Urban and Industrial Water Uses

Abstract

This chapter intends to reflect urban and industrial water use and management in Turkey, based on an overview of available data related to sectoral uses, constraints and a realization of set targets up to the present. Through Turkey's EU accession process, the harmonization of the existing regulatory system with that of the EU has influenced the development of the water supply and sanitation sector, and consequently, there has been a gradual improvement in service quality and protection of the environment. Therefore, this issue deserves an in-depth analysis with regard to the objectives to be met and the corresponding finances to be allocated by the Turkish government. In line with this, a sectoral assessment giving the crosscutting issues, followed by drinking water production and its use by households and the public sector, industries connected to the public water supply system and self-supplied industries, as well as pollution generated by municipal and industrial water consumption and disposal are summarized prior to this analysis. Water uses encompassing water supply and treatment, sewerage, wastewater treatment, and disposal will be given in the first section. A general description of the existing institutional structure related to water and sewerage administrations in Turkey will be presented in the second section, which intends to enable a better understanding of the prevailing municipal water management system that has been subject to various revisions in the past.