Lake Van dying

PanARMENIAN.Net - Lake Van, the fifth largest lake in Europe, is dying. Unless urgent measures are taken, the lake will dry up within the next 10-15 years.



The Turkish Marine Environment Protection Association (TURMEPA) has included Lake Van in its project 'Limitless Blue' that has been carried out for two years to save coastlines.



As it works to protect a coastline of 8,333 kilometer from Hopa to Iskenderun, TURMEPA plans to save Lake Van as well. The association has organized an event to clean the shores of the lake.



Esref Cerrahoglu, TURMEPA executive board chairman, said, "According to reports of experts, pearl mullets will die out in 10-15 years. Lake Van will become a source of pollution and will not be suitable to swim in. Taking some urgent measures could save the lake, which is an example of very significant historic and ecological richness of the region. This is why we are also working for Lake Van as well as our coastlines."  



As part of a project titled "Limitless Blue," for two years TURMEPA has been giving courses on the protection of the seas to primary school students living on the coastlines.  There were 105,000 students from Van who participated in one of the courses last week, the Turkish Daily News reports.



Situated in historical Armenia, Lake Van is Europe's fifth largest lake. The city of Van located on the eastern shore of Lake Van was the capital of the Urartian kingdom in the 9th century BC. Its ancient inhabitants called themselves Nairi and the city was a major Armenian center.



Despite courageous resistance, the city's Armenian population was devastated during World War I by Ottoman troops as a part of the Armenian Genocide.



Holy Cross church situated on Akhtamar Island in Lake Van was reconstructed not long ago and transformed into museum. There is no cross on the top but a Turkish flag and a portrait of modern Turkey's founder Mustafa Kemal Ataturk are stuck at the entrance.