According to announcement of ministry number of Blue Flag beaches in Turkey rises to 519

The Ministry of culture and Tourism has announced that the number of award-winning beaches in Turkey, which is the 3rd country with the most blue flags in the world after Spain and Greece, has increased from 486 to 519.

The Ministry of culture and Tourism said the ‘Blue Flag’ awards from the International Foundation for Environmental Education (FEE), which is headquartered in Copenhagen, Denmark, has been awarded to 33 more beaches in 2021.

So the number of award-winning beaches, which was 486 last year, reached 519. This year, the number of Blue Flag beaches has reached 213 in Antalya, 106 in Muğla, 66 in Izmir, 39 in Aydin, 36 in Balıkesir, 9 in Mersin, 7 in Kocaeli. Bartin received a blue flag for 3 beaches this year.

The Ministry of culture and Tourism aims to be the first in the world, among the 50 FEE member countries implementing the International Blue Flag in 2023. In Turkey, 22 marinas and 10 tourism boats and 6 individual yachts were also eligible for the ‘Blue Flag’ Award this year.

MINISTER: WE COLLECTED 85 THOUSAND TONS OF MARINE GARBAGE

Environment and Urban Planning Minister Murat said on his Twitter account that as a result of their importance to environmental investments, they protected the water quality of the seas and improve it every year. “This way, the number of our Blue Flag beaches, which are indicative of clean seas, is growing rapidly. How? We collected 85 thousand tons of marine garbage with zero waste Blue. With 163 waste acceptance facilities, we do not leave a single ship without waste. We monitor ships 24/7 with our waste tracking systems. We immediately respond to possible pollution and accidents from 364 coastal facilities. Today we are proud to receive the reward of all our work once again. Our country became the third in the world with 519 Blue Flag beaches in 2021. Our goal for 2023 is the world championship.”