The Sea of Marmara is dying: this is the warning issued by a group of scientists from the Institute of Marine Sciences of the Middle East Technical University (ODTÜ) in Turkey, who have carried out a study in the waters of this sea that bathes the northwest of Anatolia and Istanbul, and which is facing problems such as the loss of oxygen, pollution and rising temperatures due to climate change.
A total of eight scientists worked for four days on a recent study carried out in the waters of the Sea of Marmara, which has been reported in Turkish media. The research analysed factors such as temperature, pollution, oxygen levels and the direction of ocean currents. ‘The first findings indicate that especially the oxygen levels are not good at all. There is a serious drop in oxygen from a depth of 30 metres,’ Professor Mustafa Yücel told Anatolia news agency in an interview.
‘Oxygen levels drop to what is known as the ‘hypoxia threshold’ from the first 30 metres, reaching a point where fish cannot survive,’ Yücel added, explaining that at depths of 150 to 200 metres oxygen levels are so low that the research team had serious difficulties even trying to detect them.
For the professor, the rising water temperature – which this year has set a new record – is one of the key factors behind the lack of oxygenation in the water. According to Yücel, water from the Mediterranean Sea – which enters the Marmara at a depth of 600-800 metres through the Dardanelles Strait – used to provide a ‘breath of fresh air’ to the Sea of Marmara and increase oxygen levels, especially in the eastern part of the sea; however, this phenomenon is no longer observed today due to the increase in water temperature, which not only decreases oxygen concentration but also aggravates pollution problems.
‘We have collected a lot of data in recent years, so I can speak very clearly and knowledgeably: nitrogen and phosphorus pollution is increasing rapidly in the Sea of Marmara. The sea is facing a very dangerous biological production scenario’. For this scientist, the Sea of Marmara is dying and recent phenomena such as sea snot – which appeared in 2021 suffocating all marine life – are just a warning of what is to come.
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Pablo Gómez is a specialist in Turkey and has been editor-in-chief of Hispanatolia since 2011. He has been analysing current affairs and geopolitics in Turkey and the surrounding region since 2006.
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