The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and Hatay Metropolitan Municipality collaborate on , environmental problems and climate action. Having implemented various infrastructure projects to strengthen municipal services under the “Turkey Resilience Project in Response to the Syria Crisis (TRP)”, UNDP has introduced the Greenhouse Gas Inventory and Climate Action Plan” for Hatay Metropolitan Municipality. Announced at an event in Hatay, the initiative was discussed at a panel on “Importance of Preparing a Carbon Footprint Inventory and Climate Action Plan for Municipalities: Are We Ready to Combat Climate Change Locally?”

The closing meeting for “Hatay Provincial Greenhouse Gas Inventory and Climate Action Plan” was held in Hatay at high level participation. The project undertaken by UNDP aims to support Hatay Metropolitan Municipality on climate action as well as “sustainable urban development” for liveable, nature, environment, human and environment friendly cities.

Under the project which is funded by the European Union (EU) and jointly implemented by UNDP and Ilbank, a “Greenhouse Gas Inventory and Climate Action Plan” was prepared for Hatay Metropolitan Municipality, and “Hatay Provincial Greenhouse Gas Inventory and Climate Action Plan Report” was also introduced at the event. As the project aims to assist the Metropolitan Municipality in reducing GHG and carbon emissions, eliminate environmental and health problems arising from solid waste and waste water, and formulating plans, policies and practices for climate adaptation, this specific work was undertaken by the Municipal Services Delivery Unit of UNDP Syria Crisis Response and Resilience Programme. The action plan and report intend to prepare Hatay for achieving the goals defined in the he United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), as the fundamental international instrument on climate action. At the closing meeting of “Strengthening Municipalities and Building Local Resilience: Carbon Footprint, Greenhouse Gas Inventory and Climate Action Plan for Local Governments and Case of Hatay”, the opening remarks were delivered by Ahmet Dolğun, Head of Environmental Protection Department of Hatay Metropolitan Municipality; Sukhrob Khojimatov, UNDP Turkey Deputy Resident Representative; Emrah Baydemir, Deputy General Director of Ilbank; Sebahattin Dökmeci, Deputy General Director of Environmental Management at the Ministry of Environment and Urbanisation; and Lütfü Savaş, Hatay Metropolitan Mayor.

UNDP Deputy Resident Representative: “Cities at the front lines of combating climate change and environmental issues”

Noting that cities around the world were at the front lines of combating climate change and environmental problems, UNDP Turkey Deputy Resident Representative Sukhrob Khojimatov emphasised that, as cities in our time hosted more than half of the world’s population, and larger part of economy, trade, energy networks, critical infrastructure and socio-cultural life, they were hit hardest by the adverse effects of humanitarian crises, environmental problems, natural disasters and climate change. Underlining the critical importance of increasing the resilience of urban settlements and local communities against such crises, Khojimatov indicated that environmental problems and climate change were increasingly associated with the migration issue in the world.

“Millions of people may be displaced due to climate change”

Informing that 7.2 million people became migrants only in 2018 due to climate change, Khojimatov said: “Millions may soon have to migrate due to adverse effects of climate change. 265 million people have since 2008 had to leave their homelands due to climate change and associated causes. Climate change and environmental catastrophes may induce serious economic losses, instability and trigger new conflicts in the future.” Expressing that UNDP’s crisis response focused on long-term, sustainable solutions responding to local needs, Khojimatov stated: “Support to municipalities has since 2014 been the most important component of our solutions to humanitarian and environmental crises, and the most important part of our job in Turkey. Hatay Municipality is one of our most important partners.”

Structural solutions to waste problem, and important projects for environmental and human health in the region

Emphasising that the Climate Action Plan for Hatay Metropolitan Municipality laid down a roadmap to reduce carbon emissions, Khojimatov said: “Hatay is now one of the 16 metropolitan municipalities that has the had a roadmap in Turkey.” He recalled the large-scale infrastructure investments undertaken by UNDP in Hatay, and commented that “We have to date undertaken investment of 10 million USD to strengthen municipal services in Hatay. With the funding from EU, we rehabilitated wild landfills, built waste transfer stations and wastewater treatment plants offering structural solutions to the waste problem in the region. We procured and commissioned transport systems, vehicles and equipment to collect and transfer waste in the central and other districts of Hatay. The system now handles waste collection at lower costs and higher efficiency. We transport a larger amount of waste to modern landfills by modern vehicles and equipment at shorter mileage, and cause lower emission of hazardous gases.”

Sertaç Turhal, Project Manager for Municipal Service Delivery Component of UNDP’s Turkey Resilience Project in Response to the Syria Crisis (TRP), made a presentation on UNDP’s activities to strengthen municipal services, and said: “By the investments made in the four Southeast Anatolian provinces, namely Hatay, Şanlıurfa, Gaziantep, Kilis under our projects, we have achieved a reduction of GHG emission equivalent to 140,000 tons per annum.”

The panel on “Importance of Preparing a Carbon Footprint Inventory and Climate Action Plan for Municipalities: Are We Ready to Combat Climate Change Locally?” held in the context of the event featured discussions on climate action by Dr. Baran Bozoğlu, Chair of Chamber of Environmental Engineers; Erdem Ergin, UNDP Disaster Risk Management and Climate Resilience Advisor; Ahmet Dolğun, Head of Environmental Protection Department of Hatay Metropolitan Municipality; Prof. Dr. Berkant Ödemiş of Hatay Mustafa Kemal University, moderated by Dr. Faik Uyanık, UNDP Communications Chief.

Hatay Provincial Greenhouse Gas Inventory and Climate Action Plan

Under the project, a carbon footprint inventory to national and international standards was drawn up for the province to establish mechanisms for measuring individual and institutional carbon footprint and for associated monitoring and evaluation systems. An action plan for Hatay Metropolitan Municipality was formulated to implement short-, medium- and long-term objectives, policies and practices to achieve the 2030 goals. Training modules were created to strengthen technical, institutional, organisational and human capacities of the municipality in such areas as sustainability, climate-friendly urban governance, GHG reduction; and training delivered to municipal staff. A web-based “Carbon Footprint Database and Computation Module” was produced and made available to the Metropolitan Municipality and people of Hatay to raise local awareness for climate action.

The project aims to strengthen the resilience of individuals, institutions and communities against crises, and build a sustainable future for local administrations. Combining UNDP’s expertise of over 50 years in sustainable development across the world, EU’s financial contribution and particularly the technical specialisation to solve infrastructural problems of municipalities, the project works with national and local stakeholders to create clean and healthy environment as well as liveable, environment- and climate-friendly, green cities including adaptation to climate change and reduction of GHG and carbon emissions.