TODAY.AZ / World news

Turkey loses 1.4 bln tons of soil every year

07 January 2011 [16:25] - TODAY.AZ
Turkey loses 1.4 billion tons of soil every year due to floods and erosion.
Speaking to the AA, Nevzat Ozer, the representative of the Turkish Foundation for Combating Soil Erosion, for Reforestation and the Protection of Natural Habitats (TEMA) in north-eastern province of Rize, said Friday that if efforts were made to establish 25 centimeter thick fields, Turkey could obtain fields as big as two million decares in total.

Two million decares of fields are twice the size of the Amik Plain, Ozer said.

Turkey's soil potential is not as rich as it is thought to be. Half of all soil in Turkey can not be used for agriculture. Despite this fact, we do not show the necessary sensitivity to our soil. Our soil faces threat of erosion due to the decreasing numbers of forests. We need to take care of our soil which has reached the present day after thousands of years, Ozen said.

Around 500 million tons of soil out of the total 1.4 billion lost per year in Turkey are actually fields that were used for agricultural purposes. This means that we are not losing soil but bread, Ozer said.

Turkey can grow 600,000 tons of wheat on soil lost every year, Ozer said.

Forestation is crucial to prevent the loss of useful soil, Ozer added.


/World Bulletin/
URL: http://www.today.az/news/regions/79130.html

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