Adana's Environmental Engineers President warns: "Stop climate crisis or Eastern Mediterranean will desertify"

Orhan evaluated the Turkey Drought Map prepared by the General Directorate of Meteorology. Assessing the 24-month data from July 2022 to June 2024, Orhan pointed out that the Eastern Mediterranean Basin is classified as severely and extremely dry. He stated that the primary cause of the drought is the climate crisis and the use of fossil fuels, emphasizing that long-term drought in the Eastern Mediterranean Region will strip it of its status as a tourist area.

"One of the regions most affected by the climate crisis worldwide is the Eastern Mediterranean" Explaining that extreme weather events are caused by the climate crisis, Orhan said, "The main reason for extreme weather events, as environmental engineers have been saying for years, is the climate crisis. The Eastern Mediterranean Region, in particular, is one of the areas most affected by the climate crisis globally. This is due to the increasing use of fossil fuels. The continuous release of pollutant gases causing the greenhouse effect due to heat-related air pollution, pollution from fuels used in transportation, or energy production is a normal consequence. The Eastern Mediterranean Region is one of the top three areas worldwide most affected by drought. The regions encompassing Mersin, Adana, and Kahramanmaraş are experiencing extreme, severe, and exceptional drought. The main reason for this is the imbalance in the precipitation regime. It is a result of years of accumulation. We are witnessing a natural consequence of the greenhouse effect caused by the use of fossil fuels."

"Drought creates problems in agricultural areas" Highlighting the short- and long-term problems caused by drought, Orhan said, "One of the issues drought brings, especially to the Çukurova basin, is the problems in our agricultural areas. We are facing significant problems related to food security. In recent years, certain agricultural products could not be harvested during certain periods. And this situation continues to increase. Finding a global solution to this issue has become a necessity. We are all experiencing and seeing the inability to harvest certain agricultural products, the decrease in product diversity, and the decline in people's quality of life due to heat and drought. According to scientific research, in the long term, the Eastern Mediterranean Region will no longer be a tourist area. Tourism areas will shift towards the northern regions of the equator. Unfortunately, desertification will begin in these areas."