?Planning for Forest Water Functions Project? will be executed by Nature Conservation Centre Foundation (DKM) and General Directorate of Forestry (OGM) in cooperation to integrate water functions of forests into the forest management planning process in Turkey.
The project will be implemented in Ovac?k and Il?ca Forest Management Units in ?zmir Regional Forest Directorate, Bay?nd?r Forest District Enterprise, which is a part of Küçük Menderes River Sub-basin. The main problem in this sub-basin is excessive surface and underground water usage for irrigation. For effecfive water resource management in the sub-basin, Küçük Menderes Basin Protection Action Plan has been implemented, and dams and irrigation ponds were constructed by the government.
Bay?nd?r Zeytinova (Burgaz) Dam (irrigating 30.09 ha agriculture land) and Ergenli Dam?s (will irrigate 30.47 ha agriculture land) microbasins will be planned in the project. The project?s main aim is ?to enhance forest ecosystem services use in planning processes in Turkey? with a specific aim of ?Participatory planning of forest water functions for sustainable forest and agriculture management in Küçük Menderes River Sub-basin?. The project will have these outputs: - Establishing technical basis for integrating hydrological functions of forests into forest management plans, - Integrating forest functions into the forest management plans of Ovac?k and Il?ca Forest Management Units in Bay?nd?r Forest District Enterprise, - Upscaling project experiences.
Since there are 2 irrigation dams in the project site, forest water functions and erosion control funtions will be worked more closely. As a result of the project, 2 integrated forest management plans will be approved for Ovac?k and Il?ca Forest Mangement Units, and forest and water management will be sustained for 35.259 ha surface area. The dams will effectively irrigate 60.56 ha agriiculture land on the plain.
This project will develop an integrated forest management planning and implementation approach focused on forest ecosystem services, especially water functions in the Mediterranean forests. Finally, related changes will be made in current legistlation for upscaling this experience.