30.05.2026 16:40
Due to environmental pollution that has been ongoing for about 10 years in Bolu, life in the Gerede Stream has almost completely come to an end. Local residents stated that industrial waste is causing the stream to flow with poison, saying, "Forget fish, not even frogs can survive." Appealing to the authorities, locals said, "If they don't hear our voices, we will march to Ankara. If we are also human, we want to live humanely."
The discharge of domestic and industrial waste from factories in the Leather and Mixed Organized Industrial Zone in the Gerede district of Bolu into the Gerede Stream without treatment has been causing an environmental disaster in the region for 10 years. Despite repeatedly imposing fines on facilities that dump chemical waste into the stream, the pollution and foul odor have not been prevented. The stream, which merges with the Bolu Stream and flows into the Black Sea under the name Yenice River, causes pollution and unbearable odor in over 100 villages along a 288-kilometer stretch extending to the Eskipazar district of Karabük. Local residents gathered to draw attention to the situation and protect their living spaces, protesting the factories.
"WE DRANK IT IN OUR CHILDHOOD; NOW EVEN FROGS DON'T SURVIVE"
Nazif Aktaş (67) from Örencik village in Gerede district, stating that the stream was clean in his childhood and they drank that water, said, "My mother used to come here to wash laundry. We drank this water, we watered our crops with it. Now, forget fish, even frogs don't survive. Our animals are dying, agriculture is dying, it's killing us. I wake up for the morning call to prayer and can't stand the smell. We have no chance to stay in the village; this odor is ruining us."
"IF NO SOLUTION IS FOUND, WE WILL MARCH TO ANKARA"
Meryem Dayı, emphasizing that picnics were held around the stream in the past and the water was used in agriculture, said: "In my childhood, this stream was clear. My grandmother would bring water from this stream and make tarhana soup. We washed our laundry here. People from Karabük and neighboring provinces would come here for picnics and fishing. Our children learned to swim here. We watered our gardens with water pumps. But when these mixed leather industries appeared, they threatened our health. From the smell and filth, excuse me, it's literally flowing poison. We do livestock farming; our animals can't drink water and die off. We want this stream to flow cleanly. If they don't hear our voice, we will march to Ankara. We're not saying don't make money; let them earn, but don't dump their waste, poison, and chemicals on us. If we are human too, we want to live humanely."