Visual landscape evaluation at Guzelcehisar (City of Bartin) coastal settlement

Coastal areas are sensitive landscapes due to their cultural values and unique ecologic characteristics. Güzelcehisar Village with rural settlement characteristics in the central district of the province of Bartın along the Black Sea coast was selected as the study area in this thesis. Güzelcehisar has geomorphological formations known as lava columns dating back 80 million years which are unique at an international scale. In addition, it is among the settlement areas in Bartın with rural characteristics and high landscape potential due to its microclimatic properties in addition to its archeological value. The purpose of the thesis study was to examine the Güzelcehisar Village coastline with regard to certain variables and to determine the areas which are attractive for visual landscape evaluation. In this regard, landscape characteristics for the Güzelcehisar Village were evaluated and analyses were carried out for selected landscape areas. A total of 6 different visual landscape areas were determined as coastal, archaeological, forest, agricultural, rural and lava columns as a result of visual landscape evaluation. A total of 9 parameters including naturalness, coherence, upkeep, clarity, vista characteristic, diversity, complexity, landform and safety were determined as visual landscape quality parameters. A total of 35 experts took part in the survey during visual landscape evaluation. A total of photographs including 8 for each of the 6 visual landscape areas in Güzelcehisar were included in the survey. The experts carried out evaluations according to the visual quality parameters of each visual landscape area. SPSS 16.0 software was used for survey evaluation. Spearman correlation analysis was used for putting forth the relationship between the parameters used for evaluating the visual landscape area. As a result, suggestions were developed for contributing to the sustainable development of the rural landscapes along the Güzelcehisar coastal settlement.