ISTANBUL, Turkey, Aug. 27 (UPI) -- An ancient city in Turkey's Aegean area will be covered with sand instead of silt and clay then inundated with reservoir water from a new dam, officials say.
Environmentalists say the decision to use sand to cover the ancient city of Allianoi will mean the ultimate destruction of an architectural treasure, Hurriyet Daily News reported Friday.
Despite efforts by environmentalists, a Turkish preservation board said sand would be used to cover the city before waters from the Yortanli Dam flood the region.
The Allianoi Initiative, spearheading a legal fight against the construction of the dam, objected to the new ruling. The group contends it will bury a rich repository of history and the sand cover will not be enough to protect the important ancient site.
The decision was a surprise, a lawyer for the initiative said, adding the group would immediately go to court to stop the sand-filling.
Allianoi, a hot springs settlement of the Roman Empire during the second century A.D., sits on the flood plain of the Bergama Yortali Dam, which environmentalists have been fighting since 1993, Hurriyet reported.
