Kırıkhan, Yayladağ and Samandağ Solid Waste Transfer Stations and Hassa Wastewater Treatment Plant were commissioned for operations under the Turkey Resilience Project in Response to the Syria Crisis (TRP) implemented by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) in cooperation with ILBANK with funding from the European Union (EU). The facilities built under the Municipal Service Delivery Component of the project aim to alleviate the problems of solid waste and wastewater management faced by Hatay due to sudden surge of population. UNDP Turkey works with Hatay Metropolitan Municipality in infrastructure investments and technical assistance to strengthen the resilience of the municipality and population to introduce integrated and sustainable solutions to waste.

Ankara, 19 March 2021 - Kırıkhan, Yayladağ and Samandağ Solid Waste Transfer Stations and Hassa Wastewater Treatment Plant were commissioned for operations under the Municipal Service Delivery Component of Turkey Resilience Project in Response to the Syria Crisis (TRP) implemented by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) in cooperation with ILBANK with funding from the European Union (EU). The facilities aim to introduce sustainable solutions to the problems of solid waste and wastewater management faced by Hatay due to sudden surge of population since the onset of the Syrian crisis. 

The facilities represent the most recent examples of a series of infrastructure investment by UNDP Turkey to strengthen the local resilience against the environmental impact of Syrian crisis. 

Critically important for Hatay, the facilities will reinforce the infrastructure for solid waste and wastewater management which has been failing to meet the needs due to the rapid population surge in Hatay as well as helping to solve the environmental and human health problems arising from solid waste and wastewater in the region.

Ambassador Nikolaus Meyer-Landrut, Head of European Delegation to Turkey, and the delegation in his company visited and examined the operations of Kırıkhan Solid Waste Transfer Station and Hassa Wastewater Treatment Plant which introduced sustainable solutions to the problems of solid waste and wastewater management in the region.  

Ambassador Meyer-Landrut was accompanied during his visit by Mr. Emrah Baydemir, the Deputy General Manager of ILBANK; Mr. Sukhrob Khojimatov, UNDP Turkey Deputy Resident Representative; representatives of Hatay Metropolitan Municipality and of Hatay Water and Sewer Administration (HATSU), UNDP officials, local and national journalists.

Kırıkhan Solid Waste Transfer Station and Hassa Wastewater Treatment Plant are important as examples of infrastructure investments undertaken by UNDP Turkey to strengthen the local resilience against the environmental impact of Syrian crisis.

The EU-funded UNDP project involves the installation of 3 solid waste transfer stations in districts of Kırıkhan, Yayladağ and Samandağ with an investment value of 2.8 million USD. Including also a grant of three solid waste transfer vehicles and one backhoe-loader for each of the three stations, the investment aims both to improve environmental cleanliness and human health significantly and to ease a burden of 8.5 million TRY off the budget of Hatay Metropolitan Municipality. 

It is also predicted that the prospective savings by the donated vehicles will be around 1.5 million TRY per year.

Waste transfer vehicles will transfer more waste with less mileage by way of transport systems and waste collection stations to the modern landfill areas. It is aimed to transfer approximately 200 tons of waste per day from Kırıkhan, Yayladağ and Samandağ transfer stations and to reduce direct or indirect greenhouse gases equivalent to 480 to 500 tons of CO2 annually.

At an investment value of 4.2 million USD, with a daily treatment capacity of 4,000 m3 and having commenced operations in January 2020, Hassa Wastewater Treatment Plant was designed to treat, in compliance with the Regulation on Water Pollution Control, the organic pollution in domestic wastewater of Hassa district sewer system which was previously discharged into Tiyek Stream.     

In addition to clearing the water for 60,000 people in Hassa district, the facility also prevents wastewater from reaching many settlements, animals, thousands of hectares of agricultural lands over the Amik Plain and riparian vegetation in the region.

UNDP Turkey Deputy Resident Representative Mr. Sukhrob Khojimatov said during the visit that UNDP's crisis response focuses on long-term and sustainable solutions while underlining the fact that increasing the resilience of municipalities and local communities to crises is critical. Indicating that supporting municipalities is the most important component of UNDP's solutions to humanitarian and environmental crises, Khojimatov expressed his pride for the support having been provided to improve solid waste and wastewater management of Hatay.

The project aims to eliminate the environmental and human health risk factors arising from solid waste and wastewater in the region, while at the same time contributing to technical support and complementary activities that will increase the capacity, quality and efficiency of municipal services in the regions affected by the Syrian crisis.

It also helps maintain social cohesion in the region through eliminating the risk of harm to social peace and cohesion arising from the exacerbation of the problems faced by local governments due to the sudden surge of population and the failure to provide adequate and quality services to every individual due to limited capacity. Aiming thereby to strengthen the resilience of individuals, institutions and communities against crises, the project aspires to build a sustainable future for local governments as well.

UNDP Turkey has been conducting work to improve municipal services which have been under extreme pressure since the onset of the Syrian crisis.

UNDP Turkey provides direct support under the project to municipalities to enable access to municipal services by over 350,000 Syrians under temporary protection and host community members.  

Centred on resilience and a perspective of local sustainable development, the project offers long-term comprehensive structural solutions to the problems caused by the Syrian crisis.

For more information:

Dr. Faik Uyanık, Head of Communications at UNDP Turkey, faik.uyanik@undp.org

Ruşen İnceoğlu, Communications Officer, Syria Crisis Response and Resilience Portfolio at UNDP Turkey, rusen.inceoglu@undp.org