Earlier in the year, we wrote an article about Mick Scarsbrook (Mick Amca) and his personal campaign to keep Fethiye clean. Please click on the link below to read the article.
Mick campaigns tirelessly to raise awareness of the rubbish problem here in Fethiye and he has earned the respect and cooperation from the Directorate of Environmental Protection and Control (Fethiye Belediye Çevre Koruma Ve Kontrol Müdürlüğü).
Mick’s videos have also generated a lot of interest within the locals, both Turkish and non-Turkish, so Fethiye Times met with Mick to see how we could bring this together and form an action group with people who would be interested in taking positive action to help resolve the rubbish problem.
Background – A Trashy Tale!
The rubbish problem in Fethiye is getting worse. Every year rubbish cleanups are carried out, in some places more than once a year. It is one of the biggest complaints from the people who live here and holidaymakers alike. How many times have you heard the comment “What a beautiful place – it’s such a pity there is so much rubbish around”? – or words to that effect. How many times have you said something similar yourself?
How many times have you said something similar yourself?
Click here to read our article on this year’s Sea Shore Savers clean up.
You get the picture – and it isn’t just at the beaches where there’s a problem.
Keep Britain Tidy
Turkey isn’t the only country in the world that has had to deal with a litter problem. Remember the Keep Britain Tidy campaign? The campaign was formed in 1954 to stamp out the rising problem of litter in post-war Britain. Keep Britain Tidy has been working to keep Britain clean for nearly 60 years. It’s an ongoing process but one that has to start somewhere.
Turkiye’yi Temiz Tut – Keep Turkey Clean
Welcome to our Turkiye’yi Temiz Tut (Keep Turkey Clean) campaign.
As a result of talking about, looking at and picking up rubbish we want to do something bigger and make a difference. Working together with Mahmut Bayrakdar and his team from the Directorate of Environmental Protection and Control (Fethiye Belediye Çevre Koruma Ve Kontrol Müdürlüğü) we are in the process of setting up a group of people who will be actively involved in the Turkiye’yi Temiz Tut campaign.
We’ve called this campaign Keep Turkey Clean as it is a problem that affects more areas of Turkey than just Fethiye – we like to start small but think big!
Mick has already set up the Facebook Page and made one of his wonderfully impactful videos to launch the page (you can watch this video at the bottom of this article). Keeping the theme of working together, the page is a mixture of Turkish and English.
We plan to take a three-pronged attack; cleanups, raising awareness and education.
Click here to visit and LIKE Turkiye’yi Temiz Tut
Enter two guys who want to make a difference
Many of you will remember Sam Tucker (One Man Many Paths) and Doğan Eraslan who kayaked from Antalya to Fethiye last year to raise money for FIG (Fethiye International Group).
Sam and Doğan want to be part of Turkiye’yi Temiz Tut and do something to protect the environment.
Last Friday they met up at what we like to call the ‘viewing point’ across the bay to clear up the rubbish that is routinely thrown down the mountainside. Sam is a keen rock climber and brought ropes and a harness to tackle the difficult to reach places and show how hobbies can also be useful.
Here’s what happened in pictures and words
Isn’t this a beautiful spot? Many people come here to enjoy the view of Fethiye and Çalış.
Don’t look down!
This is some of what you see when you look down the mountainside! 
Undeterred
Sam and Doğan were undeterred and set out to clean up
Help is on its way
Thanks to a phone call from Mick, Mahmut and his team came along to support.
The bags of rubbish that had been collected quickly disappeared into a garbage truck
Old signs that were full of graffiti were replaced with new
Mahmut and his team collected some of the rubbish for recycling
From small beginnings come great things
Sam and Doğan started the morning with gloves, bin bags and a daunting task ahead of them. They left in the early afternoon, having collected numerous bags of rubbish, with a sense of satisfaction in what they had achieved. And…
The promise of working together with Mahmut and his team for future cleanup activities, either arranged by the Belediye or by Turkiye’yi Temiz Tut.
The first joint venture on the list will be to finish the cleanup at the viewing point.
Now it’s time for change
None of this would be possible without Mick…
If you want to be involved in the campaign, please send us a message via the Turkiye’yi Temiz Tut Facebook Page.
Regular updates will be brought to you via Fethiye Times and Turkiye’yi Temiz Tut
Click Here to view more of Mick’s videos and subscribe to his YouTube channel.
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