THE GLOBAL WINDOW OF TURKISH FOOD AND AGRICULTURE The Global Window of Turkish Food and Agriculture Sector
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Professor Dr. Doğan Yaşar announced that water levels in İzmir have fallen to critical levels and that underground water reserves are being depleted. Water levels in reservoirs are at their lowest point in history, threatening agricultural production.
Member of the Turkish Academy of Sciences (TÜBA) Environment, Biodiversity and Climate Change Working Group Member Professor Dr. Doğan Yaşar stated that while water levels in dams in Izmir province have fallen to critical levels, groundwater reserves are also depleted, adding, “In Bursa, 10 per cent of water is supplied from underground, while in Ankara and Istanbul, it is 1 per cent. Their groundwater reserves are still intact, but we have already depleted our reserve water.”
‘İZMİR IS A WATER-POOR CITY’
Emphasising that İzmir is below the Turkish average in terms of water, Dr. Yaşar said, “The annual per capita water potential in Türkiye is 1,340 cubic metres. While 1,000 cubic metres is the poverty line, İzmir is a city poorer than poor with 600 cubic metres. When the reservoirs run dry, we switch to groundwater. But even when the reservoirs are full, Izmir draws 50-55 per cent of its water from underground. As a result, the wells have become very deep; there are no wells below 300 metres now. The water drawn from the wells is from rains that fell 2-3 thousand years ago.”
‘GREY WATER SHOULD BE RECYCLED FOR AGRICULTURE’
Stating that 600,000 cubic metres of grey water is discharged into the sea every day at the Çiğli Wastewater Treatment Plant, Dr. Yaşar drew attention to the need to treat this water and recycle it for agriculture.
“We should direct this water to the Menemen and Gediz plains. It is said that it cannot be sufficiently treated, but we must treat it. Instead of extracting water from underground for agricultural use, we should support it with grey water,” he added…
