As COP31 comes to Turkey, satellites reveal a landfill methane problem
UCLA researchers found 70 plumes from Turkey’s 10 highest-emitting waste sites, with the Seymen landfill near Istanbul averaging 7.4 tons an hour.
- Researchers from the University of California, Los Angeles released satellite data on November 7 identifying 70 methane plumes at Turkey's top 10 waste sites, with findings emerging days before COP31 begins in Antalya on November 9.
- Turkey ranks as the world's 5th-biggest methane emitter from solid waste, with emissions rising nearly 25% to around 21 million tons over the last decade, yet the nation has not joined the Global Methane Pledge .
- The Seymen landfill serving Istanbul's 16 million residents emits about 7.4 tons of methane hourly according to satellite data, though municipal operator ISTAC disputes the figures, citing temporary maintenance work and low atmospheric pressure.
- Defending its waste record, the Environment Ministry reported a national 'recovery rate' of 37.53% in 2025, up from 13% in 2017, and argued satellite measurements lack continuous data needed for accurate annual reporting.
- Carbon Mapper experts identified 'huge mitigation potential' at Turkey's largest landfills, suggesting better-designed collection systems and repairs to cracked covers could deliver disproportionate emissions reductions across the nation.
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49 Articles
COP31: World leaders must break fossil fuels' grip on climate policy and people’s futures.
World leaders at COP31 in Türkiye must stop backing the fossil fuel industry and start delivering the rapid, equitable phase-out that science, human rights and international law demand, Amnesty International said today. “The world is not running out of climate warnings. It is running out of excuses. After more than 30 years of climate negotiations, […]
As COP31 comes to Turkiye, satellites reveal a landfill methane problem
Methane is the biggest cause of climate change after carbon dioxide (CO2) and is over 80 times more potent than CO2 in its first 20 years in the air. Sharp cuts could therefore slow warming relatively quickly
A landfill near Istanbul generates electricity from captured waste gas, yet satellites detect methane escaping at about 7.4 tons an hour on average, new reporting finds as Turkey prepares to host COP31
The great mountain of domestic refuse outside Istanbul is doing more than just being the last stop for the rubbish of the Turkish city.
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Amnesty urges action on Turkey’s rights record before COP31 - Stockholm Center for Freedom
Amnesty International has urged Germany and the international community to raise Turkey’s human rights record at the highest political level before and during the United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP31), which opens Monday in the Mediterranean city of Antalya. The human rights organization accused the Turkish government of intensifying a systematic campaign against independent voices, […]
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