Page 205 - 7. State Of Environment Report Of Türkiye

C.7.2. Utilization of Sewage Sludge in Soil

The By-law on the Use of Domestic and Urban Treatment Sludge in Soil was published in the Of-
ficial Gazette dated 03/08/2010 and numbered 27661 and entered into force in order to utilise
the soil-improving properties of sewage sludge resulting from the treatment of domestic and
urban wastewater, and at the same time to determine the technical and administrative princip-
les for the controlled use of sewage sludge in the soil in a way that does not harm soil, plants,
animals and humans in Türkiye. Within the scope of the said By-law, 19,978 tonnes km/year of
treatment sludge generated in different wastewater treatment plants between 2020-2023 was
allowed to be used on a total of 9,989 decares of land. Within the scope of the “Treatment Slu-
dge Management and Action Plan in Türkiye”, which is being prepared by the MoEUCC in order
to ensure effective and sustainable management of sewage sludge, the potential areas where
sewage sludge can be applied to land in Türkiye are shown in Map 16.

Map 16 Soil Suitability Map of Türkiye for the Use of Sewage Sludge in Soil (MoEUCC, 2024)

Analysis of Suitable Areas by Provinces
for the Use of Sewage Sludge in Soil

Percentage (%) Amount of
Suitable AreaSludge in Soil

C.7.3. Control and Prevention of Agricultural Pollution Studies
The “By-law on the Protection of Waters against Nitrate Pollution from Agricultural Sources”
published in the Official Gazette dated 18/02/2004 and numbered 25377 within the scope of
harmonisation studies of the Nitrate Directive (91/676/EEC) during the harmonisation process
with the European Union was revised and entered into force in the Official Gazette dated 23 July
2016 and numbered 29779.
The main provisions of the By-law are identification of polluted or threatened polluted wa-
ters, identification of nitrate sensitive areas, preparation of Good Agricultural Practices Code,
establishment of Agricultural Action Plans in Sensitive Areas and establishment of Monitoring
Network and Reporting System.

C.7.3.1. Monitoring of Agricultural Pollution
In the agricultural nitrate pollution monitoring network established to detect agricultural pollu-
tion and to identify Nitrate Sensitive Areas, monitoring of agricultural nitrate pollution in waters
is carried out at a total of 4,852 stations, including 2,533 surface water and 2,319 groundwater.

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