Assessing and Monitoring Geoecological Status of West Turkish Landscapes for Sustainable Development: Processes, Activities and Problems

Current presentation discusses issues of the environmental problems in the city of Izmir. A third large metropolis of Turkey, Izmir is an industrial city of high importance for the country. It is a key seaport harbor, strategic for the country and the Mediterranean region in general, highly important for the transportation network within the Aegean, Marmara and the Mediterranean Seas. Izmir is also known as an important country’s business and fair trade center, where cross-cultural meetings, Expo exhibitions, international conferences, symposia and workshops being periodically organized. Therefore, the region has intensive anthropogenic activities: well developed transport network, intensive shipping and maritime construction, industrial factories and plants, urban densely populated districts, intensive agricultural cultivation. These factors taken together lead to strong anthropogenic pressure on the environment of Izmir. The main issues of environmental current situation within the terrestrial ecosystems concern deforestation of precious forests communities, desertification and soils erosion and land degradation in the surroundings. Among others are plant cover and land degradation on Karuburun Peninsula, an important part of Aegean Sea ecosystems, well known in Turkey as on of the major undisturbed sites in western Turkey with precious biodiversity structure, aesthetic landscapes and unique environment. The land degradation is mainly caused by intensive construction of the summer cottages and touristic activities. Recent changes in land use types in selected regions of Turkey were detected using historical land use change analysis using measurements of carbon that indirectly indicate the extent of peatlands within the landscapes. The ecological threats to marine ecosystems include chemical contamination of the Izmir bay by detecting traces of mercury that originate from Gediz River and inactive mining sites (again, in Karaburun Peninsula) and come to shelf waters of the Aegean Sea. Apart from “usual” anthropogenic activities typical for the industrial city and its surroundings, the region is being intensively visited by tourists, both international and Turkish ones. The touristic attractiveness of the Izmir region is explained by its natural environmental settings, favorable climate conditions, scenic landscapes and cultural richness. The work contributes towards environmental assessment of Turkish landscapes.