Forestry Directorate

Turkey has gotten under control all the forest fires in the country, except for two blazes in the southwest, said the agriculture and forestry minister on Aug. 9. 

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"In 53 provinces, we have dealt with 270 forest fires, with 268 now under control," Bekir Pakdemirli told a press conference in Marmaris, Muğla after a firefighting coordination meeting.

A flight carrying Turkey's agriculture and forestry minister was forced to make an emergency landing in the eastern Malatya province on April 16, but all aboard are reportedly unhurt, said aviation sources.

Legal proceedings have been initiated by the Forestry Directorate for a man who carved a sanctuary inside a tree in the Black Sea province of Samsun's Ayvacık district as protection against the coronavirus.
İlkay Gümüşsu had carved a sanctuary inside a tree to draw attention to the coronavirus epidemic and protect himself from the disease.

A forest fire that broke out on Aug. 17 has reduced to ash around three hectares of forest land in the Ayvalık district of the western province of Balıkesir.

The fire broke out on Ayvalık's Hakkıbey peninsula at around 4:00 p.m. before spreading over a larger area due to strong winds. 

A fire erupted over at least 250 hectares of forest lands and woodlands in the Aegean province of İzmir on July 25. 

Ufuk Sesli, Mayor of Bayındır said at least 250-300 hectares of forest lands had been affected due to the fire. 

A hotel in the southern tourist hotspot of Antalya has begun cutting a large number of trees to make way for a golf course, after legal changes that no longer require the acquisition of Environmental Assessment Reports (ÇED) for facilities such as malls or golf courses.