The World and Türkiye in 2025

Aydın Tiryaki (December 31, 2025)
(Gemini AI was used as a data compilation and writing assistant)

Abstract: The year 2025 has been a year where the conflict between climate goals and the desire for economic survival was most acutely felt. This article analyzes the critical threshold in global warming, Türkiye’s dependence on low-quality domestic coal, the impact of controversial mining laws on the ecosystem, and the actual status of nuclear energy.

Introduction: A Warming Planet and Strategic Dilemmas

The year 2025 has been registered as a “breaking point” where global average temperatures have risen 1.5°C above pre-industrial levels. This warming is not just a meteorological data point; it is a systemic crisis affecting everything from food security to migration waves. Although pledges to “phase out fossil fuels” were made at the COP30 summit in Brazil, field realities present a much different picture.

1. Türkiye’s Coal Paradox and Carbon Footprint

In 2025, Türkiye continued to prioritize domestic coal (lignite) for the sake of energy independence. however, this preference carries a heavy environmental cost:

• The Share of Coal: Approximately 30-35% of electricity generation in Türkiye is still provided by coal, particularly low-calorie domestic lignite.
• Low Quality, High Emissions: The high moisture and sulfur content of lignite deposits in Türkiye elevates the carbon footprint per unit of energy to massive proportions. This makes Türkiye one of the riskiest countries in global markets under the EU’s “Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism” (CBAM).

2. “Wild Mining” and the Defense of Olive Groves

In 2025, the hottest topic on Türkiye’s environmental agenda was the expansion of mining activities into agricultural and forest lands:

• Legal Regulations and Olive Trees: Controversial regulations in mining management that allowed olive groves to be opened to mining sites became the focus of legal and social resistance in 2025. The sacrifice of thousand-year-old olive ecosystems for mining activities under the guise of “public interest” has been recorded as a fundamental element threatening our agricultural future.
• Ecological Destruction: Unregulated and unrehabilitated activities, referred to as “wild mining,” disrupted forest integrity and polluted local water basins in many regions from Akbelen to Mount Ida (Kaz Dağları).

3. Akkuyu Nuclear Power Plant: The Actual Status

While the process at the Akkuyu Nuclear Power Plant reached a strategic stage in 2025, it remained behind initial expectations:

• Production Status: As of the end of 2025, fuel loading and low-power test productions have taken place in the first unit. However, due to technical complexities and supply chain disruptions, the commercial supply of the national grid at full capacity is still in the early stages.
• Place in the Energy Mix: Although Akkuyu is a critical step for Türkiye’s base-load energy needs, the debate over whether nuclear energy is an “alternative to” or a “complement to” renewable energy remains current.

4. Water-Scarce Türkiye: The 2025 Drought Scorecard

In 2025, Türkiye moved beyond being a country experiencing “water stress” and reached the limit of “water poverty” in many basins.

• Loss in Hydroelectric Power: The drop in water levels in dams reduced the share of hydroelectric power in Türkiye’s renewable energy capacity; this gap had to be filled once again by carbon-intensive coal and imported natural gas.

Conclusion

For Türkiye, 2025 was a year where the environment collided with the economy, olive groves with mines, and the green transition with the reality of lignite. The fundamental vision for 2026 should be to create realistic energy planning that protects irreversible ecosystems like olive groves and forests, reduces dependence on domestic coal, and manages nuclear energy transparently with all its security and waste risks.

APPENDIX: AN ACCOUNTING OF CLIMATE CRISIS, GREEN ENERGY, AND ENVIRONMENTAL MERITOCRACY

While the carbon emission rates and renewable energy investments discussed in this article hold strategic importance in the face of the reality that 2025 was shaken by records of being the hottest year ever, it is necessary to note the following unofficial fractures for the sake of preserving ecological balance and the future of energy policies:

1. Global “Greenwashing” and the Energy Paradox In 2025, although many companies and countries worldwide presented their “carbon neutral” goals to the international public with glittering reports, a “greenwashing” process took place where fossil fuel use actually continued in different forms. The most fundamental requirement for a true green transformation on a global scale is the establishment of transparent audit mechanisms that will prevent financial profit motives from overriding ecological realities.

2. Türkiye: Energy Supply Security and Management of National Resources In 2025, Türkiye took significant steps toward increasing its national capacity in wind and solar energy. However, this transformation process contradicts the continued dependence of industry and transportation on fossil fuels. Fluctuations in diesel prices and energy costs, in particular, remained a factor directly affecting economic prosperity. Reducing foreign dependency in energy is not just an economic choice but a matter of national security.

3. Environmental Destruction and the Local Ecology Test Specifically for Türkiye, the year 2025 has been a major test year for the protection of natural areas under pressure from mining activities and rapid urbanization. Preserving forest assets and water basins is not just an environmentalist sensitivity but a necessity for the right to life of future generations. It is a fundamental requirement for national environmental policies to prioritize long-term ecological sustainability over short-term economic gains.

4. Academic Norms and Environmental Meritocracy Managing environmental and energy policies with meritocratic personnel and scientific data based on academic norms has been one of the clearest lessons of 2025. Conducting EIA (Environmental Impact Assessment) processes and energy planning based on meritocracy, free from political influence, is the only way to prevent irreversible damage to nature. Every step that excludes scientific data and academic merit carries the risk of turning the environmental crisis into a disaster.

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A Note on Methods and Tools: All observations, ideas, and solution proposals in this study are the author’s own. AI was utilized as an information source for researching and compiling relevant topics strictly based on the author’s inquiries, requests, and directions; additionally, it provided writing assistance during the drafting process. (The research-based compilation and English writing process of this text were supported by AI as a specialized assistant.)