Limestone quarry expansion sparks water and environment fears in Samsun

Residents in Turkey's Samsun province are voicing strong concerns over a proposed expansion of a limestone quarry in the Kavak district. The project includes increasing the quarry's capacity and adding a crushing and screening facility. A public meeting was held, attended by local residents and officials from the Samsun Provincial Directorate of Environment, Urbanization and Climate Change.

“

They fear the risks will grow even larger with the capacity increase.

During the meeting, citizens raised numerous questions, seeking answers about their environmental and public health worries. Many expressed anxiety that the quarry's operations, which have been ongoing for years, are already negatively affecting water sources. They fear a capacity increase will exacerbate these risks, potentially leading to changes in underground water systems, reduced flow, and degraded water quality if operations are not adequately controlled or supervised.

“

Clean drinking water access for citizens living in rural neighborhoods could be jeopardized.

Residents highlighted that the clean drinking water access for people in rural areas could be jeopardized. They asserted that detailed explanations regarding the project's environmental impacts and potential irreversible consequences were not provided. Furthermore, they felt there was insufficient information shared about the effects on the regional ecosystem, leaving them with significant unanswered questions and growing unease.

“

They argued that detailed explanations were not provided regarding the project's environmental effects and potential irreversible consequences.