The Use of Landscape Character Analysis to Reveal Differences Between Protected and Nonprotected Landscapes in Kapısuyu Basin

Abstract

The European Landscape Convention (ELC) has directed the landscape classification towards landscape character analysis. Landscape character analysis provides a character-based classification that can combine different values or variables and be applied at different scales to define the landscapes of each country and define the forces on the landscape. In this study, the Kapısuyu Basin of Küre Mountains National Park, which is one of the hot spots in the world in terms of different landscape character and natural quality, was classified by landscape character analysis.In this study, Kapısuyu basin was analyzed on an analytical ground according to the landscape variables and the basin landscape types, and the landscape character area map were obtained based on the dominant features of the area and the cultural landscape pattern. Throughout the basin, 345 landscape character types and 21 landscape character area were identified. Despite having similar values, the surface area of the protected area in the national park and the rural area had significant differences in landscape character ratios and patchiness ratio. Patchiness was seen to be higher in rural areas. When looked at Shannon Diversity Index (SDI) values, it is seen that a high diversity of Landscape Character Types (LCT) exist in the rural areas. Within the scope of this study, the fact that the landscape character analysis performed at the basin scale in the protected area can be evaluated together with different variables and interpreted from the perspective of holistic landscape planning shows that the technique is a positive approach in the evaluation of protected areas.