Shortcomings of ouTurkey's Water Management and the Need for Restructuring

Water security in the world has long been considered together with energy security, food security and environmental security policies. Because the connection between them has increased. For this reason, legal, institutional and administrative problems in front of water management in Turkey have started to directly affect not only the water sector but also other sectors. This relationship should not be ignored in studies on water management.

Turkey is not a water poor country, but it is a country that is obliged to use its water in a rational, planned and coordinated manner. Turkey has prepared a NATIONAL WATER PLAN 2019-2023 after many years but has not been able to implement it. The draft WATER LAW has been in preparation for about 10 years but has not become a law.

The most fundamental legal deficiencies and institutional problems facing Turkey's water management:

1. LACK OF NATIONAL STRATEGIC GOALS 

2. LEGAL DEFICIENCIES AND INSTITUTIONAL INFRASTRUCTURE VULNERABILITY (Unqualified Staff, Institutions losing their memories and corporate identities, overlapping authorities between DSİ-SYGM, DSİ-SUKİs, lack of Water Law)

3. UNPLANNEDNESS (Unplanned Investments-HESs, DSİ's 1000 pond investments in 1000 days, etc.)

4. LACK OF COORDINATION AND INEFFICIENCY.

These result in unplanned investment, inefficient operation, waste of resources and increased security risks.

To summarize: Turkey's water management has entered a state of disorganization, institutional weakness, lack of investment planning and efforts of institutions to hinder each other (DSİ-İSKİ) (DSİ-SYGM) due to the problems and uncertainties in the new administrative management of the country. Due to the problems in the economy, water investments either did not start or remained unfinished as complementary investments at the river basin scale.

Turkey has recently been experiencing regional dry spells with increasing frequency. The problems that may arise in this area may cause problems that will affect many sectors, especially in regions of Turkey such as the Aegean and Mediterranean, Thrace and Central Anatolia, with the effect of climate change.

Agricultural Water Use 

In Turkey, 75% of water is used for agricultural irrigation. This high rate has been perceived as a positive indicator for years. In fact, there is no linear relationship between the rate of water use in agriculture and the degree of development of water management. A high rate of water use in agriculture does not indicate that agriculture is developed in a country, but rather indicates inefficiency in agricultural water use. This rate is around 50% in developed countries. 

In order to support more efficient use of irrigation water, DSİ transferred irrigation services to Irrigation Unions 25 years ago, but the system did not work and the management of these unions was transferred back to DSİ 3 years ago. Groundwater Irrigation Cooperatives, which irrigate approximately 483 000 ha of land in Turkey, have been left in a very dysfunctional situation in terms of financial, administrative and institutional infrastructure. According to DSİ data, approximately 1500 groundwater irrigation cooperatives draw water from 12000 wells. As a result of the unplanned withdrawal of groundwater, the water level has gradually decreased and farmers have become unable to pay their energy debts as a result of the agricultural policies implemented. 

In summary, the activities of water user organizations, which are the main elements of participatory management in agricultural irrigation in our country, have decreased significantly. This makes it difficult to protect water in this area where water is used the most. The situation and needs of agricultural infrastructure in our country should be reconsidered with a holistic approach. Irrigation Unions, Irrigation Cooperatives and all rural development cooperatives need to be restructured with an innovative approach. 

Water and Wastewater Services Management of Cities should be reconsidered 

The management of water services in cities (Water and Sewerage Administrations), which will become more important in the near future, should be addressed today and restructured legally and institutionally with an innovative approach.  As is known, climate change, migration to cities, pollution, confusion of authority and lack of institutional capacity make it difficult to provide water as a public service in cities. These performance deficiencies are clearly stated in the reports of 3 comparative evaluation studies conducted by SU-EN since 2017.  Therefore, the problems of Water Services management in Local Governments should be addressed as a priority across the country.

30 General Directorates of Water and Sewerage Administration of Metropolitan Municipalities provide water supply and wastewater removal, river bed improvement, stormwater collection and removal services to 78% of Turkey's population. 

In this context, it is necessary to prepare the water services management of these provinces, where nearly 80% of the population lives, not only for today but also for future services. In this context, in order to provide water services as a public service, we need radical arrangements in the institutional infrastructure and innovative, socialist but realistic water policies. 

In many of our municipalities, the energy costs of Water and Sewerage Administrations reach up to 20% of their revenues. It is possible for our municipalities to reduce the pressure of increasing energy consumption and energy costs by generating some of their own energy by installing micro-hydro energy systems or solar and wind energy systems in existing water supply systems. 

Radical adjustments needed in Water Management 

In summary, Turkey's Water Management is in need of a radical legal, institutional and administrative reorganization. In this arrangement,

1- Draft Water Law and related regulations from a legal perspective,

2-Institutionally Water Management Institutions (DSİ, SYGM, SUKİs)

Administrative aspects (Basin scale water allocation and water management boards to be shaped according to the new administrative structure, etc.) should be reconsidered. Regional organizations of DSİ should be structured on the basis of river basins. DSİ has as many Regional Directorates as there are basins, but in the organization of these regions, provincial administrative boundaries and political considerations were taken into account, not basin boundaries. In the reorganization of DSİ at the river basin scale, basin boundaries should be taken into account as much as possible.