Drought risk grows in Turkey: “Urgent measures must be taken for producers”

Head of the Department of Agricultural Management and Trade at the University of Yeditepe Prof. Dr. Metin Turan, stating that Turkey may face a drought problem in the future, said: “If your inputs are the same, your costs are the same, but your farming yield is declining by 30 percent, you need to find a solution here. In agricultural production, the data is urgent for the producer and precautions must be taken.

According to the statement of the University of Yeditepe, in the water stress map drawn up for 2040, Turkey may face a severe drought in the future. Although the map predicts the danger of drought, especially for the Marmara, Central Anatolia and South-Eastern Anatolia regions, the occupancy rate of the dams in Istanbul is at the lowest level in the last 10 years.

THE DROUGHT INDEX IS BEGINNING TO SHOW

Commenting on the statement, Prof. Dr. Turan assessed the risk of drought and the evolution of agricultural production in Turkey.

Emphasizing that the effects of climate change have been seriously felt in the last 20 to 30 years in the world, Turan said that they started to see the drought index in the Central Anatolia, Van and Southeast Anatolia regions, which show the same characteristics. than the desert climate in the Middle East.

teacher. Dr. Turan drew attention to the fact that drought is not just insufficient precipitation and made the following assessment:

“Actually, changes in temperature and the intensity of the sun are also extremely important in the formation of the life cycle. Especially in agricultural production, water is essential for us, but changes in the intensity of the sun also affect yield and we face not getting enough products, which we express as drought.”

“MUST TAKE IMMEDIATE ACTION FOR MANUFACTURERS”

Emphasizing that saving people’s daily water consumption alone is not enough to solve the problem, Turan said:

“Turkey has an annual water reserve of approximately 112 billion tons. Its usable quantity is about 55-60 billion tons. 8 billion tons are used in industry, 11 billion tons in daily consumption by people, and the remaining 40-45 billion tons in agriculture. Everyone puts it differently, but if you look at it from the farmers’ point of view, if your inputs are the same, your costs are the same, but your productivity drops 30 percent, you need to find a solution here. In agricultural production, the data is urgent for the producer and precautions must be taken.

Metin Turan affirmed that the problem can be solved in cooperation with non-governmental organizations, local actors and the state.

Turan said: “The next period is the agricultural period. The more professional we become, the more profitable our business and our country will be. It is possible to eliminate the danger of drought with scientific studies carried out in the agricultural area where the water is predominantly used.

Pointing out that what is not measured cannot be managed, Turan used the following statements:

“We are able to follow and measure all stages from seed to consumption in plant cultivation. For example, we know the fertilizers, sun, water and other inputs that a tomato needs. But in the measurements we did, we measured that you couldn’t get some of them. In this case, we try to give it what the tomato needs.

Doing these jobs only in the greenhouse or only in the open field will only tire the farmer. It is very important to cultivate products suitable to the regions and to make a production based on basins. Because we have been consuming water for the next 6-7 years, many water wells have been closed at this time.” (AA)