In just a few months, a protest against a large dam on the Rioni River has grown from a handful of people in Lechkhumi, western Georgia into a national demonstration. On the International Day of Action for Rivers, 14 March, thousands of Georgians made history with the largest environmental protest in the country\u2019s recent past.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
One cold evening in October 2020, Maka, Marita, Varlam and some of the other villagers in Rioni valley decided to start spending the night outside, on the bank of the Rioni River, in an attempt to protect it from the construction of a large dam. They said they would protest until preliminary construction on the 424 MW Namakhvani hydropower plant was stopped and its developer, ENKA Renewables (a consortium of Turkish ENKA and Norwegian Clean Energy), left the valley.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The guardians of the Rioni River, as people later called the protesters, have not gone home yet. Taking shifts, they have spent a collective 166 nights outside, sleeping in tents, and plan to continue until their demands are met. The company has not yet left the valley, either. However, the support the people of Rioni have received from the rest of the country has encouraged them to stand their ground. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
What started as just a handful of people protesting to save the Rioni River a few months ago has already turned into a national campaign. On the Day of Action for International Rivers, 14 March, thousands of Georgians came from all over the country to join the guardians of Rioni and make history. It was the largest environmental protest in Georgia\u2019s recent past.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u2018No to Namakhvani HPP\u2019, \u2018No to Dams in Racha\u2019, \u2018We protect our homeland\u2019, \u2018Freedom for Rioni\u2019, \u2018Solidarity from Pankisi\u2019 \u2013 these are some of the slogans on protestors\u2019 posters at the rally held in the western Georgian city of Kutaisi, where media\u00a0said\u00a0<\/a>about 22,000 people gathered.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u2018We were five people and today we are thousands because we were standing here with the truth\u2026 This gives us the hope that the spirit will never die as long as there is at least one person protecting the truth,\u2019<\/p><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n said one of the leaders of the Rioni protest, 28-year-old Varlam Goletiani, in his address to the audience. He added:<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u2018People from other parts of Georgia take shifts with us to spend nights in Rioni valley. There is not a place left in the country from where they have not joined us. In this state, we are creating a precedent for protests that are managed by utterly clean hearts and spirits.\u2019<\/p><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n The\u00a0Namakhvani hydropower plant\u00a0<\/a>will be one of the country\u2019s largest. Its reservoir\u2019s mirror surface will cover 610 hectares. It will flood parts of Tskaltubo and Tsageri municipalities, including the villages, cultural heritage, unique biodiversity, and some of Georgia\u2019s precious and expensive micro zones for producing Tvishi wine.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The project poses threats to not only the river\u2019s ecosystem and the region\u2019s unique wine, but also to the population of the Imereti and Lechkhumi regions, scientists say. Its development started without any justification of the economic need for the plant, and the preliminary construction works started without the completion of a number of studies required by law. Furthermore, locals have little trust in the investor \u2013 one of Enka Renewables\u2019 shareholders, Clean Energy, previously built another large dam in Georgia whose tunnels\u00a0collapsed<\/a>.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n If the dam is destroyed due to an earthquake or technical failure, a 34-metre-high wave from Namakhvani\u2019s dam could flood western Georgia\u2019s main city, Kutaisi,\u00a0estimate<\/a>\u00a0seismologists from the Institute of Earth Sciences and the National Seismic Monitoring Centre. This is not just an imaginary scenario, but one that could become a reality, given the strong earthquakes that have happened and could happen again in the area. In an\u00a0official statement\u00a0<\/a>addressing the prime minister, the Institute announced that the project\u2019s environmental assessment does not include proper studies and measurements and that it shows the project will not be built to withstand strong earthquakes.<\/p>\n\n\n\nThe dam which mobilised thousands<\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n