Expanding Water, Deepening Injustice: How Istanbul’s IBWT Projects Reshape Urban and Rural Lives

Inter-basin water transfer (IBWT) has become a key strategy for water authorities aiming to secure a reliable water supply for Istanbul’s growing population. While IBWT projects have improved urban water availability, their negative impacts on rural communities in donor basins—and, to a lesser extent, on urban populations—remain insufficiently explored. Addressing this gap, this paper examines the impacts of Istanbul’s two major IBWT systems—the Istrancas and Great Melen projects—constructed in the 1990s and 2000s, respectively, through the lens of environmental justice. The study employs participatory observation, in-depth interviews with key stakeholders in both donor and recipient basins, and a review of relevant documents and archival materials. Based on this analysis, the paper proposes an evaluation matrix to comprehensively assess the true costs and benefits of large-scale water infrastructure projects, considering the distributive, procedural, and recognition dimensions of environmental justice. The findings reveal that the costs of IBWT systems have been more extensive and profound than their benefits. Rural communities, in particular, have faced significant losses of income, livelihoods, and cultural heritage due to restricted or eliminated access to water, which has accelerated rural-to-urban migration. Urban populations, meanwhile, bear the economic burden of IBWT construction and maintenance, higher water prices, increased dependence on external water sources, and the pressures of migration, all of which degrade urban quality of life. Without addressing these interconnected environmental injustices, Istanbul’s water crisis risks escalating to a regional scale, affecting both rural and urban areas beyond the city.