, which will be attended by Ministers and senior officials from Cambodia, People's Republic of China, Lao PDR, Myanmar, Thailand and Viet Nam, will reaffirm the GMS countries' long-term commitment to economic cooperation in the face of the Asian financial crisis. Although the crisis is slowing down projects in the energy sector largely because of lower power demand in Thailand - there is continuing progress in other sectors such as transport, telecommunications, human resource development, tourism and environment.

 Ten GMS infrastructure projects have been either completed or are under implementation. About US$1 billion of resources has been mobilized to finance these projects, including more than US$320 million from the ADB and more than US$230 million in cofinancing. Five new infrastructure projects are at advanced stages of preparation, including a second East-West transport corridor project linking northern Thailand, Lao PDR and Viet Nam.

 A Draft Work Program 1998-2000 will also be presented. Officials will focus not only on projects but also on reducing non-physical barriers to cross-border activity such as streamlining customs procedures and regulations relating to drivers' licenses and vehicle registration.

There will be a Senior Officials' Meeting on 30 September and a Ministers' Meeting on 2 October, with October 1 reserved for discussions. Representatives from bilateral and multilateral agencies will also attend.

The ministers will be Ith Phraing, Secretary of State, Ministry of Industry, Mines and Energy, Cambodia; Jin Li Qun, Vice Minister of Finance, People's Republic of China; Phao Bounnaphol, Minister, Ministry of Construction, Transport, Posts and Communications, Lao PDR; Brig. Gen. David Abel, Minister, State Peace and Development Council, Myanmar; Dr. Supachai Panitchpakdi, Deputy Prime Minister of Thailand; and Tran Xuan Gia, Minister, Ministry of Planning and Investment, Viet Nam.

The GMS countries border the Mekong River and share a population of nearly 240 million and 2.3 million square kilometers of land. The ADB is coordinating initiatives to promote economic cooperation in a region once divided by political conflict.

 Bob Stensholt
Australian Mekong Research Network
Monash Asia Institute
Monash University
Clayton Vic 3186 Australia
Ph +61 3 99059260 Fax +61 3 99055370
www.monash.edu.au/mai/mekong.htm

 Background information:

 Ilisu is currently the largest hydropower project of Turkey. Damming the Tigris river near the Iraqi border, Ilisu will flood an area of 313 km2. Ilisu will have a capacity of 1,200 MW, and will produce 3,800 GWh of power per year. The costs are estimated to be $ 1.52 billion (not including financing costs). Construction is supposed to start in mid-1999, and production of power, in mid-2006.

 After the Turkish government unsuccessfully tendered Ilisu as a BOT scheme, it awarded the contract to a Swiss consortium consisting of Sulzer Hydro and ABB Power Generation without further tendering. The construction part was subcontracted to an international consortium lead by a British company. In early July, Sulzer submitted a request for ERG coverage to the Swiss authorities. Companies involved in the construction consortium will approach other national export credit agencies in the coming months. With loans totalling $ 1.2 billion, Switzerland has so far been the most important foreign funder of the GAP. ABB alone boasts an involvement in half of Turkey's installed hydropower capacity.

 Ilisu is part of the South-East Anatolia Project (GAP), a giant hydropower and irrigation scheme on the Euphrates and Tigris rivers in the Kurdish part of Turkey. Once the GAP is completed, its reservoirs are supposed to produce 27,300 GWh of power per year, and irrigate a land area of 17600 km2. The GAP's total price tag is supposed to be $ 32 billion.

 The Swiss NGO consultation:

 The Berne Declaration and the Swiss Coalition of Development Organizations have requested a participation of NGOs in ERG's decision-making process for decades. In 1997, more than 25,000 people supported this demand as part of a postcard-writing campaign of the BD. The Swiss government has so far refused this demand. As a first gesture of openness, they recently invited the BD, the Swiss Coalition and WWF Switzerland to attend a hearing on Ilisu on August 25. The hearing might constitute the first instance of regular consultations of Swiss NGOs by ERG.

 The Swiss NGO position on Ilisu:

 The Berne Declaration prepared a detailed position paper on Ilisu for the August 25 hearing (in German). The BD, the Swiss Coalition and WWF Switzerland oppose coverage of Ilisu by an export risk guarantee for the following reasons:

 * Social impacts: GAP reservoirs have so far involuntarily displaced 100,000s of persons. Compensation has usually been tied to the property of land or houses. Since most land in South-East Anatolia is concentrated in the hands of the village headmen, many landless families have not been compensated at all. Instead, they have quietly moved to the slums of the big cities. In the case of Ilisu, the number of people to be displaced has not been established yet. It has so far been estimated to be around 15,000 on the basis of helicopter rides only. Affected people are not being consulted. As was the case with earlier GAP projects, the mode of compensation will only be decided after construction starts. This violates OECD's resettlement guidelines. (Both Switzerland and Turkey are members of OECD. The World Bank has not become involved in Ilisu.)

 * Environmental impacts: Solid waste and wastewater of major cities such as Diyarbakir (pop. 1 million) are still being dumped into the Tigris river without any treatment. The Ilisu reservoir will vastly reduce the autopurification capacity of the Tigris. Wastewater treatment plants are being planned in Diyarbakir, but no binding decisions on this have been taken yet. Sulzer and ABB admit that the Ilisu reservoir will also infest the area with Malaria and Leishmaniosis. The two companies have commissioned an environmental impact assessment on Ilisu. Arguing that the EIA has only been done for export credit agencies and banks, they have not made this document available to NGOs or representatives of the affected people.

 * Archeological impacts: The Ilisu reservoir will flood Hasankeyf, a Turkish town with a population of 5,500. Hasankeyf is the only town in Anatolia which has survived since the middle ages without destruction. Being a rich treasure of Assyrian, Christian, Abassidian-Islamic and Osmanian history in Turkey, Hasankeyf was awarded complete archeological protection by the Turkish department of culture in April 1978. It must thus be protected against all negative impacts. The decision by the department of energy to flood Hasankeyf obviously violates this protection. Numerous cultural experts and activists in Turkey have appealed to the national authorities and the Swiss companies to save Hasankeyf by changing the design of Ilisu.
* Political impacts: The GAP dams constitute a major tool of political blackmail for Turkey vis-a-vis Syria and Iraq. This is also true for Ilisu. At its normal operating level, the Ilisu reservoir will have a spare capacity of 3 billion m3. Given the average streamflow of the Tigris, this will be sufficient for Turkey to block any water flowing to Iraq for several months. The Convention on the non-navigational use of transboundary waterways adopted by the UN General Assembly in 1997 prohibits damaging downstream countries by blocking rivers. Apart from China and Burundi, Turkey was the only country which rejected this convention. The blackmail potential of the GAP has already heightened the tensions between Turkey, Syria and Iraq considerably. This is supposed to be the main reason why the World Bank has abstained from financing GAP projects since 1984.

 * No analysis of alternatives: At a cost of $ 1,300/kW (plus financing costs), Ilisu is a relatively expensive power project. Project opponents in Turkey believe that power could be saved at a lower cost by modernizing the country's transmission system, which has a reputation as being inefficient. No alternatives to Ilisu have been considered as part of the feasibility studies. It seems likely that the Turkish government is prepared to pay a high price for Ilisu because of its interests to control the Kurdish population of South-East Anatolia, and to increase its political clout vis-a-vis Iraq.

 * A spokesperson of UBS, which syndicates the financing package for Ilisu, admits that Turkey is "a difficult risk". In September 1997, the "Institutional Investor" rated Turkey at only 38.6 (in a scale from 0 to 100), which was lower than other industrializing countries such as India, Mexico, Brazil, or the Philippines. In spite of the high country risk, Turkey in March 1998 was the most important recipient country of Swiss export risk guarantees with a total coverage of 1.175 billion Swiss francs. (In December 1997, Indonesia had still been the number one ERG recipient.) Turkey is thus a high risk for ERG even before the decision on Ilisu.

 Conclusion:

 For all the reasons listed above, the Berne Declaration opposes the coverage of Ilisu by ERG. If the Swiss government decides to grant coverage anyway, the BD requests that the following conditions be fulfilled first:

 * Affected people, including landless families, must agree to a rehabilitation package before the guarantee becomes effective.

 * Binding decisions to implement wastewater treatment facilities and other adequate environmental measures must be taken before construction starts.

 * The height and location of the Ilisu dam must be redesigned in such a way as to save the town of Hasankeyf from being flooded.

 * The high country risk of Turkey must be fully covered by the ERG fees.

The board of ERG is expected to issue a recommendation on Ilisu soon. The Swiss government is expected to take a decision on ERG coverage in September or October. In cooperation with other NGOs, the Berne Declaration will continue to oppose coverage and press for its concerns. Once other national export credit agencies have been approached by the Ilisu consortium, the BD will contact interested NGOs in the respective countries.

 The BD's detailed (German) position paper on Ilisu is available at www.access.ch/evb. Please note that Peter Bosshard, who works on ERG and Ilisu for the BD, is on holiday until September 6.
Christoph Meienberg
Berne Declaration<

 Laos is determined to become the battery of Southeast Asia through its $1.2 billion Nam Theun II hydroelectric dam, the country's largest development project.

 Hoping for an annual income of $250 million to help alleviate poverty, Laos is pushing ahead with the dam, which critics say will destroy the environment and displace about 800 families.

 A coalition of 14 environmental groups recently called on Thailand to forgo agreement to purchase power from the dam, citing economic viability, as well as environmental and humanitarian reasons.

 The group said Thailand needed to reassess its power demand in light of the current economic crisis, which has slowed industrial growth.

 The NT2 Consortium, which is building the dam, dismissed the allegations, saying Laos affected people will be adequately compensated and the Thai economy will be back on track in about two years.

 The consortium is looking to the World Bank to unlock loans from commercial lenders by providing the controversial project a ``political risk guarantee.''

 ``We expect to receive a final appraisal from the World Bank by next June and begin construction by the end of next year,'' said Khamleuang Sayarath, the Lao government's project director for the dam. ``The bank has been with us every step of the way and we are positive it will come through for us.''

 The bank, however, has been tight-lipped, having been severely criticized in the past for backing dams that have wrought environmental destruction.

 Other dams are being planned or built in Laos, which has few other income-producing resources. But the question of who will buy the electricity weighs heavily in Asia's economically depressed times.

 ``We are talking about a project that will begin generating electricity at the earliest in 2004. The situation should have improved by then,'' said NTZ Consortium Director Jean-Christophe Devallet. Besides Thailand, Laos hopes that one day Vietnam and Cambodia will also be buying its electricity.

 Copyright © 1998 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.

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 Copyright © 1998 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.

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