Dams, Recreation Areas, Climate Change and Water Security: An Assessment Using the Çoruh River as an Example

Abstract

Water is an essential resource for the sustainability of human and societal life. Although two-thirds of the world is covered with water, our planet is not rich in usable water resources. The sustainability of usable resources is threatened by problems such as global warming, drought, and climate change.                                                                                                                                              The Çoruh River originates in the Mescit Mountains, flows through the provinces of Bayburt and Erzurum, then through Georgia before emptying into the Black Sea. Of its total length of 431 km, 21 km is within Georgian borders, making it one of Turkey's five transboundary rivers. The Çoruh Basin, one of Turkey's 26 hydrological basins, covers a total area of ​​20,259,900,000 m². The Çoruh River is Turkey's fastest-flowing river and is utilized for numerous purposes, from energy production and irrigation to providing drinking water and creating recreational areas. With its existing dams and hydroelectric power plants, the river and its basin contribute 6% of Turkey's total energy production, positively impacting the economy. However, the river and basin are also experiencing negative environmental changes due to decreasing water levels and the degradation of the river ecosystem.  The increasing scarcity of usable water resources worldwide due to human actions has led to water, as a geopolitical resource, having a significant impact on international power balances and being considered a national security issue by nations due to competition in scarce regions. Transboundary waters, in particular, can lead to serious disputes, tensions, and even water wars between the states sharing them.                                                                                                                                                                    The Çoruh River Basin is a water system of strategic importance for our country and constitutes a significant portion of its hydroelectric power generation capacity. This study examines the interaction of dams and recreational areas constructed in the basin with climate change and their effects on water security. Data obtained through a literature review address hydrological regime changes, greenhouse gas emissions, ecosystem pressures, and transboundary water management issues. The findings reveal that despite the economic and social contributions of dams and recreational areas, they will lead to problems in the long term in terms of water security, climate change, and environmental sustainability, thus requiring multi-dimensional planning.