Türkiye’s Zero Waste Project Exceeds 365B Liras in Economic Impact

Why this is here: The Zero Waste project saved Türkiye 60 billion liters of oil, exceeding the annual fuel consumption of all cars within the country.

Hasan Suver, Deputy Minister of Environment, Urbanization and Climate Change of Türkiye, announced the country’s Zero Waste project generated 365 billion liras in economic benefits. He presented these findings at the “Closing the Loop” event during the 13th World Urban Forum. Suver emphasized that unmanaged waste poses environmental and social risks, disproportionately impacting vulnerable communities.

The Zero Waste project, initiated in 2017, prioritizes waste prevention and the reintegration of waste into the economy through reuse and recycling. Türkiye’s recycling rate rose from 13% in 2017 to 37.53% in 2025. The country has trained roughly 28 million people in zero waste practices and processed 90 million tons of waste—including paper, plastic, glass, metal, and organic materials—between 2017 and the end of 2025.

While the project has saved 2,700 billion kilowatt-hours of energy and 2 trillion liters of water, officials acknowledge the need to further improve recycling rates to reach their goals of 60% by 2035 and 70% by 2053. Work continues to refine waste management strategies and expand the circular economy.