President Vahap Seçer, in his statement on his social media account, warned the people of Mersin by mentioning that Mersin passed into the 'Very Severe Drought' category. In the post of President Seçer; “Mersin has entered the Very Severe Drought Category. We accelerated our work by predicting our population, which increased with the earthquake and will increase even more in the summer months. DSI General Directorate should start the Pamukluk Dam treatment-transmission line before it's too late. Every drop of water is very precious.” Mersin Metropolitan and MESKI officials also emphasized that Pamukluk Dam should be put into use, especially by the General Directorate of State Hydraulic Works (DSI), and invited citizens to be careful about water saving in matters that can be taken individually.
Mersin Metropolitan Mayor Vahap Seçer, in his statement on his official social media account, warned the people of Mersin by mentioning that Mersin passed into the 'Very Severe Drought' category. In the post of President Vahap Seçer; “Mersin has entered the Very Severe Drought Category. We accelerated our work by predicting our population, which increased with the earthquake and will increase even more in the summer months. DSI General Directorate should start the Pamukluk Dam treatment-transmission line before it's too late. Every drop of water is very precious.” Mersin Metropolitan Municipality and MESKI officials also emphasized that Pamukluk Dam should be put into use, especially by the General Directorate of State Hydraulic Works (DSI), and invited citizens to be careful about water saving in matters that can be taken individually.
If water is not saved, there may be a serious water shortage in the city.
The General Directorate of MESKI drew attention to the possibility of water shortage in the near future, as the water used in the winter months exceeds the seasonal norms. Mersin, which is one of the cities that received heavy immigration from earthquake regions, has seen a serious increase in water use. Emphasizing that water saving is of great importance, MESKI emphasized that there may be a serious water shortage in the city due to both the increasing population density and the drought. Continuing its work with great devotion to protect Mersin's drinking water, MESKI once again emphasized the necessity of using water sparingly.
Mersin was one of the cities affected by the earthquake disaster that affected 10 provinces. In Mersin, which is one of the cities that received heavy migration from earthquake regions, water use also increased according to winter conditions. Noting that there may be water shortages in the coming days due to the drought, MESKI underlined that water should be used sparingly. Under the leadership of Mersin Metropolitan Mayor Vahap Seçer, MESKI, which continues its efforts to protect even a drop of water, stated that the efficient use of drinking water is of great importance. The General Directorate of MESKI announced that they draw water from the Berdan Drinking Water Treatment Plant at a rate of 93% to 96%, close to the maximum capacity, even though it is winter. Foreseeing that water consumption will increase by 50%, especially in summer months, MESKI emphasized that with the drought experienced, there may be a serious water shortage in the city.
“Our province is among the 'Extraordinary Arid Provinces' in the most recently published drought map”
Mersin Metropolitan Municipality Mersin Water and Sewerage Administration (MESKI) General Directorate of Treatment Facilities Department Head Dr. Emel Deniz Avcı, referring to the drought maps given by the General Directorate of Meteorology at regular intervals, said, “Our province is among the 'Extraordinary Arid Provinces' in the most recently published drought map. While this unfortunately has a problem related to the current climate, it has a situation related to precipitation, however, we are experiencing a serious problem with the rapid population growth in our province. Our water consumption has increased significantly, especially with the Syrian refugees and the migration to our province as a result of the most recent earthquake disaster. This brings with it some problems," he said.
“Our population has reached almost 2 million 700 thousand”
Providing information about the works carried out by the General Directorate of MESKI, Avcı said, “Although the population of our province is 2 million, there is a reality at the moment that nearly 2 thousand of our citizens, over 700 million, currently reside in Mersin. Among them, our population has reached almost 2 million 700 thousand, including both Syrian refugees and our guests who came to our country from the Russian war, as well as our citizens affected by the earthquake. This brings with it an increase in water consumption. When we compare the water consumption during the Eid al-Adha period last year, which we call the peak period, we can see an average increase of 15% in this period.”
“State Hydraulic Works urgently needs to commission Pamukluk Dam”
Noting that the Berdan Drinking Water Treatment Plant and Berdan Dam, which appeal to 72% of Mersin, are currently operating actively and at full capacity, Avcı said, “State Hydraulic Works will immediately work on the Pamukluk Dam, Transmission Line and Treatment. It also needs to configure and commission its facilities. Otherwise we will run into bigger problems. As MESKI General Directorate, our SCADA System, which we call the Central Data Storage System, where we monitor all our resources, monitor our entire drinking water network, and monitor our wastewater treatment plants and subscribers, is actively in operation. With this SCADA System, we perform online interventions, monitor the water at every step from the source to the discharge, and reduce the loss-leakage rates. We have divided the city into certain pressure zones, along with these pressure zones, we regularly monitor water consumption and malfunctions.
“With the awareness of how important every drop of water is, we also evaluate the wastewater we treat”
Indicating that as MESKI, they started the smart meter application within the scope of smart cities, Avcı noted that they reduced the loss-leakage rates and regularly followed the regimes in water consumption. Avcı said, “With the awareness of how important every drop of water is, we also evaluate the wastewater we treat. Because a large part of water consumption turns into waste water. We have a total of 25 wastewater treatment plants currently in operation and active. Since the quality of the water we treat in the wastewater treatment plants is extremely good, the water we discharge at the Karaduvar Wastewater Treatment Plant, one of the largest recycling projects in Turkey, is currently being used by Şişecam Soda Sanayi A.Ş. Within the framework of the protocol we signed with Şişecam Soda Sanayi A.Ş. In this way, we will reduce the clean water they use. This is extremely important for us in terms of the water cycle and water sustainability. Again, we are continuing our efforts to use it in central refuge irrigation, similarly in agricultural irrigation, in our other facilities. We know how important water is from the source to the discharge, and we continue all our work at full speed with our eyes and ears in the water.”
“Necessary measures need to be taken beforehand”
Mersin Metropolitan Municipality Climate Change and Zero Waste Department Head Dr. Reminding that our city is considered among the 'Very Arid Provinces' according to the latest map, Kemal Zorlu mentioned that we, as citizens, feel this too. Zorlu said, “There is no rain or snowfall. When we look at our highlands, we see that the places that we should normally see as white are actually green or brown. Of course, this situation is a situation that will create serious problems in terms of water in summer, even if we do not feel it very much right now. If we look at the reason for this; While describing climate change in a global sense, we actually state that it results in dramatic climate events. In other words, we encounter events such as the absence of precipitation that should normally occur or not on time, and the occurrence of very heavy precipitation in a very short time. In addition to our water resources, events such as fire, etc., are also the result of these climate changes. We feel such situations as situations that directly affect human life. Necessary measures have to be taken in advance for this," he said.
“One of the main causes of climate change is the use of fossil fuels as an energy source”
Talking about the measures that can be taken individually, Zorlu stated that some measures should be taken to save water, be careful and prevent the wasted water in the houses from being wasted. Zorlu said, “Climate changes cause drought. If we look at what we are doing in Mersin, what is being done around the world and what we can do individually in the fight against climate change; One of the main causes of climate change is actually the use of fossil fuels as an energy source. In order to prevent the use of fossil fuels as an energy source, we must eliminate unnecessary energy use and the source of the energy we use must be obtained from clean energy. If the energy we use comes from fossil fuels, it triggers climate change quickly. We need to eliminate all unnecessary consumption as soon as possible in order to individually combat climate change and to eliminate drought, which is one of its consequences.”
“It is very important to commission the Pamukluk Dam as soon as possible”
Stating that a large proportion of the water used throughout the city in Mersin is supplied by the Berdan Dam, Mersin's largest dam, Zorlu said, “We can express the Berdan Dam Basin and the Pamukluk Dam Basin as two co-basins, Pamukluk located in the western part. A dam was built in the Dam Basin and water was started to be impounded. With the construction of a drinking water treatment plant in Pamukluk Dam and the construction of the transmission lines there, we will provide the opportunity to provide drinking water by using less energy with gravity flow. Because from the Berdan Dam, we use pumps and pumping stations to send water to the areas where people at certain elevations live in our city. We also consume energy in these pumps and pumping stations that we use. However, if we build the drinking water treatment plant for Pamukluk Dam, we will actually send the water by attraction to the points we sent from Berdan with energy, without using any pumping station. This is a very important situation. At the same time, supplying water to the city from 2 different dams will help to solve the problem with these dams, which can be considered as backups of each other in case of a potential problem. In other words, when we have a problem in one of them, our other dam will be our savior at the point of drinking water to be given in the city. In this respect, it is very important to establish and commission the drinking water treatment plant of Pamukluk Dam as soon as possible”.
“At SECAP, a due diligence is carried out regarding the work we will do in terms of adaptation to climate change”
Announcing that Mersin Metropolitan Municipality Climate Change and Zero Waste Department is carrying out the Sustainable Energy Climate Action Plan for Mersin together with TÜBİTAK and that it will be concluded within 6 months, Zorlu said, “Within the scope of this study, we will do in the fight against climate change or in adaptation to climate change. A due diligence on the works is being done at SECAP. In general, a due diligence will be carried out on the state of buildings, the state of energy use, the state of our industrial facilities, that is, all areas related to energy consumption in the city. At the end of this due diligence some actions will be determined. When these actions are taken, we will take some actions to minimize the energy consumption in the city and to minimize the carbon emissions released into the nature. Thus, we will carry out these studies to combat climate change.”
“Combating climate change is not something to be done individually, it is a global thing”
Stating that, together with the Sustainable Energy Climate Action Plan, they will declare these actions in the city when these actions are determined after the project is over, Zorlu said, “We will inform them about the activities that our citizens in the city can do at this point. When our citizens fulfill their responsibilities individually, public institutions; We need to do this work as a whole with municipalities and non-governmental organizations. Because the issue of combating or mitigating climate change is not something to be done individually or at the scale of a city or a country. This is a global situation, it is a subject that will reach a conclusion when all the people, all countries and cities all over the world take a step together.”
“It is obvious that we will have serious water problems as a result of the pressure of 700 thousand extra population over Mersin”
Noting that the earthquake that took place about 20 days ago presented a very sad picture for us, Zorlu said, “We experienced one of the biggest disasters in the world, in which 11 provinces were directly affected. Of course, Mersin is the first province where our citizens living in these provinces find the opportunity to leave there. As people living in this city, we are already aware of this in our daily lives, but there are data showing this to us. When we evaluated the change in the water usage statistics of our MESKI General Directorate, we stated that there was an increase of approximately 15%. This means an extra population of 300-400 thousand. We already have approximately 300-350 thousand guests from other countries in our city. Together with these and our citizens who came from the earthquake, an extra population of approximately 700-800 thousand lives in this city at the moment. Of course, this is not an easy thing. This has put the infrastructure and superstructure services in the city under a serious pressure. It is obvious that we will have serious water problems as a result of the pressure created by the 700 thousand extra population on Mersin in these days when we are experiencing a drought. This situation shows that it is very important to commission Pamukluk Dam and to take measures to save water.”
In 2022, MESKI reached 40 thousand people in water saving.
Touching the lives of Mersin residents with social activities as well as the infrastructure works that continue uninterruptedly in every corner of Mersin, MESKI reached approximately 2022 thousand people in 40 with these activities. With the increasing threat of global warming and drought all over the world, with the awareness of the importance of conserving water and leaving enough water for future generations, approximately 2022 primary and secondary school students were informed about the importance of water, water conservation and environmental awareness with the water saving trainings in 7 by the General Directorate of MESKI. . During the year-long visits of MESKI to the Filter Water Museum, a total of 800 students were told about the history of the facility, the story of water from the source to the glass, and the importance of water saving.
Information about SCADA
With the SCADA Center, instant data monitoring can be performed at all points connected to the drinking water network in Mersin city center, its districts, villages and neighborhoods, including warehouses, pumping stations, control points, valves and pressure rooms. With the SCADA Center, it has been ensured that possible leakage and losses are reduced and the physical and economic loss is minimized by the rapid response of the system. While a total of 22 drinking water faults were repaired in the first 2021 months of 6 in 1819 neighborhoods covered by DMAs, a 46,7% decrease was observed in drinking water faults after the DMA construction, and a total of 2022 drinking water faults were repaired in the first 6 months of 866. . A total of 2022 m³ of drinking water was saved in the first 6 months of 2,232,055, together with the DMAs and acoustic listening procedures.