MANAGEMENT OF MANURE FROM LIVESTOCK HOUSING IN TIGRIS BASIN AND ITS ENVIRONMENTAL POTENTIAL IMPACT

Abstract

The study was carried out in the Tigris basin and covered four cities (Diyarbakir, Mardin, Batman, Siirt and Sirnak). The potential pollution impacts of the cattle breeding enterprises in the research area on the Batman, Botan, Garzan and Tigris Rivers were examined. In this context, the borders of the research provinces and current water resources were drawn with ARCMAP 10.0 software by making geographical adjustments. In order to enable each province's questioning to be done independently from other provinces and water resources, all borders were divided into separate layers on the basis of provinces, districts, and villages. Furthermore, in accordance with the purpose of this study in the database the number of cattle at the cattle breeding enterprises close to water resources (minimum 150 meters-maximum 5 kilometers) was entered into the Geographical Information System (CIS) database and interpreted taking into account the average waste to be created by the cattle. In this study, the potential risk areas to be created for the environment and water resources were tried to be determined when the manure generated in the cattle breeding enterprises operating in the research area is not stored and utilized appropriately. It was found that the water resources, particularly in the villages of Batman and Diyarbakir provinces, faced a higher risk of contamination. A high level of contamination risk was determined in the section of the Tigris River passing through Ergani, Hani, and Bismil districts of Diyarbakir Province and in the upper section of the Botan River passing through Kozluk district of Batman Province and its villages. Furthermore, attention was drawn to the issue of environmental pollution caused by animal manure, and the measures to be taken not to experience these and similar situations were mentioned.