Ministry starts monitoring sea saliva in Marmara Sea

ANKARA

A team of 300 experts and some treatment facilities have been assigned to inspect the aggravating problem of sea snot invading the Marmara sea in a bid to eradicate the problem, the environment and urbanization minister has said.

“The team is inspecting some 91 spots on the Marmara Sea, and we are examining samples taken from the sea in our labs,” Murat Kurum said on his Twitter account.

The minister also announced that a workshop named “The Mucilage Problem of the Marmara Sea and Solution Offers” would be held on June 4, and an action plan to save the Marmara Sea would be announced to the public on June 6.

Formed due to the excessive proliferation of microscopic plants called phytoplankton, sea snot, also known as sea saliva, is a thick jelly-like layer of slime that develops on the surface of the water and poses a great threat to the marine biome.

The minister listed three reasons for the formation of sea saliva on his Twitter post: “The increase of the water temperatures due to global warming, the stability of the water and pollution.”

Kurum stressed that in order to efficiently eliminate the problem of sea snot from the Marmara Sea, all need to work together and find a solution constructively.

Meanwhile, in a statement on May 31, the Association of the Aegean and Marmara Municipalities (EMARÇEB) warned about the growing threat of sea saliva, urging officials to monitor sewage disposal plants.

“We urge the officials to take immediate actions,” said EMARÇEB, which comprises some 42 municipalities bordering the Aegean and Marmara Seas. It demanded strict checks on the wastewater lifting plants.

In the scope of the fight against the sea saliva, the mayor of Balıkesir, which is a northwestern province bordering both seas, has initiated a mission to collect mucilage developing on the Marmara Sea.

A ship named Başaran 2, which was rented by the municipality, has arrived at the Erdek Port, an associate of Balıkesir Mayor Yücel Yılmaz said.

The ship will be cruising between the districts of Ocaklar and Erdek for a month to collect the sea saliva, the statement said.

“As the municipality, we want to make Erdek ready for the summer season,” the statement added.