Marine Problems In Turkey

The celebrated Sea of Marmara, part of the Turkish Straits between the Black Sea and the Mediterranean is in an ocean of trouble, according to the latest report from the Turkish Marine Environment Protection Association.  Fed by the Black Sea, which itself is on life-support, the Sea of Marmara, as measured by the catastrophic plunge in  the  fish species  —   down from 127 in the 1970s to four or five today — is barely breathing.

Nearly 90 percent of the pollution in the seas is caused by domestic and industrial waste. Rivers such as the Danube, Dnieper and Dniester are the main polluters of the Black Sea, with the Danube in the lead, most experts agree. “Nearly 60 percent of the water of the Black Sea comes from the Danube, around 20 percent from rivers such as the Dnieper and Dniester, while around 15 percent originates from rivers in Turkey,” Professor Cem Gazioğlu from İstanbul University’s Institute of Marine Sciences and Management has told Sunday’s Zaman, drawing attention to the dominant share European rivers have in the pollution of both the Black Sea and the Sea of Marmara.

Today’s Zaman