Imported plastic waste sites in Adana still not cleaned despite promises by companies

*This article was published on atolyebia.org, the Communication Platform of Atölye BİA (BİA Workshop)

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The plastic waste problem in Adana is still on the agenda. Çiğdem Özkan, the Communications Officer of Greenpeace Mediterranean, said recycling companies that cause plastic pollution in Adana have still not cleaned the 18 spots where plastic waste was found, even though they promised in April that they would clean the areas within a month.

After the expiration of the one-month period, the recycling companies wanted additional time and are trying to gloss over the issue so that it would be forgotten and not pursued, said Özkan. "The fact that they could not complete the cleaning in a month indicates that they don't have scientifically appropriate facilities, in other words, they do not have the capacity. If they did, they would have recycled [the waste] within a month, as they promised," she said.

After the plastic waste imported was allowed again on July 9, 2021, following a complete ban on May 18, 2021, the amount of plastic waste coming to Adana has reached a level that threatens public health.

In April, the private recycling firms that bring the waste to Turkey, after having talks with the parties to the issue and NGOs in Adana with the initiative of the AHBAP Association, promised to clean 18 locations with plastic waste within a month. However, no serious efforts to clean the areas have started to this day and the companies demanded additional time.

Özkan told bianet that it is very risky for the health of the people of Adana that the waste dumping sites are in agricultural areas and that the garbage is mixed into the soil, water and air after it was burned.

"Irreversible damages"

"The amount of dioxins and furans we detected in our research in Adana is the highest amount we have detected in Turkey so far. In recent studies, this amount was 400,000 times higher.

"As a result of our examinations on samples taken from five different dump sites within the provincial borders of Adana, we have found that there are toxic chemicals, many of which are known to be produced during the combustion of plastics, in all locations.

"In addition to these chemicals, heavy metals were also detected in the samples taken. Some chemicals found in this study can cause growth, hormonal, reproductive disorders, organ damage (liver and kidney), cardiovascular or respiratory diseases in children, and may trigger various types of cancer.

"When the samples were examined, high levels of chlorinated dioxins and furans, which cause serious health problems such as cancer, were found. Chemicals detected in scientific studies potentially cause diseases and affect the nervous system. In addition, these wastes cause irreversible damage to the environment and human health."

No response from the ministry

They had shared the Game of Waste: Non-recyclable Lives reports, which they released on February 8, with the Ministry of Environment, Urbanization and Climate Change, but did not receive a response, Özkan noted.

In a report released by the ministry, no dangerous items were found and carcinogens were not measured, she said, adding that measurements were made for only some heavy metals.

While Greenpeace included carcinogens such as PAH, dioxins and furans, the ministry did not examine these. The two reports do not support each other, said Özkan.

People in Adana can no longer bear the smell of garbage in the city and the smell of orange blossoms are now replaced with the smell of burnt, smoke and garbage, she said. "If this problem is not eliminated by using the required scientific methods, it will be a great danger for future generations."

Turkey's insufficient recycling

According to the data that Özkan conveyed from Greenpeace's Game of Waste report, Turkey's plastic waste imports have increased by 196 times since 2004. The plastic use and production that have increased by 20 times in the last 50 years will be quadrupled by 2050. And 90 percent of the plastic that has been produced so far has not been recycled.

"The Ministry of Environment, Urbanization and Climate Change announced in the bulletin shared with the public in 2020 that it recycled 93,000 tons of plastic packaging waste in the first four months of 2020. However, considering that the amount of plastic waste imported to Turkey was 232,000 tons and Turkey's own plastic waste was 2 million tons, it is quite insufficient."

Data is not transparent

Another problem is that the data about recycling is not completely transparent and is not verified by reliable sources, said Özkan.

"Audit documents should be public because they are made for the public. These plastics take centuries to degrade in nature. Most plastics do not decompose regardless of environmental conditions. It is foreseen that it would be a right step to ban the import of plastic waste and to reduce plastic production in Turkey. Turkey should first establish the infrastructure that can transform its own plastic waste. How to clean up the garbage in Turkey is still a big question mark. The waste continues to accumulate."

(SB/SO/NÖ/VK)