Environmental Impacts of Energy Utilization and Renewable Energy Sources in Turkey

Turkey is an energy importing country, more than half of the energy requirement has been supplied by imports. Domestic oil and lignite reserves are limited and lignites are characterised by high ash, sulfur and moisture content. Due to increasing energy consumption, air pollution is becoming a great environmental concern for future in the country. In this regard, renewable energy resources appear to be the one of the most efficient and effective solutions for sustainable energy development and environmental pollution prevention in Turkey. Turkey's geographical location has several advantages for extensive use of most of these renewable energy sources. Because of this and the fact that it has limited fossil fuel resources, a gradual shift from fossil fuels to renewables seems to be serious and the sole alternative for Turkey. This article presents a review of the present energy situation and sustainability, technical and economical potential of renewable energy sources and future policies for energy sector in Turkey. Throughout the paper several problems relating to energy sources, environment and sustainable development are discussed from both current and future perspectives.