Pistachios could power an entire new “eco-city” in Turkey

Turkey is floating plans to build a new “eco-city” in the southeastern corner of the country, near the border of Syria, and green building experts from Gaziantep want to use energy from burning pistachio shells to keep it running.

The new 3,200 hectare city for roughly 200,000 residents would be located roughly six miles outside of Gaziantep in the province of the same name.

This is a historic city, one of the oldest continuously habited communities in the country, that is world renowned for its pistachio production. In fact the word pistachio means “Antep nut,” which refers to Gaziantep’s original name that is still used informally today.

Although the city also produces olives and other crops, Seda Muftuoglu Gulec from the municipality told AFP that it makes sense to look to the most ubiquitous natural resource as a source of energy, and pistachios are certainly that.