Turkey Maintained Its Third Place In The World In ‘Blue Flag’ Ranking
In the Blue Flag 2023 awards, 551 beaches, 23 marinas, 14 tourism boats and 10 individual yachts in Turkey were awarded the Blue Flag. Turkey ranked third in the world with a total of 598 Blue Flags.
The international Blue Flag jury announced the Blue Flag awards for 2023.
In the Blue Flag ranking announced by the International Foundation for Environmental Education-FEE, headquartered in Copenhagen, Denmark, Turkey ranked third in the world again with the number of beaches.
The Blue Flag will fly on 551 beaches, 23 marinas, 14 tourism boats and 10 individual yachts in Turkey.
Spain and Greece ranked first and second, respectively, among the Blue Flag holder countries. Turkey ranked third, followed by Italy and France.
Blue Flag Is Implemented In 50 Countries Around The World
The Blue Flag Program in Turkey was initiated when the European Union declared 1987 as the “Year of the Environment”. The program, which was launched with the aim of protecting public health and sustaining it through environmental education and awareness-raising activities, was put into practice in Turkey in 1993.
Within the scope of the program, Blue Flag beaches have 33 criteria, marinas have 38 criteria, tourism boats have 51 criteria and individual yachts have 4 criteria and 16 rules of conduct.
The mandatory criteria for the Blue Flag on beaches include analyzing bathing water at 15-day intervals during the season, suitability of wastewater treatment facilities, protection of sensitive natural areas, provision of lifeguards and first aid equipment, emergency plan, disabled facilities, waste separation, environmental education and information.
Corporate social responsibility, public participation and education are also expected criteria for marinas and tourism boats.
The Blue Flag Program, carried out under the coordination of the Turkish Environmental Education Foundation (TÜRÇEV), is implemented in 50 countries around the world under the coordination of the International Foundation for Environmental Education-FEE.
Antalya Ranks First In Turkey With Its Beaches And Tourism Boats
Antalya ranks first among the beaches and tourism boats with the most Blue Flags in Turkey. Antalya has 231 beaches, 5 marinas and 14 tourism boats with Blue Flags.
Muğla is the tourism city with the most Blue Flag marinas in Turkey. Muğla ranks second in the list with 110 beaches, 7 marinas and 4 individual yachts flying the Blue Flag.
İzmir ranks 3rd with 63 beaches and 4 marinas, Balıkesir ranks 4th with 46 beaches, 1 marina and 6 private yachts, Aydın ranks 5th with 35 beaches and 2 marinas.
These provinces are followed by Samsun, Çanakkale, Mersin, Kocaeli, Tekirdağ, Bartın, Kırklareli, Ordu, Bursa, Zonguldak, İstanbul, Sakarya, Düzce, Van, Edirne and Yalova.
