Naip Ovası ve Yakın Çevresindeki Taş Ocaklarında Zamansal ve Mekânsal Değişimlerin Çevresel Etkileri (Tekirdağ)

Abstract

The need for building materials in Turkey, increasing in recent years as a result of uncontrolled growth of urbanization, is mostly met with products made in brick and tile factories. The materials used for making these products are obtained from quarries, which mostly operate as open pits. However, uncontrolled and intensive use of quarries leads to various environmental problems in the course of time. This study aims to explain the environmental effects of temporal and spatial changes in the quarries from which raw materials for brick and tile industries are extracted in the Naip Plain and its vicinity, standing as the most important production zone in the Tekirdag province, which is one of the primary brick and tile production areas in Turkey. Within the scope of the study, the states of the quarries in the area in the recent past (2012) and at the present time (2017) were tried to be analyzed through ground data based on the analysis results of water and soil samples and the image analyses supported by GIS and RS techniques. In this way, the degree and the way the Naip Plain, which is one of the most important geographical formations of both the Thracian Peninsula and the Tekirdag province, is affected by mining activities performed as an open pit were revealed. The findings of the study indicate that significant temporal and spatial changes took place in the quarries located in the Naip Plain and in its close vicinity. These uncontrolled changes brought about environmental effects influencing the region in ecologic, economic, and aesthetic terms. The solution of these problems requires a sustainable plan in the first place. Otherwise, irreversible losses may be experienced by the sensitive ecosystems around the Naip Plain in the near future. © 2018, Centenary University. All rights reserved.