Zeynep Şentek on the environment, public health and politics in Dilovası, a heavily polluted industrial district near Istanbul. Şentek is one of the reporters of a recent Black Sea.EU article examining the grim health consequences of life in what a 2007 parliamentary commission called a "public health disaster zone". The article paints an almost hellish picture of life for the nearly 50,000 people in Dilovası, where dangerous chemicals are continuously belched into the air, cancer rates are reportedly well above average, and locals suffer from a range of severe respiratory conditions.

Here's a link to the detailed report on life in Dilovası: https://theblacksea.eu/stories/the-toxic-valley-project/the-toxic-valley/

And a shorter report on an asbestos dump in Dilovası: https://theblacksea.eu/stories/the-toxic-valley-project/asbestos-hill/

Become a Turkey Book Talk member to support the podcast and get English and Turkish transcripts of every interview, transcripts of the archive, access to a 35% discount on over 400 Turkey/Ottoman history titles published by IB Tauris, and an archive of over 200 reviews covering Turkish and international fiction, history, journalism and politics: https://www.patreon.com/user?u=2998854