Water and Land Resources Development in Southeastern Turkey

The Southeastern Anatolia Project (GAP), which was initiated in 1976 as a large-scale and multisectoral regional development project in Turkey, is a combination of 13 projects primarily for hydropower generation and irrigation. The project involves the construction of 22 dams and 19 hydroelectric plants with a total capacity of 7500 MW. At full development 27.3 billion kWhr of hydroelectric energy will be generated annually. GAP will also provide irrigation for 1.7 million ha of land corresponding to one-fifth of irrigable land of Turkey. As an integrated development project relating sectors including hydropower,irrigation, industry, transportation and social infrastructure, the Southeastern Anatolia Project has top priority among national projects of Turkey. In this paper, various aspects of hydropower and irrigation planning and development for the Southeastern Anatolia project will be discussed. Water availability, agricultural and other objectives, physical structures, developmentstrategies and scenarios are examined. Some important aspects of international water use are discussed.