Climate crisis threatens future of Turkey as Erdogan government shirks responsibilities
Under the increasingly authoritarian rule of President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, Turkey has so far failed to take meaningful action against rising carbon emissions or environmental pollution or to save societies with weak infrastructure, despite the fact that the modern Turkish Republic was barely a century old after emerging from the disintegration of the Ottoman Empire on October 29, 1923.
While the AKP broke away from Ataturk’s legacy, Turkey’s dedication to unbridled development has remained unabated, taking no account of environmental pollution or the infrastructure of some of the poorest communities.
Erdogan recklessness
According to recent surveys, the population is very concerned about the escalating effects of climate change and the destruction of forests, and the country’s vulnerability to climate disasters that are being paid for by the people alone. The expectations of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) of the United Nations are indeed pessimistic, and an increase in climate change and extreme disasters, as well as rising temperatures and drought in Turkey, where temperatures in the Mediterranean region rise about 20% faster than the world average, which may lead to parts of the region becoming unfit for human life. However, under the rule of the Justice and Development Party (AKP), Turkey has adopted a conflicting position on climate change and environmental protection.
In his report, the Turkish website said that Erdogan has consistently pressed for his country to be included in the list of developing countries, instead of developed countries, in order to evade the commitment to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. He was indifferent to extreme events and climate disasters, which include massive forest fires, severe droughts, devastating floods and catastrophic earthquakes, which are borne only by citizens and the poorest neighborhoods.
Government negligence
By location, Turkey’s carbon emissions increased by 138%, to 524 million tons of carbon dioxide equivalent in 2020, from 220 million tons in 1990. Under the newly ratified Paris Agreement, Turkey committed to achieving zero net emissions by 2053. The government has not yet developed a comprehensive framework to achieve this goal. Under Turkey’s current policies, however, emissions will continue to rise and correspond to a rise in temperatures of more than 4 degrees Celsius by 2100. The Climate Transparency Report 2021 indicates that Turkey is “not on track with the climate targets of 1.5 degrees Celsius, and is due to a significant increase in energy emissions.
