UK's plastic waste is back in Turkey: Adana has become the epicenter of trash

It has been revealed that a large portion of soft plastics, which were expected to be recycled through supermarkets in the UK, are being sent to Turkey, where they are burned and cause environmental damage. Following the scandal that erupted in 2022, it has been determined that nothing has changed; the UK's plastic waste is still arriving in Turkey and being collected in Adana.

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UK's plastic waste is back in Turkey: Adana has become the epicenter of trash

Major supermarket chains, which hold 43 percent of the UK market, launched an initiative in 2021 to reduce the use of plastic packaging.

Since food and beverage packaging accounts for 81 percent of plastic waste in the UK, collection points for soft plastic packaging were set up in front of supermarkets.

Although the British public thought they were contributing to recycling by bringing the plastics they collected in their homes to these points, the reality was different.

HOW DID THE TRASH COME TO TURKEY?

According to research conducted by Everyday Plastic and the Environmental Investigation Agency (EIA), a large portion of the plastics collected for this recycling purpose was sent to Turkey to be burned.

Researchers placed a total of 40 tracking devices (Apple AirTags) inside soft plastic packaging in July 2023 and February 2024 and left them at collection points in Sainsbury's and Tesco stores. The results showed that 70 percent of this waste was burned in Turkey, and the remaining portion was converted into low-quality products.

EUROKEY SCANDAL

The research revealed that these plastic wastes were collected and sent to Turkey by a small group of waste companies.

One of these companies, Eurokey, had previously been investigated for illegal waste exports under the EU WasteForce Project.

In 2022, Eurokey lost its packaging waste exporter accreditation as a result of violations related to its waste exports to Turkey, Poland, and the Netherlands.

TURKEY IS A PLASTIC TRASH PARADISE

According to the response from the then-Minister of Environment, Urbanization and Climate Change, Mehmet Özhaseki, to a parliamentary question submitted by CHP Ankara Deputy Semra Dinçer in 2022 regarding imported plastic waste, Turkey imported 775 thousand tons of plastic waste in 2020, 685 thousand tons in 2021, and 687 thousand tons in 2022. However, actual data shows that Turkey was the top importer of plastic trash in Europe and the second in the world in 2022.

THE ECONOMY OF TRASH: 36 MILLION DOLLARS

Data accessed by Kısa Dalga revealed that Turkey imported a total of 273 thousand 988 tons of plastic waste in the first three months of 2024, and the total value of this import was 36 million 101 thousand 854 dollars.

It was determined that plastic waste is received not only from European countries but also from countries such as the USA, Israel, Morocco, Lebanon, and Tunisia.

PLASTIC IMPORTS FROM ISRAEL CONTINUE

It was also noted that plastic waste worth 1 million 304 thousand 565 dollars was imported from Israel in the first quarter of 2024.

In December 2023, it was revealed that the company Adanus had imported plastic waste from Israel, and calls were made to boycott trade with Israel due to the occupation of Gaza. Despite this, it has been determined that Turkey continues to receive trash from Israel.