Tap water is drinkable in some parts of Turkey. Water supply in the country is stressed and may become scarce by the 2030s, with most of the country vulnerable to desertification.
Both sit and squat toilets usually have integrated or add-on bidets, and almost all mosques have public toilets. However sewage is not always properly treated before being discharged, and this is one of the causes of pollution of the seas.
Water supply and sanitation in Turkey is characterized by achievements and challenges. Over the past decades access to drinking water has become almost universal and access to adequate sanitation has also increased substantially. Autonomous utilities have been created in the 16 metropolitan cities of Turkey and cost recovery has been increased, thus providing the basis for the sustainability of service provision. Intermittent supply, which was common in many cities, has become less frequent.
Turkey has between 2,500 and 1,350 cubic metres of water available per person per year, but this varies a lot by region, with some areas short such as water supply and sanitation in Istanbul, partly due to urbanisation and climate change in Turkey. Over three-quarters of the freshwater used is by agriculture, and charging for it has been suggested.
Remaining challenges include the need to further increase wastewater treatment, to reduce the high level of non-revenue water hovering around 50% and to expand access to adequate sanitation in rural areas.Ministry of Environment and Forestry: EU Integrated Environmental Approximation Strategy , 2007, p. 17 Turkey is aiming for good water status under the EU Water Framework Directive by 2027.
There is a water management plan to 2028. Institutionally the sector is fragmented. Policy, regulatory and planning functions are dispersed between five Ministries, the State Hydraulic Works (DSI) and the State Planning Organization under the Prime Minister's Office. Service provision is the responsibility of about 2,400 municipalities and 16 utilities in the largest cities. External cooperation has played and continues to play a major role for water and sanitation in Turkey. Germany, France, the European Union and the World Bank are the major external partners.
Access As of 2026, in Turkey, access to water was universal. Regarding sanitation, 100% of the population have access to "improved" sanitation according to UN data.
Access to water supply and sanitation in Turkey is high. Based on household surveys and census results, the Joint Monitoring Programme for Water Supply and Sanitation estimates that 100% of the Turkish urban population had access to an improved water source in 2007. In rural areas, where less than a third of the population lives, 96% had access.Joint Monitoring Programme for Water Supply and Sanitation:Turkey:Water Supply In urban areas 97% had access to improved sanitation facilities, compared to 75% in rural areas. In urban areas, 95% were connected to sewers, the remaining 5% being served by septic tanks.Joint Monitoring Programme for Water Supply and Sanitation:Turkey:Sanitation
Wastewater treatment There are almost 1327 wastewater treatment plants. 5% of treated wastewater is reused and there is a 30% target for 2030. Untreated wastewater is a cause of marine mucilage in the Marmara Sea.
Water resources and water use As rainfall, evaporation and runoff varies a lot from year to year it is hard to predict river flow. Municipal water use accounts for about 11% of total water use in Turkey, compared to 77% used by agriculture and 12% by industry. Total water withdrawals for all uses accounted for only 17% of total available water resources in an average year (average 1977–2001). Municipal water use thus accounted for only about 3% of available water resources. However, water availability is highly seasonal and is not equally distributed throughout the country. Local and regional water shortages occur despite ample average water availability. For example, in 2007 a severe drought hit the entire Mediterranean coast as well as Central Anatolia and threatened the water supply of Istanbul and Ankara.Drought and negligence threaten Turkey's lakes, rivers, 11 May 2007Turkey: Drought Raises Concern about a Possible Environmental Catastrophe, September 16, 2007
Municipalities
In 2024, 7.5 billion m3 of water was abstracted by municipalities, 255 litres per person. Of this amount, 40% was abstracted from dams, 30% from wells, 17% from springs, 10% from rivers, and 4% from lakes. Old city water networks need improvement and more than a third of water is leaked. Too much groundwater has been sucked out so quality has got worse. There are groundwater regulations but they are hard to enforce. In some cities rainwater cannot flow through the surface to aquifers: collecting more rainwater and using treated water for irrigation or cleaning streets has been suggested. There are flows of water embedded in food, mostly wheat, barley and maize. Rainwater collection systems are required on larger new buildings. In some areas tourist water use has been blamed for shortages. Some suggest filling swimming pools with seawater whereas others suggest desalination. Real time pressure management could help preserve old networks.
Water budget +Water Budget Components of Large River Basins of Turkey (1981–2010)Basin NameDrainage Area (km2)Million m3PrecipitationFlowActual evapotranspirationInfiltration1Maritza-Ergene14444.18561.41858.96382.7319.82Marmara23107.116186.87537.98405.5243.43Susurluk24332.015645.14227.28776.52641.44North Aegean9973.66051.41500.53969.0581.85Gediz17034.09002.91536.36916.7549.96Kucuk Menderes7059.74323.4527.13260.3536.17Buyuk Menderes26133.215889.02993.310279.42616.48West Mediterranean21223.915705.56965.17458.61281.79Antalya20330.815670.513076.22255.4338.910Burdur6306.23020.3264.41630.01125.911Akarcay7982.63805.7325.62290.11190.012Sakarya63357.829352.35290.317254.46807.613West Black Sea28929.822017.69905.111534.0578.614Yesilirmak39628.020170.96584.611173.62412.715Kizilirmak82197.337126.86123.619956.711046.616Konya Closed50037.819524.82649.711294.35580.717West Mediterranean21807.012709.88250.43139.41319.918Seyhan22241.612935.46778.13960.82196.519Asi7912.46556.91825.93743.5987.620Ceyhan21598.514025.67349.46338.1338.021Euphrates-Tigris176657.099900.555577.343168.51154.622East Black Sea22844.622844.816476.34318.32050.123Coruh20248.714286.07047.15858.31380.624Aras28114.613593.24182.28370.21040.825Van Closed17977.09164.32263.26823.777.4Total781479.4448070.8181115.7218558.048397.0
Drinking water quality According to the Environmental Performance Index, Turkey‘s water and sanitation quality scores 85.06 out of 100. Access to better water sources and sanitation is now available to 100% of the population, up from 86% in 1990. To improve the quality of its waters, Turkey is implementing European Union (EU) directives. The Water Framework Directive, which is part of the EU Water Quality Sector, is the most important directive in this sector. Turkey set out to reach good water status by 2027 at the latest, depending on the exact explanation. Both ecological and chemical quality requirements are covered under the excellent status.
Climate change Climate change in Turkey is putting pressure on water resources.
Earthquakes Lack of clean water after earthquakes in Turkey can risk infections.
Legal and institutional framework
Policy and regulation The state owns water sources and can lease them but it is alleged that leasing has not been transparent: water regulations are complicated and ambiguous, as many regulations have been applied since the 1926 water law. Turkey is not aligned with the EU Drinking Water Directive.
There is no single water and sanitation law in Turkey, and there is no single institution charged with developing policies for water supply and sanitation or for regulating the sector. A number of laws on the environment, health and local government together form the legal framework of the sector. Local governments play a central role in the sector as service provider, partially mobilizing resources for investment financing from their own revenues and being responsible for the elaboration of location-specific Master Plans, feasibility studies and for the procurement of the necessary works.
At the national level, a number of government entities form the institutional framework of the sector. The State Planning Organization under the Prime Minister's Office is in charge of general investment planning through Five-Year Plans; the Ministry of Interior is in charge of supervising local governments through its General Directorate of Local Authorities; the Ministry of Public Works and Settlement controls the state-owned Bank of the Provinces, a source of financing for water supply and sanitation; the Ministry of Environment and Forestry is in charge of developing water resources as well as environmental monitoring and enforcement; the Ministry of Agriculture through the drinking water unit in the General Directorate for Rural Services (KHGM) is in charge of planning, financing and building rural drinking water supply; and the Ministry of Health is, in charge of monitoring drinking water quality.Ministry of Health: Regulation Concerning Water Intended for Human ConsumptionTurkish: General Directorate for Rural Services
Service provision The 16 largest cities in Turkey each have legally separate and financially autonomous municipal water and sanitation companies called Su ve Kanalizasyon Idaresi (SKIs). These utilities were created during the 1980s and 1990s, beginning with the establishment of ISKI in Istanbul in 1981. The boards of these companies are typically chaired by the mayor. Smaller cities provide services directly through municipal water and sewer departments. SKIs exist in the following metropolitan cities: Adana, ASKI – Ankara, Antalya, Bursa, ISKI – Istanbul, DISKI – Diyarbakir, Kayseri, Denizli, Eskişehir, Gaziantep, İzmir, Konya, Malatya, Mersin, Samsun, and Sanliurfa.
Private sector participation Private sector participation in the provision of water supply and sanitation in Turkey is mostly limited to the operation of water and wastewater treatment plants without direct contact with customers.
Bulk water supply The State Hydraulic Works (Turkish: Devlet Su İşleri or DSİ) is an agency under the Ministry of Environment and Forestry responsible for the utilization of country's water resources. Besides water resources assessment and monitoring, hydropower production and bulk water supply for agriculture, DSİ is also responsible by law for the supply of domestic and industrial water to cities with more than 100,000 inhabitants. As of the 2000 census, there were 55 such cities in Turkey. DSİ supplied water to 26 million people in 45 cities.
As of the beginning of 2005, DSİ supplied annually a total of around 2.5 km3 domestic water complying with drinking water standards. This figure will reach 5.3 km3 with completion of the projects which are under construction, or at the final design and planning stages. Water supply projects developed by DSİ meet one third of the requirements for domestic and industrial water consumption.DSI Domestic water
International basins Water flows into Turkey in the Meriç-Ergene and Asi basins, and out in the Çoruh, Kura-Aras and Fırat-Dicle basins.
Agriculture
Efficiency The level of non-revenue water (physical and commercial water losses) in Turkish cities is much higher than in other OECD countries except for Mexico. For example, in 2006 it was 45% in Kayseri, 51% in Diyarbakir and 69% in Adana.KfW Ex-post evaluations The level of non-revenue water in Istanbul decreased from more than 50% prior to 1994 to 34% in 2000 due to large investments in pipe replacement.
Financial aspects
Tariffs and cost recovery