Environment and siege. The ecological struggle in north-eastern Syria.
An interview with Gulistan Issa, project manager of Un Ponte Per, outlines the ecological crisis in northeast Syria and the response of the Autonomous Administration, which is tackling environmental challenges through sustainable initiatives, community management of resources and reforestation projects.In northeast Syria, water has become a strategic resource and a matter of survival. The water crisis in Rojava is not only the result of an increasingly arid climate or old infrastructure, but of a systematic encirclement aimed at economically and socially strangling this political experience. Turkey’s control of water sources and forced reduction of water flows has exacerbated an already dramatic shortage, exacerbated by war and international sanctions.
Once vital rivers such as the Xabur and Çaxçax flow for only a few months of the year, while cities such as Hesekê survive on rationing and cisterns. Agriculture, the mainstay of regional self-sufficiency, is in crisis. At the same time, groundwater pollution and a lack of efficient purification systems are making drinking water an increasingly scarce commodity.
The water problem is part of a wider environmental crisis. Waste, for example, is often dumped in unregulated landfills near water sources. Air pollution, caused by rudimentary oil refining and the massive use of diesel generators, contributes to further environmental degradation.
Despite this, Rojava is responding strongly. Its model of democratic confederalism has placed ecology at the heart of its politics, encouraging bottom-up initiatives to counter the difficult environmental and geopolitical conditions.
Through reforestation projects, the reduction of chemical fertilisers and the development of community water management strategies, it aims to ensure that water remains a right for all and not a weapon in the hands of external powers.
To better understand this emergency and the strategies adopted on the ground, we interviewed Gulistan Issa, project manager and campaigner for the humanitarian organisation Un Ponte Per. Born in Hesekê in 1994, she lived and studied in Syria, graduating from the University of Homs in 2017 with a degree in pharmaceutical sciences. She soon began working with humanitarian organisations and is now on the ground in Rojava, helping to tackle an environmental crisis with deep political roots.
Ecology and self-governance: a model of environmental resistance
In Rojava, the model of democratic confederalism is proposed as a project that integrates ecological principles into social organisation. The administrative autonomy of north-eastern Syria is based on a balanced relationship between the community and nature, with a determined approach to the limits imposed by available resources. The commitment to political ecology is not just theoretical, but is translated into concrete initiatives. “An important example is the existence of a Faculty of Jinology at the University of Rojava, which deals with ecology and ecofeminism. This institution works to integrate ecological principles into everyday life, with a focus on the role of women in environmental management,” says Issa.
The role of women in this transformation is crucial. One of the most active in this field is Berivan Omar, deputy co-chair of the Local Administration Department. “She and her team are doing important work, addressing environmental challenges and integrating ecological solutions into the self-governing system,” Issa says.
In Rojava, sustainability is not an abstract concept, but a necessity for survival. “Ecology is seen as a fundamental pillar,” says Issa. “If you look at the self-management model and the social structure of the region, it is clear that the relationship between the ecosystem and the community is essential for sustainable living in Rojava.”
Waste management and health care
In the context of a northeastern Syria in perpetual emergency, waste management is one of the most complex challenges facing the Autonomous Administration. For decades, there has been no real waste collection and disposal system, let alone a structured recycling programme, throughout Syria. In recent years, a number of experimental projects have been launched with the aim of radically transforming the sector, but they have struggled with limited budgets and inadequate infrastructure.
“Un Ponte Per is a waste management and recycling project that has been running for about two years in collaboration with the city’s environmental department. The initiative has set up composting areas for organic waste, with material collected from fruit and vegetable markets and restaurants. However, the resources available do not allow us to cover the entire region due to a very limited budget. We cannot intervene in all of Hasakê, Qamişlo or the rest of Rojava.”
“The role of local authorities has been crucial. The municipalities have made a great effort to equip themselves with vehicles for waste collection and to provide spaces for composting,” Issa continues.
Today, the pilot project launched in Hasakê has made it possible to separate waste into categories – paper, plastic and organic waste – and to link this process to local economic cooperatives. Through the self-governing cooperatives, recyclable materials are sold to one of the few recycling companies in the region. The proceeds are reinvested in social projects. One of the most concrete examples of this initiative is the creation of a space for women: with the money from the sale of cardboard and plastic, some cooperatives have opened a small gym and sports club. Next to the gym, a children’s room has been created so that the women can have time for themselves.
In addition to solid waste, Rojava also faces the problem of medical waste disposal. Without adequate infrastructure, hospitals and clinics risk becoming hotbeds of infection, so an effective management system is essential. For the past five years, we have been working with the Kurdish Red Crescent on a specific medical waste management project,’ says Issa. We have involved more than 60 health facilities across the region, from Qamişlo to Dêrik, from Tabqa to Manbij.
“One of the main objectives was to introduce waste segregation directly into the health facilities. We trained medical staff on how to handle hazardous waste,” says Issa. Then we built sanitary landfills outside the cities to avoid contamination.
Today, there are more than 15 dedicated medical waste disposal sites in Rojava. The process involves several steps: The waste is collected daily by municipal staff and transported to the special areas. Here it is disposed of using a system that includes glass crushers, volume reducers for needles and syringes, and incinerators for contaminated materials such as masks, gauze and gloves. The project was then handed over to the local authorities. The municipality and the health department, together with the Kurdish Red Crescent, now manage the system and carry out the separation and disposal procedures.
But the difficulties remain enormous. Unfortunately, in the current context, projects like this are seen as secondary to the humanitarian emergency and security. But without effective waste management, the environmental crisis in the region is likely to worsen. But the work done in recent years shows that change is possible, even in the most difficult circumstances.
Demilitarising water
In Rojava, water management has become a political and humanitarian battle. Turkey’s construction of large dams on the Tigris and Euphrates rivers, despite international agreements, has drastically reduced the flow of water to Syria and Iraq. But the problem is not limited to drought: water is now an instrument of geopolitical pressure being used to suffocate Syria’s northeast.
“From the beginning, Turkey did not respect the agreements on water management,” explains Gulistan Issa. “But the situation worsened with the occupation of some strategic areas, such as the Alok water station, the main source of water for 1.5 million people between Hasakê, Tel Tamer and Al-Hol.”
The Turkish invasion of Serekaniye in 2019 marked a turning point. “Since then, the Alok station has been under the control of the pro-Turkish Syrian army, which has stopped operating it, depriving not only Kurds but also Arabs, Yazidis and Christians of water,” says Issa. “Hasakê is now dependent on private wells with water of dubious quality, while in Al-Hol camp, the largest and most unstable in the region, the lack of water has worsened sanitary conditions and increased the risk of epidemics such as cholera and COVID-19.”
The use of water as a tool of war has had a devastating impact on the population. The people who fled Afrin were forced to move several times: first to Tell Rifaat and Shahba, then to Raqqa and finally to Hasakê, where they now live in schools that have been turned into shelters.
To solve the water crisis, Rojava’s self-government sought an agreement with the pro-Turkish forces to reactivate the Alok power station: in exchange for electricity, the water flow would be restored. “But while the self-government respected the terms, the water came only intermittently, once a week for a few hours,” laments Issa.
To make matters worse, Turkey has stepped up its bombing of energy infrastructure, hitting strategic installations in Derik and Derbasiya. “On the one hand they are demanding electricity, on the other they are bombing the power stations,” explains Issa.
As well as controlling drinking water, Turkey has also targeted hydroelectric power. “The Tishreen dam, which supplied Kobane, Raqqa and even Hasakê, has been hit repeatedly,” says Issa. “The aim is clear: to create an energy collapse that would make life impossible in the region.”
In response, the population has organised protests at the dam, even braving the winter cold. In the face of this emergency, the international community has remained silent. Water has become a weapon of war, but no one is intervening.
UPP and other organisations continue to press for the demilitarisation of water.
Pollution and war
In Rojava, air pollution and environmental degradation are not only the result of chaotic industrialisation, but also a direct consequence of war.
“Oil production and refining in north-eastern Syria is a serious health hazard”, says Issa. “Many people suffer from respiratory problems and cancer. Most cancer patients in the region are forced to travel to Damascus for treatment because of a lack of facilities. Living conditions are so poor that issues such as toxic emissions take a back seat. People do not have access to drinking water every day, so air quality becomes a secondary concern,” says Issa. “Raw diesel is used to heat homes, often in rudimentary stoves that fill the environment with toxic fumes.”
The war has prevented the development of a more sustainable infrastructure. “There are no advanced processing plants, and oil is refined using primitive methods away from population centres,” says Issa. “To make matters worse, Rojava is under constant attack. Without security, no long-term project can be implemented. Dependence on oil is therefore inevitable. Building a new Syria would require a stable economy, safe water and a development plan.”
In addition to oil refining, the Turkish bombing has had a devastating environmental impact. “The drone attacks and air strikes are contaminating underground water supplies,” laments Issa. “A toxic spill has poisoned one of the lakes in Arisha, killing all the fish. It is an ecological disaster.”
The long-term consequences of this environmental degradation are incalculable. “We are not just talking about air pollution, we are talking about a systematic poisoning of the ecosystem,” says Issa.
Building a sustainable future
Despite technical limitations and reduced resources, Rojava continues to seek new solutions. “Democratic confederalism actively involves local communities in resource management,” says Issa. Ecological transition, although hampered by war, remains a common goal. “Courses on water quality are organised in Kobane, and the water department has always participated enthusiastically,” says Issa. “We provide modern tools for monitoring, but the real driver of change is the commitment of the population.”
“Training health and technical staff is also a priority. Local authorities are always looking to improve their skills,” says Issa.
International restrictions have exacerbated the situation. “Following the USAID funding freeze, many essential services have been affected,” laments Issa. “Despite some exceptions for life-saving programmes, many institutions have been left without support.”
In addition to local institutions, many civil society organisations are helping to raise environmental awareness. “Organisations such as Green Tress and Green NES promote reforestation and land conservation,” says Issa. “They have even started educational programmes in schools, where each student has planted a tree in the courtyard to learn how to take care of it.”
Rojava’s vision is of a future based on sustainability and self-sufficiency. “We want a green Syria, a Rojava full of water and vegetation,” says Issa with determination. “This region used to be called Al-Jazeera, the island surrounded by the Euphrates, the Khabur and the Tigris. Now the Khabur has almost disappeared, the Euphrates is drying up and the Tigris is under constant threat.”
The obstacles are enormous: bombings, border restrictions, reduced budgets and an unstable political situation. But hope is not lost. “We are fighting for a Rojava that can live without war, without water shortages, without pollution,” Issa concludes. “And even if everything seems difficult today, we know that another future is possible.”
