Ecological Changes in the Sea of Marmara

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DOI :10.26650/B/LSB21LSB37.2024.023.032   IUP :10.26650/B/LSB21LSB37.2024.023.032    Full Text (PDF)

From Past to Present: Multi-Stakeholder Sustainable Environmental Management in the Sea of Marmara

Ahmet Cihat Kahraman

 The Sea of Marmara, which is connected to the Black Sea and the Aegean Sea through narrow straits, has a natural disadvantage. Additionally, being located in the heart of the Marmara Region, which is home to Turkey’s most densely populated urban and industrial areas, puts the Sea of Marmara in a very sensitive and vulnerable state against human-induced pollution. Sustainable management is inevitable to preserve this delicate structure and keep it free from environmental/ecological threats. Otherwise, conflicts of authority, difficulties in monitoring and reporting, and inefficient use of resources can result in the Sea of Marmara ecosystem being exposed to risks as a whole. In Turkey, the Ministry of Environment, Urbanization and Climate Change, as well as the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry, along with other relevant central administration components, have responsibilities and authorities in the environmental management and biodiversity of seas. Additionally, it is known that local governments play an effective role in marine environmental management based on the performance of their terrestrial environmental management operations. Furthermore, the long-standing effectiveness of the Marmara Municipalities Union, whose one of primary missions is the environmental management of the Sea of Marmara, is noteworthy. The first part of this study, which is approached in two main aspects, provides a chronological account of the environmental management-focused activities carried out on the Sea of Marmara from the institutional historical perspective of the Marmara Municipalities Union. The second part evaluates the administrative actions taken in response to the massive mucilage case that emerged in 2021 and their impact on the integrated environmental management of the Sea of Marmara. In conclusion, the necessity of effective collaboration within the framework of roles, authorities, and responsibilities is emphasized for a new ecosystem-based approach to the Marmara Sea.


Keywords: The Sea of Marmara, environmental management, collaboration, local governments, strategic planning

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