Job Discussion Forums

[tararu]

I always put the colone towels from restuarants in my bag for later

[Laura777]

Just a quick question does anyone know where the recycling centers are here in Istanbul? Do they recycle everything?

Justme when I have my wee one(?) I will also use the cloth diapers. At my house now I always keep bottles of water around for plants and just in case they shut off the water.

[dmb]

The recycling centres are somewhere north of Esenler(where the Otogar is) Not pleasant places.

[bigbadsuzie]

I'm all in favour of making more people aware of green issues .In fact I think its a great idea to have local groups go out on a weekend and clean up a lot of the mess that irresponsible city dwellers leave behing . It would also be great if more of the xpats could get involved in this kind of project .
The word education has been repeated on this thread a few times already as a major factor ( or at least the lack of it ) how ironic that the issue of morale in the workplace seems less important than the amount of rubbish people leave lying around .Meanwhile the rest of us put up with petty backbiting and a stressful working environment . Seems a distorted lack of priorities to the casual observer .Save the planet ,shorten your shelf life in the process .
How can I save the planet when half the f??*wits I work with deserve to be buried in a landfill site !

[Laura777]

[justme]

My workplace morale improved when they got, in each office, big cardboard TEMA boxes for paper disposal. I dutifully put my used paper into these boxes, being careful to remove staples first, and I even went through the ones in the copy machine room to take out the wrappers for new reams of paper, which contaminate the recycling.

Then one day I saw the cleaners emptying the TEMA boxes into the regular trash bags. So much for that.

[Laura777]

Buca villagers at forefront of organic revolution
Saturday, January 27, 2007

Four villages in Buca, İzmir have joined forces for farming the land organically. Their land is the biggest area in Turkey especially allocated for organic farming

METE TAMER OMUR
İZMİR � Referans

These days villagers in Izmir's Buca District are feeling pretty positive about the future because they are ready to expand recent organic farming projects, which have shown tremendous promise so far, in order to secure the community's livelihood for the future.

Their land is part of the environmentally protected Tahtalı Dam basin. All chemicals and fertilizers are banned from use on the protected land, leaving organic farming as one of the only viable options villagers have. So far farmers from four villages seem to be managing organic farming well and the future looks bright not only for them but also in terms of their region's development. The villagers are scheduled to meet a delegation from Italy at the end of the month to further develop the scope of organic farming in the area.

The Belenbaşı, Kırıklar, Karaağa� and Doğancılar villages have united under the Buca Villages Organic Olive and Olive Oil Project, covering nearly 1,625 acres operated by 260 farmers. The project which was launched in 2004 is the largest amount of land allocated to organic farming in Turkey.

With the support of the İzmir Metropolitan Municipality, the Buca Municipality, the İzmir Province Agriculture Directorate and the İzmir City Council, Buca villagers are taking huge steps toward becoming a new center of organic agricultural products.

While developing projects to make the region an eco-tourism center, Buca villagers are also implementing the Organic Market Project, where producers and consumers will meet.

İzmir Mayor Aziz Kocaoğlu said they were supporting the organic farming in the villages of Buca. �I visited the villages during Bayram. I met the villagers. We have been supporting the project from the beginning,� he said.



Daily capacity: 40 tons:

İzmir Provincial Agriculture Director Muzaffer Ağar said they were planning to set up production centers, one of them being the 40 ton daily capacity olive oil factory at Doğancılar Village. All together, the four villages have a capacity to produce 100-150 tons of oil, Ağar said, adding that the olive oil project would change the entire region dramatically.

�Here, both the village muhtars and the villagers themselves are very interested in the topic. They are in constant dialogue with us. Our staff is conducting training sessions in the field. They train in every possible subject, from tree trimming to tree growing,� Ağar said.

Alongside production facilities, showrooms and sale counters will also be set up. An olive packaging and soap production facility is also planned, according to Ağar. Products will be named after authentic Buca names.

Ağar also noted that they have obtained certificates for their organic olive oil. Within the framework of the Ecologic Agriculture Control Organization (ETKO), 55,000 olive tree saplings were distributed to the villagers, Ağar said.

�We will distribute 35,000 more saplings. We have also distributed other materials such as plastic cases and leaves to be used as natural fertilizers. We have also opened a village bazaar at Buca G�let for publicity purposes,� he said.

A delegation from Italy will arrive at the end of the month, Ağar mentioned. The delegation is expected to examine the region and is reported to have vineyard projects in the pipeline.

The project is proceeding under the funding of European Union funds. �Wine is produced in small basins now. In Europe, special regional wines are produced. Just like producing special regional olive oil, we may as well produce special wines in Buca,� Ağar said.



Organic market project:

Belenbaşı Village Muhtar B�lent Altıparmak, one of the main players in the organic farming project, said they have completed the transformation phase to organic farming in one year to produce 100 percent organic products. They have been working on the project for two years, Altıparmak explained. He said: �We have displayed the organic products that the four villages have been producing in many domestic fairs. In every fair we participated, the consumer was asking how they could obtain these products directly, without any third parties. Then, we developed the organic market idea. We hope to open the way for eco-tourism this way with a few projects in our region. We are considering building a multi-purpose amphitheater within the market place. An open cinema, cafes and open stands are being planned. There will also be shops where organic or non-organic products will be on sale.�

Altıparmak said the market will be built in Belenbaşı Village. They have to solve some zoning problems but a file has been prepared and submitted to the İzmir Metropolitan Municipality, he said.

Once the organic market project is finalized, the public will have a better understanding of organic farming and interest will grow, Altıparmak emphasized.

[Laura777]

... still we cannot stop to spread the positive thoughts about conservation. Let your bosses know you want to recycle. That you want to participate in this proactively in your classrooms. Educate your students. Even if its just about how warm this year is and with no snow and little rain how this summer there will not be enough water in many regions...

Why is it that it takes such a drastic thing as global warming to make people even contemplate that measures are needed to halt the death of this planet.

I am quite saddened today about the state of our world. And I want to help but what can I do? First of all begin to implement in my surroundings the basics of conservation and recycling.

First steps, baby steps. But it must be done. Its maybe too late but we can try to reduce the impact of global warming and air pollution.