From Waste to Source-Integrated Solid Waste Management Solutions Planning for Municipalities workshop was held on 4-6 July 2017, under the auspices of Izmit Waste and Residue Treatment, Incineration and Recycling Co. Inc. (İZAYDAŞ). Many local government representatives from Turkey and Germany participated in the event, co-organized by UCLG-MEWA and Connective Cities.
Mehmet Duman, UCLG-MEWA Secretary General, Zekeriya Özak, Deputy Mayor of Kocaeli, Muhammet Saraç, General Manager of İZAYDAŞ and Eva Prediger. German Corporation for International Cooperation (GIZ) Program Officer for the Implementation Community Program for Sustainable Urban Development, addressed the audience during the Opening Session.
Following the opening speeches, as keynote speakers, Hüseyin Kılıç, Kocaeli Metropolitan Municipality Head of Waste Management Department, referred to solid waste management in Kocaeli; and Osman Şenaydın, Union of Municipalities of Turkey representative, made a presentation introducing solid waste management in local governments in Turkey.
Program Content
With the workshop, the municipalities in Turkey also acquired the opportunity to gain a perspective on the international studies in this field.
During the workshop, the participants introduced the current Solid Waste Management practices in the two countries. The specific causes of urban waste problems in cities and potential strategies for the solution of these problems were also identified.
Good Practices and Current Challenges
Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality, Gaziantep Metropolitan Municipality, Malatya Metropolitan Municipality, Şanlıurfa Metropolitan Municipality, Ordu Metropolitan Municipality, Karesi Municipality and Hatay Metropolitan Municipality were the Turkish municipalities that made presentations on good practices and current challenges in this field. Later a poster was created with these presentations to be displayed in the gallery area. Following this, a number of working groups were established on corporate environments and financing models; on retraction, transfer and sustainable disposal; and on recycling and reuse. Lastly, the groups discussed solid waste management practices in two countries.
Technical Visit
Following the peer consultation session on the second day of the Program; the participants made a technical visit to the Incineration Plant, Medical Waste Sterilization Facility, Biogas Facility, Garbage Water Treatment Plant, and Domestic and Hazardous Storage Space of IZAYDAS.
Possible Cooperation Areas
On the third and final day of the workshop, the participants developed a strategic vision to improve solid waste management services in their respective cities. During the drafting process of the Action Plan, the steps to be taken in the UCLG-MEWA and Connective Cities partnership have also been identified. The participants also discussed the possibility of supporting potential projects of UCLG-MEWA and Connective Cities, within the context of the “Municipal Techniques for Host Community in the Middle East Program” by Connective Cities. The workshop was concluded after the participants expressed that the coming process will be shaped in cooperation with the taskforces created under UCLG-MEWA Committee on Environment, the Union of Turkish Municipalities and Connective Cities, and were granted with certificates.