Assessing Major Ecosystem Types and the Challenge of Sustainability in Turkey

Abstract

In recent years, Turkey has experienced rapid economic and population growth coupled with both an equally rapid increase in energy consumption and a vast disparity in welfare between socioeconomic groups and regions. In turn, these pressures have accelerated the destruction of productive, assimilative, and regenerative capacities of the ecosystems, which are essential for the well-being of the people and the economy. This paper describes the structure and function of major ecosystem types in Turkey and discusses the underlying causes of environmental degradation in the framework of economy, energy, environment, and ethics. From a national perspective, this paper suggests three sustainability-based policies necessary for Turkey's long-term interests that balance economic, environmental, and energy goals: (1) decoupling economic growth from energy consumption growth through the development of energy-efficient and renewable energy technologies; (2) linking economic efficiency and distributive justice of wealth and power through distributive and participatory public policies; and (3) integrating the economic and ecological systems through the internalization of externalities and ecosystem rehabilitation.

Effects of urban sprawl on agricultural land: a case study of Kahramanmaraş, Turkey

“…For example, throughout the Mediterranean region, 3% of farmland was lost to urbanization in the 1990s, and 60% of this land was prime farmland (EEA 2006). Turkey has also been subject to land transformations into urban-industrial land uses, especially with the loss of fertile agricultural lands to urbanization (Evrendilek and Doygun 2000;Eşbah 2007;Doygun et al 2008).…”

Agricultural sustainability in Turkey: integrating food, environmental and energy securities

“…Agricultural sustainability may be described as the state of securing socio-economic, ecological and institutional processes involved in the maintenance of both long-term productivity of agroecosystems and their biogeochemical integrity with relevant ecosystems. Agricultural sustainability can be accomplished through agricultural policies that promote (1) making agricultural activities congruent with ecological principles and socio-economic realities, (2) compatibility between crops and ecological conditions, conservation of indigenous genetic resources and diversi®cation of agroecosystems, (3) rehabilitating disturbed and degraded ecosystems, and (4) distributive justice of wealth and power (Miller and Wali, 1995;Evrendilek and Doygun, 2000;Wali et al, 2002).…”

“…Smith et al, 1999). Increasing poverty, limited access to nutritious food by the poor, hunger, malnutrition, unemployment, rural±urban migration, and low minimum wages are the consequences of the unequal economic growth policies that are being pursued (Evrendilek and Doygun, 2000).…”

Evaluating Performance and Elucidating the Mechanisms of Collaborative Development within the Beijing–Tianjin–Hebei Region, China

“…These can be divided into two classes, the first of which utilizes computable general equilibrium (CGE) or input-output models (IO) to analyze mutual changes between the economy, energy, and the environment within this framework. In one study, Evrendilek et al determined that rapid economic growth coupled with increases in energy consumption has led to environmental degradation in Turkey [16], while Albino et al determined that enhanced EEE interactions should be implemented in tile manufacturing in order to improve the sustainable development of Sassuolo [17]. Similarly, Oliveira et al established a comprehensive model to assess environmental burdens with respect to economic growth and energy consumption to aid decision-makers [18]; these workers developed a multi-sectoral EEE model using Portugal as a case study in order to analyze the interactive relationships between these factors to provide decision support for policymakers [19], while Allan et al utilized a similar CGE model to explore the relationship between energy efficiency and use [20].…”