Turkey mining expansion and environmental controversy

In early August 2026, CHP parliamentarians highlighted growing environmental threats in Turkey. Bursa MP Orhan Sarıbal warned of rising forest fire risks, citing data that 3,224 fires in 2025 damaged over 81,000 hectares, while Konya MP Barış Bektaş condemned an open-pit mining project in Sarayönü that allegedly lacks an environmental impact assessment (EIA) and threatens water and agricultural resources.

Despite these warnings, government authorities approved significant mining expansions. A chrome mine near Burdur received an EIA allowing its footprint to grow, with plans to replant over 660,000 trees following extraction. In Yatağan, a marble quarry's licensed area was tripled, prompting concerns regarding deforestation, habitat loss for protected species, and proximity to residential areas.

By August 9, the controversy expanded to the Yayladağı region. CHP official Yıldırım Kara reported that 75 facility projects are prepared in the area, with 34 either not requiring an EIA or having been declared exempt. Kara noted that several polluting facilities in the Yukarıokçular neighborhood operate without EIA approval. Local residents have reported increased respiratory diseases, loss of olive harvests, and negative impacts on livestock due to air pollution, traffic, and dynamite vibrations. Kara further criticized the use of earthquake reconstruction needs as a justification for expanding these mining operations.