Major environmental disaster looms in Rize: Çalık and Cengiz Holding to poison the Black Sea

A massive mining project covering 24 villages in Rize's Çayeli district has sparked an outcry among local residents and life advocates. It is warned that the 4th group mining activities planned to be carried out by Çalık and Cengiz Holding will drag both Çayeli and the Black Sea into an irreversible environmental disaster due to the chemical waste and heavy metals they will generate.

Rize is facing one of the greatest ecological threats in its history. The mining project, which will directly affect 24 villages in the Çayeli district, threatens not only the region's geography but the entire ecosystem of the Black Sea. The proximity of the project area to the sea further increases the scale of the danger. Experts and environmental activists point out that tons of chemical waste and heavy metals resulting from mining activities will flow directly into the sea through streams.

''BLACK POISON WILL FLOW INTO THE BLACK SEA'

In the protest movement launched in the region with the slogan "Rise Up Rize," it is emphasized that the blue and green of Rize will be painted black for the sake of the profit greed of the Cengiz and Çalık companies. Stating that the pollution starting in one village will darken the future of the entire region through the streams of the Black Sea, the local people express that this poison, which will meet the sea, will destroy marine life and turn the Rize sea into a "dead sea."

TEA PRODUCTION AND HUMAN HEALTH UNDER SERIOUS RISK 

The destruction to be created will not be limited to the sea. The tea gardens, agricultural lands, forests, and livestock, which are the lifeblood of the Black Sea, are on the verge of great danger. Toxic substances that will mix into the soil, water, and air will make all surrounding settlements, especially the Gündoğdu region right next to Çayeli, uninhabitable.

One of the biggest concerns of the local people is health. The people of the Black Sea, who paid the bitter price of the Chernobyl disaster in the past with cancer cases, do not want to experience a new health tragedy. The local people call out to the authorities, saying, "While we continue to experience the effects of Chernobyl, we do not want to lose our loved ones to cancer due to these heavy chemicals as well."

'DO NOT DESTROY OUR FUTURE FOR THE SAKE OF A MINE'

Underlining that this threat facing 24 villages is actually a problem for all of Rize, the Black Sea, and future generations, life advocates are calling for people to "be a voice" for tea gardens, streams, animals, and humans. Stating that they will not allow Rize's nature and living spaces to be sacrificed for mining rent, citizens are demanding that the project be canceled immediately.