In his speech at the "Marmara Basin Basin Water Board Meeting" held in a hotel in Ataşehir, Governor Gül said that the rains affecting various cities of Marmara, especially Istanbul, caused serious consequences. May God have mercy on those who lost their lives in the flood disaster and expressed his condolences to their relatives, Gül emphasized that the loss of life cannot be evaluated as statistical data.
Gül said, "We don't want even one of our fellow citizens to get hurt to their nails. Therefore, we are heartbroken for each of the 7 people. Their families are saddened in this sense, their loved ones are saddened and the fire burns the place where it falls. In fact, such a big flood came that today, God forbid, we could have been talking about different numbers instead of 7." he said.
Pointing out that society and relevant institutions have responsibilities in the disaster, Gül stated that structures built on stream beds, unlicensed buildings and non-earthquake-resistant construction increase the risks. Gül said, "It is a mistake for our fellow citizens to do this to the stream bed, to do this without a title deed, to do this without earthquake resistance. But as municipalities, as administrators in every mechanism of the state, we had to intervene while these were being done, while they were being created there. Of course, this is not a matter of 3 years, 5 years, 10 years. It is the fault of all of us and those before us for 50 years, 100 years." made his assessment.
Stating that it has been observed that stream beds have been narrowed in flooded areas and measures to regulate the flow of water have not been taken, Gül noted that in the next period, the duties and responsibilities determined by the legislation should be fully fulfilled, the decisions taken should be put into practice and construction contrary to the rules should not be allowed in risky areas, especially stream beds.
"THE FLOODS WE EXPERIENCED LAST WEEK SHOULD BE A MILESTONE FOR MARMARA"
Gül stated that it is not possible to predict exactly how often the rains will occur, but possible damages can be reduced by taking the necessary precautions.
Touching on the economic loss caused by the flood disaster, Gül said, "It happens once a year, once in three years, once in a thousand years... It is not clear when this will happen, and when it happens, we only hear statistics, 'While it rains this much every year, this year it rained this much.' The issue we can say is that it extinguishes someone's fire. Therefore, we have material and moral losses. There is a direct and indirect damage of approximately 10 billion dollars in this latest flood alone. "The pain of our deceased citizens cannot be measured with money anyway." he said.
Pointing out the importance of proper management of water resources, Gül stated that the problems can be solved by applying engineering solutions to combat drought when water is scarce, and to store, protect and transport it under appropriate conditions when it is abundant.
Gül continued as follows: "After this stage, the 17 August earthquake became a milestone. It should be a milestone for Marmara, especially for Istanbul, with the floods we experienced last week. All the figures have changed, all our expectations have changed. We cannot predict when and where it will flow. As long as we store the water properly, improve the channels properly and do not obstruct it properly, there is no risk, it can be managed very easily and benefit from it."
"PROTECTING AND EFFICIENT USE OF WATER RESOURCES IS IMPORTANT"
Afire Sever, General Director of Water Management of the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry, also touched upon the effects of climate change on Türkiye's water resources and disaster management. Sever noted that Türkiye has set a net zero emission target for 2053 in line with the goals of the Paris Agreement, and stated that climate change adaptation efforts are of critical importance for interrelated sectors such as water, agriculture and industry. Sever stated that the Gediz, Meriç-Ergene, Akarçay and Konya basins in Türkiye have a water deficit in the current situation and pointed out that if the necessary measures are not taken, other basins may face similar problems until 2030. Sever stated that an investment of 85 billion lira is needed to eliminate the water deficit in the Marmara Basin and implement the necessary measures.
Pointing out the importance of protecting and using water resources efficiently, Sever emphasized that studies to increase water efficiency within the scope of the "Zero Loss in Water" principle, carried out under the auspices of the Presidency and under the leadership of First Lady Erdoğan, are important. Sever stated that water should be used economically in homes, rainwater accumulated on roofs should be utilized, gray water should be purified and reused, and "sponge city" practices, which allow water to be retained by natural means in cities, should be widespread.
A general evaluation of water management in the Marmara Basin was also made at the meeting. Within the scope of the program, presentations were made about measures to protect water resources and the Marmara Basin Flood Management Plan.
At the meeting, the 2025 Marmara Basin Water Board decisions and the 2026 Marmara Basin Provincial Water Board decisions were evaluated and an analysis was made regarding the current situation in the basin.
