Evaluating forest fire susceptibility levels in Şahinkaya Canyon (Northern Türkiye) using AHP

The aim of this study is to classify the forests in and around the ?ahinkaya Canyon (Central Black Sea Region in Northern T?rkiye) according to their levels of fire susceptibility, to identify priority areas in fire management, and to provide recommendations for the prevention and effective control of forest fires. To determine fire susceptibility levels, the Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP), a multicriteria decision-making method, was employed, and the results were visualized in a Geographic Information Systems (GIS) environment. The parameters used, along with their impacts and weight values, were determined based on expert opinions, field surveys, and relevant literature. In this study, the effects of topography, forest resources and characteristics, and human activities on fire susceptibility were analyzed using nine parameters. The results indicate that fire susceptibility varies with forest structure and composition, topography, climatic factors, and anthropogenic influences. Of the study area, 34% falls within the high and very high fire susceptibility classes, while 38% is classified as low and very low. The remaining 28% represents moderate fire susceptibility, corresponding to transitional zones between low and high susceptibility. According to the fire inventory, 11 of the 17 recorded fires occurred in areas with high and very high fire susceptibility. This distribution indicates a spatial correspondence between observed fire occurrences and the susceptibility classes derived from the analysis. This study reveals the spatial distribution of forest fire susceptibility in and around the ecologically sensitive ?ahinkaya Canyon, providing a data-based framework for the use of the findings in conservation and planning efforts.