PodcastIstanbul Municipality withdraws from Kanal Istanbul cooperation protocol
Istanbul Mayor Ekrem İmamoğlu has said that the municipality will withdraw from a cooperation protocol regarding the controversial Kanal Istanbul project, which has been criticized for possibly paving the way for “unearned income” at the expense of the environment, adding that a workshop on the project will be held by the municipality in the first week of January.
Duvar English
Istanbul Municipality will withdraw from a cooperation protocol regarding the controversial Kanal Istanbul project by the end of the day, Mayor Ekrem İmamoğlu said on Dec. 23.
"We are withdrawing from the Kanal Istanbul Cooperation Protocol that was signed by the previous administration," İmamoğlu said at a press conference, referring to his predecessor from the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP).
A workshop on Kanal İstanbul will be held by the municipality in the first week of January, Mayor İmamoğlu announced at a press conference titled "Working for 16 million," where he presented the municipality's work in his first six months in office.
"We might make an announcement about this on Wednesday [Dec. 25]," İmamoğlu said about the project that would create an artificial canal in Thrace, connecting the Black Sea and the Sea of Marmara.
Main opposition Republican People's Party's (CHP) Istanbul mayor İmamoğlu's announcement comes simultaneously with the finalization of an environmental impact assessment (ÇED) report for the project and its release for public review by the Environment and Urbanization Ministry.
Kanal Istanbul has also been criticized by experts for increasing the potential damage of an earthquake, as well as damaging the local flora and fauna.
Replacing horse-drawn carriages
During the press conference, İmamoğlu said that the heavily criticized horse-drawn carriages on Istanbul's Prince Islands will be replaced by electric-powered wheeled vehicles by summer.
İmamoğlu's announcement came days after the suspension of touristic carriage rides for three months due to a glanders epidemic among the horses, which necessitated the execution of 81 already.
The mayor also noted that some residents of Prince Islands were in favor of preserving 30-or-so carriages for nostalgic value, but that he himself didn't find it necessary.
There have been reports of the maltreatment of working horses on the islands in the past year, with multiple videos surfacing this summer where horses are seen collapsing from fatigue while still bound to their carriages.