“We are still in talks with the Radio and Television Supreme Council [RTÜK] about this. We have worked on the financial issues and completed the project studies for the station. I hope we will be able to complete the launch of our television station without encountering serious problems,” said Mehmet Çağlar, general manager of the State Meteorology Bureau.
Çağlar remarked that state institutions such as the Ministry of Agriculture and the Ministry of Environment and Forestry, for example, can only air programs they want to broadcast through the Turkish Radio and Television Corporation (TRT) because it is a state-owned company. The meteorological bureau, however, is in a different situation, and there must be no time-related limitations on conveying information to the public, he said.
The bureau already informs the public through their “Meteorolojinin Sesi” (The Voice of Meteorology) radio station, but they want to convey meteorological information, which is being reported more quickly thanks to technological developments, to more people, making use of visual communication tools as well.
The State Meteorological Bureau is part of the Environment and Forestry Ministry whose minister, Veysel Aydın, supports the project, Çağlar said, pointing out their determination to launch the station. It will not be managed like other state television stations but will purchase programs from professional companies.
Stressing the technological developments in meteorology and the relationship between meteorology and the economy, Çağlar continued: “The quality of meteorological services increases in accordance with developments in science and technology. Meteorology is a field in which you get 10 times more than what you invest. As an institution, we have a good record and good technological equipment and staff. In the past, people thought of us only as an institution informing people about the weather, while today we are an institution directly concerned with many sectors through our activities. For example, the energy sector requests information from us before it makes investments.” Other sectors that meteorological information is also directly related to other than energy are agriculture, food, urban planning, industry and maritime, Çağlar noted.
The meteorological bureau organizes educational seminars with internationally acclaimed meteorology experts, Çağlar said, and they are currently focusing on training some members of the staff to enable them to be employed in international meteorological organizations.
