At the macro level, as it is with other countries in the region, sustainable development is a challenge in Turkey. The major reasons are the country’s large size and diverse topography, the high growth rate of the population, the high rate of urbanisation and its rather high and fluctuating economic development rates. I would argue that in order to improve the environmental situation in Turkey, one of the first steps to take would be to promote a sense of personal responsibility for nature — from the country’s president and prime minister to each citizen.

It is important to strengthen environmental efforts by the central government, municipalities and the private sector. Fortunately, responsibility and efforts by the stakeholders seem to be increasing in Turkey, especially with regard to certain environmental concerns. I believe Turkey’s status since 1999 as a candidate for EU membership is one of the main reasons behind this increase.

Some of the country’s specific immediate needs would be to improve air quality in many urban centres; ensure that industrial pollution, chemicals and risk management laws are in line with the acquis; establish appropriate collection, treatment and disposal of waste; clean up contaminated land and rivers; protect ecosystems, habitats and species; collect data and prepare inventories; improve and extend water supply networks; improve and extend wastewater collection and treatment plants; enforce rules and regulations; increase environmental awareness and much more.

Clearly, it is a tremendous challenge for Turkey to implement the requirements of the above mentioned processes in particular and environmental protection policies in general. This is mainly because of the scarce financial resources, inadequate policy development, implementation and enforcement capacity, insufficient cooperation among and between public institutions and environmental stakeholders, limited public commitment and insufficient public awareness and participation. Hence, the environmental sector in Turkey needs vast amount of technical and financial assistance as well as guidance to address the above-mentioned challenges. In addition, the dynamic process of EU environmental acquis and policy development needs significant deliberation for alignment.

What will be REC’s first priorities in Turkey?

We operate in four programme areas: capacity building and environmental education; environmental information; grants; and a special programme offering services to the business sector. REC’s mandate is to assist and support the environmental stakeholders in the country in order to develop their institutional and technical capacity on the way to EU accession; and thereby facilitate the effective implementation of the EU environmental acquis in the country. The first thing to do is to adopt or change national laws, rules and procedures so that the requirements of the EU are fully incorporated into the legislation. Another challenge would be to ensure adequate institutional framework, budgetary requirements and implementation procedures.

Overall, Turkey needs to implement environmental policies and strengthen enforcement capabilities; invest in an environmental infrastructure; provide for public participation and increase public awareness of environmental problems; integrate environmental concerns into economic decisions. We will provide assistance in meeting the vast amount of regional and international commitments of Turkey.

What are your advantages in dealing with the challenges?

The REC is the only organisation in Turkey whose structure and objective were specifically established for providing a full range of services in the field of environment. The REC’s 14 years of hard work in the region, its country network, its reputation among the international donors and the experience with EU accession add up to our competitive advantage in the country. Of course, the support of the Turkish Government is an essential precondition for REC’s success. We strongly believe in the importance of improved cooperation between stakeholders.

Your title reads ‘regional director for Turkey.’ How is it that one country can be a region of its own?

Indeed Turkey has been considered a separate region of Central and Eastern Europe within REC’s structure. We are neither a country in transition nor are we really in the same geographical region as other CEE countries. But Turkey strategically belongs to the CEE family primarily because of its EU accession.

How would your work be funded?

The European Commission has provided EUR 15.5 million from the 2002 financial cooperation for the framework programme called “Capacity Building in the Field of Environment.” We hope that the European Commission will devise new funding programmes for Turkey for heavy-cost investments and other needs. Today, it is estimated that Turkey’s cost of compliance with the EU environmental acquis is around EUR 30-40 billion. It is clear that the environmental sector in Turkey will need significant financing to address the costs of EU accession.