Evaluating urbanization, fragmentation and land use/land cover change pattern in Istanbul city, Turkey from 1971 TO 2002

Spatiotemporal analysis of landscape dynamics is crucial in formulating an appropriate set of actions in landscape management. This paper presents a large scale analysis of the spatiotemporal structure of Istanbul, a highly urbanized city in Turkey, from 1971 to 2002 using forest cover type maps analysed with geographical information systems (GIS) and a spatial statistics programme. The quantitative evidence indicated that increasing population and expanding urbanization caused drastic changes to the temporal and spatial dynamics of land use/land cover pattern in Istanbul. There was a net increase of 5387·3 ha in total forested areas (1·0 per cent) due to mainly reforestation activities even though the population increased three times over a 31‐year period. Increase in number of patches and decrease in mean patch size together demonstrated that the landscape developed into a more fragmented structure that would negatively affect biodiversity and the resilience of the ecosystems. In conclusion, plain increase in forest areas may not always be a favourable situation. The quality, composition and the configuration of forest landscape should also be analysed to present the dynamics of ecosystem in terms of ecological and economical sustainability over a longer time and larger area.