The Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) process has restarted for the application aimed at expanding the operational area of the Ship Recycling Facilities in Aliağa. A public information and participation meeting regarding the project will be held on Tuesday, June 23, 2026, at the Aliağa Municipality Conference Hall.

The Aliağa Ship Recycling Facilities, which frequently come under scrutiny due to their impacts on the environment and worker health, have had their new application for capacity increase reinitiated in the Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) process.

The Ship Recycling Industrialists Association, which operates the facilities, has reapplied to the Ministry of Environment, Urbanization and Climate Change for the purpose of expanding their operational area.

The project plans to extend the area used by the ship recycling facilities, which have been in operation for many years, towards the seaside of the coastal boundary line.

According to the announcement made by the ministry, a Public Information and Participation Meeting will be held on June 23, 2026, at 11:00 AM at the Aliağa Municipality Conference Hall and garden to inform the public about the project and gather their opinions.

Until the EIA process is completed, opinions and suggestions regarding the project can be submitted to the İzmir Provincial Directorate of Environment, Urbanization and Climate Change and the Ministry.

The Ship Recycling Industrialists Association had applied for the same project last year, but the EIA process was halted. The reason for the halt was cited as planned revisions in the zoning plans for the region.

With the new application, discussions regarding the expansion of ship recycling activities in Aliağa are expected to come back to the agenda. Environmental organizations and professional chambers have long raised various criticisms regarding the environmental impacts of the facilities and worker health and safety.

The announcement is as follows: Regarding the 'Increase in the Area of Ship Dismantling and Ship Recycling Activities' Project planned by the Ship Recycling Industrialists Association in the Atatürk Neighborhood, Arapçiftliği (K17-B3; 58.85 Ha) of Aliağa District, İzmir Province, the EIA process has been initiated in accordance with Article 8 of the EIA Regulation, which was enacted with the publication in the Official Gazette dated 29.07.2022 and numbered 31907. In accordance with Article 9 of the EIA Regulation, a Public Information and Participation Meeting will be held on 23/06/2026 at 11:00 AM at the Aliağa Municipality Conference Hall and Front/Garden located at No: 47 Lozan Street, Kültür Neighborhood, Aliağa District, by our Governorship (Provincial Directorate of Environment, Urbanization and Climate Change). Until the completion of the EIA process, opinions and suggestions regarding the project can be submitted to our Governorship (Provincial Directorate of Environment, Urbanization and Climate Change) or the Ministry.

On the other hand, a decrease was observed in the annual statistics of dismantled ships presented in the project introduction file. The number of ships, which was 281 in 2012, dropped to 86 by 2022. In the first ten months of 2023, 45 ships were dismantled.

The Aliağa Ship Dismantling Region, which started its operations in 1977, is exempt from both the EIA and Environmental Permit and License Regulation due to the legislation of that time.

The environmental pollution caused by ship dismantling has also been reflected in the 'Soil and Plant Pollution Results Report' prepared by the Aegean University Faculty of Agriculture, commissioned by the İzmir Metropolitan Municipality, and the 'Environmental Status Determination Project Final Report' by TÜBİTAK Marmara Research Center Presidency.

The project introduction file includes the following statements: Ship dismantling activities, which are evaluated outside the scope of the EIA Regulation and have been conducted from the past to the present, are carried out within the parcels located on the land side of the coastal boundary line and the areas under the jurisdiction and control of the state on the seaside of the coastal boundary line. The parcels on the land side of the coastal boundary line are under the management of APAŞ Petrol A.Ş. and are used by member companies of the Ship Recycling Industrialists Association under lease agreements and/or sales protocols.

Due to sedimentation in the coastal area over the years as a result of currents in the area where ship dismantling activities are conducted, usage areas have emerged. In the activities subject to this report, the use of these areas on the seaside of the coastal boundary line has also been included, resulting in an increase in area. In the area subject to the area increase, there are areas temporarily used for non-contaminated metal waste, etc., and non-fixed equipment such as ropes, as well as the facility vehicle park. There will be no change in the capacity of the facilities.

An integrated project has been prepared and submitted to the Ministry of Environment, Urbanization and Climate Change for the cumulative assessment of the environmental impacts of the activities subject to this report, which are planned by the ship recycling companies that are members of the Ship Recycling Industrialists Association. In this context, it has been stated in the institutional opinion obtained that, due to the proximity and adjacency of the ship dismantling areas, it is appropriate for the project owner, the Ship Recycling Industrialists Association, to submit the EIA Application File prepared under Article 8 of the current EIA Regulation through the online EIA process management system (e-EIA) (See Annex-VII-5.1). The EIA Application File has been prepared based on the General Format of Environmental Impact Assessment in Annex-III of the Environmental Impact Assessment Regulation published in the Official Gazette dated 29.07.2022 and numbered 31907.

Source: EgedeSonSöz

Source: SeaNews Türkiye