Locals protest garbage dumping site amid health concerns in Bodrum’s Gümüşlük district

BODRUM

Around 45 citizens living in the Gümüşlük district of the western Turkish resort town Bodrum came together to protest a garbage dumping site in the area, saying it poses a threat to public health and safety, Doğan News Agency reported on March 11. 

“People in Turgutreis and Gümüşlük are being forced to breathe this poison while fires break out almost weekly in summertime,” said Ramazan Tatar, a member of the Gümüşlük forum, referring to popular vacation districts in Bodrum, which is located in the Muğla province.

Garbage has been dumped at the site for the past three decades and it has become covered with soil, Tatar added.

Many of those demanding the removal of the garbage carried signs and chanted slogans. “We want a livable city” and “The Gümüşlük dumpster should be removed” were among the signs.

“We demand the authorities take immediate measures to ban dumping in this area. We have conveyed our message on various platforms so far but we have not been heard,” Tatar said.

Gümüşlük Environmental Association head Hakkı Zırh also voiced his concerns about “basically living in a dumpster.”

“Because it is tough to extinguish a dumpster fire, the fire is usually left to die down,” Zırh said.

“The locals are under threat because the methane gas they are inhaling. Thousands of people in the region are also at risk due to the winds. This dumpster needs to be handled as soon as possible in a way that suits Bodrum,” he added.

On Sept. 17, a fire that broke out at a garbage site in Bodrum left the area covered in smoke.

The fire at the garbage site near the Yokuşbaşı neighborhood came after an explosion that occurred due to the accumulation of coal gas.