Gulf of Alexandretta
The Gulf of Alexandretta or İskenderun is a gulf of the eastern Mediterranean or Levantine Sea. It lies beside the southern Turkish provinces of Adana and Hatay.Names
The gulf is named for the nearby Turkish city of İskenderun, the classical Alexandretta. It was also formerly known as the Sea or . Herodotus and Stephanus of Byzantium also records it as the , after the nearby town of Myriandus.Geography
The Gulf of Alexandretta forms the easternmost bay or inlet of the Mediterranean Sea. It lies beside the southern coast of Turkey, near its border with Syria. In antiquity, the adjacent Nur Mountains were usually thought to separate the regions of Cilicia and Syria, although Herodotus at one point places the division further south at Ras al-Bassit.Pollution
There is a lot of heavy industry around Iskenderun Bay, including five cement factories, ten steel factories, and three coal-fired power stations: İsken Sugözü, Atlas and Emba Hunutlu. The mountains around the bay trap air pollution, but because smokestack measurements are only sent to the government not published, it is difficult to apportion responsibility for the areas air pollution illnesses and deaths. The water is polluted both from the land and shipping and fish farming.Citations
