Obstacles facing of river hydroelectric power plants on environment (Example of Eastern Black Sea Region)

Abstract

The energy need increases in parallel with the increase in the world population and the technological advancements. The pollution arising from the energy production by the fossil fuels have exceeded the acceptable dimensions in recent years. Since many countries, including Turkey, cannot produce fossil fuel from own resources so as to satisfy the needs, they spend a significant part of the domestic income for the energy import. As from the early of the 2000s in Turkey, it has been enabled to generate electricity from the water and wind power by the private sector by constituting the legal basis. Much as this approach has provided a sum of increment for the national-sourced energy production, the legislative regulations remain incapable about the issues such as not to interfere to the national sources beyond the sufferable border and also not to be endangered the sustainability of the ecosystem. Moreover, there are technical and administrative difficulties to make the precautions of laws and regulations actual. Eastern Black Sea region is almost selected as the pilot area for building the run-of-the-river hydroelectric stations (RORHS), and it is planned to make 316 RORHS in 5 provinces as of 2010. The carrying capacity of this geography, the load and such effects of the facilities to be built for carrying the energy produced. These plants which have been put into practice without making any remark and comprehensive research to analyze the region-wide and on basin-basis cause serious apprehensions. The need for the local community to the water source, desires and expectations aren't considered enough. Moreover, there is not provided training for both of the individual entrepreneurs and the local community to gain environmental consciousness at sufficient level. It should be kept in mind that the training to increase the knowledge and consciousness levels of especially the investors about the nature conservation may be more effective than the penal measures.