COMPARISON OF ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACTS OF MEERSCHAUM INDUSTRY WITH OTHER INDUSTRIAL WORKS IN ESKISEHIR

Abstract: The 'meerschaum', which began to operate in the mid 18th century and was integrated with the city of Eskişehir, is one of the first underground resources exported by the Ottoman Empire. This stone, which has been exported for many years, lost its significance after world war I. Today, a limited area in Eskişehir and a limited quantity are produced and processed, then being commercialized. In this study it was aimed to explain the socio-economic importance of the the 'meerschaum' mining, to calculate its carbon footprint and to take attention for the effects of other big industrial works on this sector. For this purpose, the chemical and physical properties of meerschaum were investigated, and the information for the mining and industrialization of meerschaum were collected. As a result the carbon footprint of meerschaum industry was calculated as 2808 tonnes per year CO2. However, the carbon footprint of the thermal power plant to be built on the Alpu region was calculated as 222Million tonnes per year. There is a risk of adverse effects of possible air polluton from the power plant on meerschaum, which is a white material. In addition, in this study, the possibility of using the wind power as an example alternative energy source was evaluated.