Türkiye and the Drought Monster.

Türkiye and the Drought Monster.

In recent years, Turkey has tried to provide water for agriculture, industry, and housing by building large dams. This Turkish policy, which has had many negative consequences for neighbors such as Iraq and Syria, continues.

But the reality is that now not only is it not possible to build new dams, but there is also not enough water to store in old dams. This year, especially with the unprecedented increase in temperatures in Istanbul, the level of concern has increased. Because the water reserves of the dams that supply drinking water to the Istanbul metropolis continue to decrease at an alarming rate.

Earlier, in April, Erdogan government officials had announced with satisfaction that the water storage rate in most dams had reached 87 percent, but this rate dropped below 57 percent by the end of July.

Experts say that the decrease in water levels in the dams due to lack of rainfall and the effects of heat waves in this metropolis of 16 million people is alarming. According to data from the Istanbul Water and Sewerage Authority (İSKİ), a 25 percent water reduction in less than three months paints a critical picture of water resources in Türkiye’s tourism and economic hub.