‘Nobody cares’: the Turkish farmers bearing the burden of UK’s plastic waste problem
This investigative report details the environmental and health impact of UK plastic waste exported to Turkey. Local farmers in Adana report that toxic fumes and microplastics from imported waste are damaging their crops and livelihoods.
Why it matters
It exposes the consequences of 'waste colonialism' and the global supply chain's impact on vulnerable communities in the Global South.
Plastic waste dumped and burned in Adana, Turkey, 2021. Photograph: Caner Ozkan/Greenpeace/PA Plastic waste dumped and burned in Adana, Turkey, 2021. Photograph: Caner Ozkan/Greenpeace/PA Seascape: the state of our oceans Plastics ‘Nobody cares’: the Turkish farmers bearing the burden of UK’s plastic waste problem Britain exported 139,000 tonnes of rubbish to Turkey last year, leaving smallholders and poor districts of Adana to cope with the debris, microplastics and toxic smoke
UK plastic ‘waste colonialism’ found to be polluting Turkey’s farming heartland
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