TEHRAN – Iran’s Department of Environment (DOE) chief, Issa Kalantari, and Turkey’s Deputy Minister of the Environment and Urban Development, Fatma Varank, discussed increased cooperation on environmental issues and waste management during a meeting held on Wednesday.

During the meeting, Kalantari expressed readiness to use Turkey’s technical experiences on successful waste management practices, IRNA reported.

Over the past few years, sand and dust storms originated from the neighboring countries, including Iraq and Syria have stricken Iran, Kalantari said, adding, it is imperative to hold multilateral meetings in order to review and address the issue.

Discussing waste management Varank said that over the past years, every citizen of Turkey consumed 400 pieces of plastics per year, while the amount declined by 75 percent due to increased prices.

She further noted that it is planned that all waste to be segregated at source and utilized for generating energy by 2030.

Referring to Iran–Turkey barrier, Kalantari noted that despite the mutual security interests for both countries, environmental issues in building the barrier have been overlooked as it causes some disturbances to the wildlife and the environment.

He further noted that the barrier should not limit animal species from crossing the barrier and that safeguarding the ecosystem must be taken into account, so that experts in both countries should exchange views on the issue.  

Varank, for her part, said that the environment knows no border, so we need to cooperate in the environmental fields.

There have been some drawbacks to the wall’s development, which were further overcame, as some passes were installed to facilitate the wildlife crossing the border, she highlighted.

However, it was not enough due to difficulties for some large wildlife species which cannot pass through it, and we look forward to solve the problem, she added.

The Iran–Turkey barrier is a border barrier under construction along the Turkey-Iran border aimed at preventing illegal crossings and smuggling across the border. The wall will cover 144 km of the 499 km Turkey-Iran border. As of December 2017, half of the border barrier has been finished. According to the responsible officials, the border barrier will be completed by spring 2019.

FB/MQ/MG