Water scarcity

The newly opened Ilısu Prof. Dr. Veysel Eroğlu Dam will contribute 3 billion Turkish Liras to Turkey's economy annually, President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan said on Nov. 6.

More than five billion people could have difficulty accessing water in 2050, the UN warned on Tuesday, urging leaders to take the initiative at the COP26 summit.

As early as 2018, 3.6 billion people had inadequate access to water for at least a month a year, according to a new report by the UN World Meteorological Organization.

The ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) is preparing a draft law on water management of the country, President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan said on July 5.

"We are preparing a 'Water Law' in the parliament in order to reach our targets faster and to prevent conflicts in water management," Erdoğan said, speaking at an opening ceremony of water facilities in the capital Ankara.

Drought caused by climate change and the decrease in precipitation have affected the basin of Lake Van, the water sources, agriculture and animal husbandry in the region, experts have warned.

"Heat rose, while precipitation decreased in the last decade," Faruk Alaeddinoğlu, a professor from Van Yüzüncü Yıl University, told state-run Anadolu Agency.

Water is at the core of our existence. From an agriculture perspective, water is the essence of the food we grow. The world's food systems depend on the planet's water systems. Many global challenges, however, are threatening the sustainability of our water resources leading to water stress and scarcity and therefore impeding our efforts to attain food security.

The recent rainfalls have been good news for Turkey's most crowded metropolis Istanbul, as the province was troubled by drought fears earlier this year.

Water levels in the dams supplying the city have finally reached 90 percent thanks to precipitation.

Recent rainfall have been good news for Turkey's most crowded metropolis Istanbul, as the province was troubled by drought fears earlier this year.

Water levels in the dams supplying the city have finally reached 80 percent thanks to the precipitation.

Water levels in the dams supplying Istanbul have reached 79.4 percent thanks to recent rainfall.

Data from the Istanbul Water and Sewage Administration (İSKİ) showed that water level in Istanbul dams were at 24 percent on Jan. 11, when the city's water supplies were at alarmingly low levels, but increased by almost three times in three-and-half months.

Ljubljana – Marking World Water Day, experts stressed the importance of waters and the need to protect the abundance of water sources that Slovenia boasts for future generations, especially in the light of proposed changes to the waters act that would loosen the rules for water protection areas.

With Turkey facing severe drought conditions, dams in several major cities in the country are drying up at an alarming rate, widely affecting daily life and agriculture, officials and experts have warned.