Turkey’s economic development since the 1960s has led to its classification as a middle-income developing country, an underdeveloped country, or a candidate for EU membership. The state planning organisation created necessary institutional prerequisites, including addressing environmental consequences in five-year economic plans. Different theoretical approaches, notably neoclassicism and institutionalism, influence environmental policies within national development plans. Environmental policy-making is crucial as nature poses constraints on production. Neoclassical and institutional frameworks compete in providing solutions, with neoclassical economics focusing on efficiency through taxes and subsidies.
The approach of neoclassical environmental economics, rooted in Marshallian-Piguvian analysis, addresses market failures due to externalities. It promotes government intervention through taxes, subsidies, and market instruments to correct discrepancies between private and public costs. Free market environmentalism, associated with the Austrian School, suggests that commoditisation of nature and markets can resolve environmental issues. However, challenges include bias towards the rich in ownership distribution and overlooking moral values. Both neoclassical approaches rely on individual self-interest and fail to consider power dynamics in environmental disputes.
The institutionalist framework presents a strong alternative to neoclassical theories, particularly in the context of environmental economics. Institutional economics, characterised by thinkers such as Thorstein Veblen and Karl Polanyi, criticizes neoclassical economists for oversimplifying models and neglecting the holistic approach. Institutionalists argue that the market system dominates society and fails to consider social costs, resulting in environmental degradation. They emphasise the need for a more comprehensive, open systems approach that values society over private enterprise interests. Institutionalists also highlight the importance of power dynamics in environmental issues, pointing out that conflicts often stem from unequal distribution of power. They advocate for a participatory planning process that prioritises social values and goals over market mechanisms. Economist William Kapp emphasises the need to consider environmental disruption and social costs in developmental processes, suggesting that successful environmental strategies can only be achieved through a radical, empirical analysis and a shift towards a more democratic and participatory institutional framework. Overall, the institutionalist approach proposes re-embedding the economy, society, and nature through democratic processes and the construction of an alternative institutional setup. By prioritizing societal values and goals, rather than solely focusing on individual or community utility, institutionalists believe that environmental issues can be effectively addressed by subordinating economic means to social welfare.
Turkey has prioritized economic development since its founding in 1923, intensifying with the establishment of the State Planning Organisation in the 1960s. Environmental concerns were often overlooked in favor of industrialisation and European integration. By the 1990s, the environmental impact of sectors like energy, industry, and tourism became pressing, including issues like air and water quality, waste management, and noise pollution. External pressures prompted Turkey to improve environmental regulation and move towards sustainable development. However, challenges persist, such as uncontrolled industrial chemicals, population growth, and lack of city planning. Institutional weaknesses and lack of coordination hinder effective environmental policy in Turkey.
Turkey, initially focused on economic development through integration with the Western world, has now shifted towards prioritising environmental protection to comply with EU regulations. This change is evident in the country’s Development Plans, with the Third Five-Year Development Plan in 1973 being the first to address environmental issues. The plan highlighted the connection between EU accession and environmental concerns, as Turkey aimed to meet requirements for Customs Union access by 1995. However, the plans continued to prioritise industrialisation over environmental conservation,
viewing environmental problems as side-effects of progress. The Fourth Five-Year Development Plan (1979-1983) and Fifth Plan (1985-1989) maintained a superficial approach to environmental policy, focusing on solving issues without hindering industrial development. The concept of intergenerational optimisation of natural resource use was introduced in the Fifth Plan but lacked concrete implementation strategies.
By the 1990s, Turkey began adopting a more sophisticated approach to environmental policy, with the Sixth Plan (1990-1994) recognising the need for integrating environmental concerns into economic policies. However, institutional challenges, such as inadequate coordination among environmental agencies, continued to hinder progress. The Eighth Plan (2001-2005) criticised the lack of integration among economic, social, and environmental policies, highlighting the country’s struggle to achieve sustainable development.
The SAHC report on the environment, prepared in the framework of the Ninth Five-Year Development Plan, addresses various issues and solutions. One major problem highlighted is the influence of politics and the private sector on environmental decision-making, leading to vested interests affecting policy design and implementation. This has resulted in shortcuts in the Environmental Impact Assessment process and exclusion of critical sectors from evaluation. International borrowing for environmental improvement has also created dependency on borrowing organisations, impacting environmental policy administration. Lobbying against renewable energy sources and the power of corporate structures over government decisions are other concerns raised in the report. The report also emphasises the need for increased coordination among the government, NGOs, and public bodies to ensure a democratic environmental policy-making process. Issues such as environmental education and the insufficient impact analysis of EU environmental regulations are also discussed. Despite ambitious plans, institutional conflicts and deficiencies in policy application hinder progress towards sustainable development. The report aims to satisfy basic needs, improve quality of life, protect biodiversity, and manage natural resources sustainably, while acknowledging the ongoing tension between economic and environmental goals in Turkish policy-making.
In Turkey, environmental considerations in development planning over the past fifty years have not met targets, with conflicts between developmental and environmental priorities remaining unresolved. The policy record has been plagued by institutional weaknesses, lack of coordination, and a lack of democratic decision-making processes. Environmental issues are viewed as inevitable consequences of industrialisation, leading to a neglect of environmental goals in favor of industrial ones. The failure to integrate European approaches without the necessary institutional infrastructure has created structural problems in environmental policy-making.
The government, pressured internationally and domestically, struggles to align its environmental policy with EU criteria and faces criticism for not signing the Kyoto Agreement. Neoliberal policies prioritise economic gains over environmental concerns, leading to actions like sacrificing forests for tourism development. The centralised nature of Turkish environmental policy-making has limited effectiveness, despite some positive developments at the local level and the growth of grassroots environmental organisations. In conclusion, to address the shortcomings of current environmental policies, a new paradigm emphasising holistic and proactive approaches is needed. There is a need for a more comprehensive understanding of the interconnectedness of the economy, environment, and society to achieve sustainable economic development.