In Turkey, air pollution kills more people than any other environmental issue. Data from the World Health Organization (WHO) says 99% of the global population breathes unsafe air. No province in Turkey meets the WHO guidelines for clean air. In 2024, more than 60,000 people in that country are estimated to have died from air-pollution-related illnesses. Air pollution is particularly damaging to children's health.
Road transport and sometimes coal burning pollute towns and cities. There is no legal limit on fine particulates that cause lung and other diseases. Cars and lorries spread diesel exhaust, dust, nitrogen oxides (NOx) and other fumes. There are no clean-air zones and tariffs on electric cars are higher than on cars with combustion engines. Although electric-vehicle manufacturing and sales are increasing, policy is poorly co-ordinated, and , health impact assessment is not done in Turkey.
Soot from the burning of wood for cooking and heating pollutes households and some cities. Low-quality lignite coal, which is burnt in cities and in the oldest of the country's coal-fired power stations, is also a big part of the problem. Some plant-specific pollution data is collected by the Environment Ministry but is not usually published. , air quality in Turkey is below that of standards set by the European Union (EU). The civil-society organization Right to Clean Air Platform Turkey estimates the lack of a legal limit on fine particulates cost Turkey's economy 10% of gross domestic product (GDP) in 2024.
Illness and death Air pollution has been shown to cause cancer, and to contribute to respiratory, cardiovascular and cerebrovascular diseases. Asthma is expensive to treat and can be caused by exposure to nitrogen oxides. A study of air pollution and asthma in Niğde between 2006 to 2010 showed reporting of asthma cases was closely related to ambient sulfur dioxide () concentrations. Daily variations in air pollutants were studied in Istanbul from 2013 to 2015 in relation to respiratory hospital admissions. The air pollutants PM, nitrogen dioxide (), and PM were shown to increase the risk of hospital admissions for respiratory diseases. Another study examined air pollutants and pediatric emergency-room visits to a tertiary hospital in Istanbul between January 2016 and December 2023. They reported increases in nitric oxide (), , PM, , and PM were associated with more asthma-related pediatric visits to the emergency room.
Right to Clean Air Platform Turkey estimates one in seven deaths (68,000) in 2022 were due to air pollution. Other estimates of annual excess mortality range from 37,000 due to PM to 60,000 from fossil-fuel use. In many places, the health effects of air pollution cannot be estimated because there is not enough monitoring of PM and PM particulates; average early mortality, compared to if World Health Organization (WHO) air-pollution guidelines were followed, is estimated to be 0.4 years per person. This will vary by location because air pollution is more severe in some cities.
Sources of air pollution Air pollution in Turkey is a health risk mainly due to the burning of fossil fuels, such as coal and diesel.
Traffic
As of 2024, Turkey's National Energy Balance statistics do not split road-transport fuel into petrol and diesel. , fewer than 5% of the country's cars were electric or hybrid, with diesel, petrol and liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) each over 30%. Increasing the proportion of electric cars in use in Turkey to 10% by 2030 would also reduce the country's greenhouse-gas emissions. There are high purchase taxes on new cars. There are no clean air zones and tariffs on electric cars are higher than on combustion cars. Continued electrification of the rail network and high-speed line expansion are underway. The Right to Clean Air Platform argues that there should be a legal limit on fine airborne dust, much of which comes from car and lorry exhaust.
Home heating and cooking In 2022, most fine-particulate (PM) pollution in Turkey came from residential combustion for cooking and heating. Despite economic growth, the country's poorest families still use solid-biomass fuels such as wood, which pollutes some cities. Low-quality Turkish coal is also burnt. The use of these fuels increases indoor air pollution and is a health hazard; low-tier fuels are more harmful to human health. Higher-income families may use modern fuels such as natural gas or electricity, which cause less pollution and can lead to better health outcomes. Electricity supply, however, is often insufficient to meet a family's heating needs. If electricity is supplemented with low-quality biofuels, indoor air-pollution levels will increase and negatively affect health outcomes.
Women, children, and the elderly, who may spend more time indoors and deal with cooking, are most likely to suffer ill health due to indoor air pollution. Income, education and home ownership are associated with use of higher-grade fuels for heating and cooking, and with better health.
Passive smoking
More than a quarter of adults in Turkey smoke tobacco; passive smoking is a danger and increases the risk of respiratory infection.
Industry and construction
Under Turkish legislation, new industrial facilities must achieve at least a Class D Industrial Green Transformation Certificate (70% compliance with Best Available Techniques), whereas existing facilities will be required to obtain a minimum Class F (50%) before 2029 and a minimum Class D certification before 2030. This is below the recommended levels of the EU Industrial and Livestock Rearing Emissions Directive (IED 2.0).
Air pollution is one of the environmental impacts of concrete. Although asbestos was completely banned in 2010, it can still be a risk when older buildings are demolished, and in dumps. In some rural areas of Turkey, deposits of regulated asbestos minerals and non-regulated fibrous minerals such as erionite naturally occur, increasing the risk of mesothelioma.
The Health and Environment Alliance (HEAL) says pollution from coal-fired power stations causes significant illness and early deaths. , legal action continues, as do allegations of inadequate filtering. Power plants less than 50 MW do not have to register for an SYD certificate.
According to Greenpeace Mediterranean, the coal-fired power plants in Afşin-Elbistan are the highest health risk in a European country, followed by Soma power station.
Other Wildfires and dust blown from the Sahara (PM) sometimes pollute.
Types and levels Levels of all types of pollutants across the country exceed World Health Organization guidelines. Wood burning is a major source of indoor air pollution and contributes to outdoor air pollution. Particulates from transport fuel use and tyre wear of vehicles are a danger to people's lungs. Regulations in Turkey do not restrict particles less than 2.5 microns in diameter (PM) , which cause lung diseases. There is no limit on PM and limits for other pollutants (except SO2) are above WHO guidelines: +Pollutant (μg/m3)Averaging timeWorld Health Organization guidelineTurkey limitPMAnnual524 hour15no limitPMAnnual154024 hour4550O3Peak Season608 hour100120NO2Annual104024 hour25Hourly250SO224 hour4020Hourly350CO24 hour40008 hour10000 Although there is some monitoring of air pollution, many air pollution indicators are not available. The country's air quality index omits particles smaller than 2.5 microns (PM) but includes nitrogen dioxide, sulfur dioxide, carbon monoxide, tropospheric ozone, and particles between 10 and 2.5 microns in diameter (PM).
There are hourly, daily and yearly average limits for pollutants around coal-fired power stations in a radius 50 times the chimney height: +PollutantDurationUnitLimitSO2Hourly (not to be exceeded more than 24 times in a year)μg/m335024 hours125Long-term limit60Yearly and winter (1 Oct - 31 Mar)20NO2Hourly (not to be exceeded more than 18 times in a year)250 (200 from 2024)Yearly40PM10Hourly (not to be exceeded more than 35 times in a year)50Yearly40PbYearly0.5COMaximum daily 8-hour averagemg/m310CdLong-term limitμg/m30.02HCIShort-term limit150Long-term limit60HFHourly30Short-term limit5H2SHourly100Short-term limit20Total organic compoundsHourly280Short-term limit70Settling dustShort-term limitmg/m2/day390Long-term limit210In settling dustPb and compoundsLong-term limit250Cd and compoundsLong-term limit3.75Tl and compoundsLong-term limit5
Other NO2 in cities such as Ankara is visible from satellites. Diesel exhaust from vehicles contains NOx and other air pollutants. Emissions of sulfur dioxide from coal-fired power stations are significant. Volatile organic compounds (VOCs) come from some industries. Emission levels of persistent organic pollutants are regulated but emission totals for these chemicals were not reported in 2019. Ankara suffers from ground-level ozone pollution. There is ammonia pollution from agriculture.
Turkey emits about one percent of the world's greenhouse gas emissions. Because most of the country's air pollution is caused by the burning of fossil fuels, Turkey's air pollution would be reduced by low emission zones for city traffic, and the replacement of free distribution of coal for poor families with a different support. Climate-change mitigation would be a co-benefit of the main health benefits, and health improvement would be a co-benefit of climate-change mitigation. For example, the closure of Afşin A power plant to reduce carbon dioxide emissions would also reduce local air pollution and benefit the health of local residents.
Monitoring and reporting In 2023, Right to Clean Air Platform Turkey said half of the 360 Ministry of Environment and Urbanization monitoring stations were not working properly. Turkey has no pollutant release and transfer register law so there is no obligation for industry to publish pollution levels. Turkey has not ratified the Gothenburg Protocol on air pollution.
Some industrial companies reach Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) 305 emissions standard. There is a pollutant release and transfer register, but as of September 2024 no years are publicly searchable because it is not yet technically complete, and it is unknown what exemptions will be granted or when the register will be completed. the http://www.kstk.gov.tr/ link which is supposed to be the register is not working. Turkey has eight regional clean-air centres.
Cities
Many cities in Turkey are more polluted than typical European cities. Some nearby cities are taking steps to counter pollution; Sofia, Bulgaria, is introducing a low-emission zone, and restricting the burning of coal and wood.
Pollution in Istanbul has lessened since the 1990s but traffic is still unhealthy. Street dust is potentially toxic. NO2 is visible in measurements by Orbiting Carbon Observatory 3. Pollution worsens when high-pressure areas trap pollutants near the ground and prevent them from dispersing. Most particles are ultrafine; researchers say ultrafine and black carbon should be continuously monitored.
, industry in Bursa is a particular problem. NO2 is visible in satellite measurements. A higher-than-average rate of multiple sclerosis (MS) may be related to local industry in Ereğli.
Politics The Climate Change and Air Management Coordination Board is responsible for coordination between government departments. , however, according to the EU, better-coordinated policies need to be established and implemented.
Turkey has not ratified the Gothenburg Protocol, although it has ratified the original Convention on Long-Range Transboundary Air Pollution, and those reports are public. Pollution from Turkey affects neighbouring countries. The Armenian Nuclear Power Plant, over the border, is old and said to be insufficiently earthquake proof.
Economics