Konya Launches Major Effort to Revive Meke Lake

Efforts to restore Konya’s world-famous Meke Lake, often described as the “evil eye bead of the world,” have officially started. Once a striking crater lake in the Karapınar district of central Türkiye, Meke dried up due to falling rainfall and excessive use of underground water. Under a large-scale restoration project, it is expected to be replenished with water by 2027.

Konya Metropolitan Municipality Mayor Uğur İbrahim Altay announced that water from the Karapınar Wastewater Treatment Plant will be pumped into the lake through an 8-kilometer (4.9-mile) pipeline. The project will also be supported by Kalyon Holding, which will build a 3-megawatt solar power plant to generate the energy required for the pumping system. “By the end of 2027, we aim to bring water back to Meke Lake and revive its one-of-a-kind landscape,” Altay said.

The initiative foresees transferring 20 million cubic meters of water to the lake. The same water source will also irrigate nearly 1 million trees planted around Meke, turning the area into a sustainable green belt and offering a model for ecological restoration across Türkiye.

Similar protection efforts are underway for Konya’s other significant lakes. Four wastewater treatment plants have been set up in the region to stop untreated water from flowing into Tuz Lake. For Beyşehir Lake, the municipality is working with the Ministry of Environment to ensure all discharged water is fully treated by 2028.

Beyond lake restoration, the city is tackling the growing problem of sinkholes linked to groundwater extraction. Konya Metropolitan Municipality, State Hydraulic Works (DSI), Niğde University and Spain’s University of Zaragoza are collaborating to map existing sinkholes and track new ones. Altay explained, “Spain has extensive expertise in this field. Together, we are developing a digital system to monitor sinkholes and prevent future risks.”

Meanwhile, DSI is conducting a nationwide study to measure underground water reserves. “So far, Türkiye’s total groundwater capacity has never been fully calculated. By drilling guide wells in Central Anatolia, we aim to determine the region’s overall reserves,” Altay added.