ENG - UN CC:Learn

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EUROPE AND THE COMMONWEALTH OF
INDEPENDENT STATES
TURKEY
MDG7
Progress Towards Environmental Sustainability
BULGARIA
Bursa
Izmir
Konya
Gaziantep
Awareness of environmental issues has progressively increased in Turkey
since the late 1980s. The Undersecretariat of Environment, established in 1978, was expanded to become the
Ministry of Environment in 1991. The Ministry of Environment was merged with the Ministry of Forestry through
Law May 2003 as part of the public administration reform activities. Environmental policies evolved from a passive
stance of cleaning up in the aftermath of pollution to more improved strategies that envisage prevention and
incorporate a sustainable development component that assigns priority to the integration of environmental, economic,
and social issues.
Progress has been made in developing legislation regarding environmental problems and the institutionalization of approaches to
problem solving. Despite these positive developments, however, there are deficiencies in the implementation of environmental
management systems, sustainable management of natural resources, integration of environmental policies with economic and
social policies, and utilization of economic instruments.
QUICK FACTS
Total UNDP and Co-Finance: $312,296
Total: $312,296
G
R
C
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Istanbul
Black
Sea
Ankara
TURKEY
Adana
SYRIA
CYPRUS
Mediterranean Sea
LEBANON
RUSSIA
GEORGIA
ARMENIA
IRAN
Diyarbakir
IRAQ
Over the past decade, the expanding use of natural gas for residential heating, particularly in large cities, and the efforts of local
administrations to promote the use of natural gas have contributed to improving the quality of air. In 2002, natural gas constituted
20.6% of the total primary energy consumption in Turkey. Likewise, there are positive developments in reducing air pollution
due to transportation, especially in larger cities, as a result of the
expansion of subway systems, the increase in the number of vehicles
running on unleaded gasoline, the use of LPG in commercial
taxis, and wider use of coals with reduced sulfur content.
Dioxide emissions remained stable during the period 1995 and
2001; however, these emissions have been increasing at a rate of
around 10% on an annual basis since 2001. This is a major cause of
concern and should be seriously monitored and the rate reversed. 1
Protecting Monk Seals and Improving Fishermen’s Livelihoods 2
SPOTLIGHT
The Mediterranean monk seal is on the brink of extinction. One found throughout the Mediterranean, the Black Sea and the
northwest African coast, their numbers have fallen drastically. Fishermen have killed the seals for traditional medicinal purposes,
but also to prevent them from destroying their fishing equipment. Over-fishing and entanglement in fishing gear are the primary
causes of monk seal’s increasing mortality.
Concerned scientists from the Middle Eastern Technical University’s Institute of Marine Sciences studied their habitat and the
rate at which they were being hunted. They found that detrimental fishing practices, such as trawling or using large nets, the
expansion of fishing to new areas, coastal construction and increased tourism all contributed to the loss of the species.
Significant depletion of fish populations was threatening the entire ecosystem, adversely affecting the seals and the local fishermen,
who depend on fishing for their livelihoods.
In 1998, the Institute’s scientists teamed up with a national NGO, the Underwater Research Society, which received a grant from
the GEF Small Grants Programme (SGP).The project, which also involved local authorities, raised awareness about this problem
among local fishermen. Activities were organized to help the fishermen understand the seals’ plight, and the relationship
between certain fishing practices and the loss of their livelihoods.These efforts prompted the fishermen to join with the scientists
in lobbying for the creation of three protected areas. Finally, in 1999,Turkish fishing authorities accepted the Institute’s plan
to create a large marine protected area with three protection zones. Recently, monk seal conservation efforts in the region have
succeeded in establishing five protected coastal sites, as well as a no-trawling area and a no-fishing zone.
BIODIVERSITY
This project was successful because SGP was able to bring scientists and fishermen together and eventually build enough public
support to create new protected areas for the seals.
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