In the Biga district of Çanakkale inn the Southern Marmara region of Türkiye, the water level of a lake featuring lotus flowers has dropped due to excessive heat, prompting the daily transfer of accumulated water from a new water supply line depot built in the district.

Located 3 kilometers southwest of Kalafat village in Biga, Nilüfer Lake is one of Türkiye's few lotus lakes. It covers 3 hectares, and white lotus flowers grow in 1.5 hectares of it. Nilüfer Lake serves as an important archive for paleoclimatological studies.

The lake, which blooms in mid-April, attracts visitors, thanks to the wooden paths around it, the lake can be visited 360 degrees, offering visitors the opportunity to watch lotus flowers.

Registered as Nilüfer Lake Forest Park with the approval of the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry in 2020, the area also includes walking trails, a cafeteria, a mosque, toilets, pavilions and a parking lot.

Drought is causing water loss

The Biga Municipality, Biga Forest Management Directorate, Kalafat Village Headman, and businessman Eşref Temizoğlu made an effort 18 years ago to save the lake, which was under threat of drought due to the impact of global warming and had about 5 tons of water loss per day.

The excess water from the town's drinking water ventilation 1 kilometer away was transported to the lake by laying pipes. In the following process, a water tank was built by the Biga Forest Management Directorate to supplement the water level in the lake.

This system, which prevented the lake from drying up for many years, became insufficient due to the increasing air temperature due to global warming.

With the lake's level dropping to 30 centimeters from a depth of about 140 centimeters, Nilüfer Lake Forest Park management planned to work to transfer 10 tons of water accumulated in a 50-ton tank to the lake daily through pipes.

Thanks to this life-giving project, the lake's level will rise, and lotus flowers will be visible throughout the season.

"We can provide water for 3 hours a day"

Volkan Erel, manager of the Nilüfer Lake Forest Park facility, stated that lotus flowers in the lake bloom in mid-April and can be seen until September or October.

Erel emphasized that the water level of the lake began to decrease in July, saying: "The water level has dropped by 30 centimeters; we can provide water for 3 hours a day because the water in our current tank is insufficient. At least we are trying to save the lotus flowers. We plan to dig a deep well. If we raise the water level by 30 centimeters, it can reach the level of the leaf. It's blooming now but can't go above leaf level. That's why it can be seen from different angles, not all of it."

Erel explained that 10 tons of water daily are needed for the lake to reach the desired level, saying: "We aim to complete the work to increase the water level within 15 days. After our work, the water level will return to the same level, and the flowers will be continuously visible until September or October."

Erel pointed out that the penalty for picking a lotus flower is 387,000 Turkish liras, adding that the lake is constantly monitored by security cameras and checked regularly by a night guard.