Water-sensitive urban design approaches in the context of adaptation to climate change: Malatya urban vision

Climate change raises awareness of some environmental issues that have a negative impact on urban water supply, along with an increase in impermeable surfaces and urban construction. This awareness prompts professional disciplines such as urban planners and landscape architects to seek solutions to these situations that have a negative impact on the quality of life in cities. Water scarcity, which is one of the most significant risks, particularly in the context of climate change, emphasises the significance of urban water management and is recognized as a key mechanism for climate change adaptation. In this context, water management in climate change adaptation strategies has evolved into one of the fundamental tenets at various levels, from global initiatives like the Sustainable Development Goals to national actions like Turkey's Climate Change Adaptation Strategy and Action Plan to planning and design. Cities create their visions for water management in accordance with the specified national and international strategies. The city of Malatya has rapidly urbanized in the last ten years. Green spaces and permeable surfaces have significantly decreased as a result of urbanization. Therefore, problems arise in the management of water resources in and around the city. The effects of climate change, changes in precipitation patterns, longer and more frequent warm periods, and decreasing water surfaces exacerbate these issues. If solutions to the aforementioned issues are not developed, water scarcity will eventually reach a critical point. Cities create water management visions in accordance with similar strategies. Similarly, Malatya has rapidly urbanized over the last ten years, and the city's green spaces and permeable surfaces have been greatly reduced. This has begun to cause issues with the management of water resources in and around the city. Climate change, changing precipitation regimes, increased duration and frequency of hot periods, and decreasing water surfaces all exacerbate these issues. With increased urbanization, population growth, and water resource consumption, existing water systems will become insufficient in the future. The water-sensitive urban design approach, which is a ground-based approach to integrating sustainable integrated water management and urban planning and design, is examined within the scope of this thesis. Water-sensitive urban design strategy's success is dependent on its integration into the local scale and water culture. In this regard, water-based climate change scenarios, solutions, and approaches in the world and in Turkey have been investigated in the study. In accordance with these research findings, the framework of Malatya's water sensitive urban vision has been established. A mixed research method was used in the study, in which quantitative and qualitative data were analyzed concurrently. Flood risk areas were identified by analyzing the city's hydrological and physical data using Geographic Information Systems. The MAXQDA program was used to code the expert interviews' narratives, and themes related to the city's water culture were defined. Within the scope of the findings obtained from both data groups, a vision framework has been developed in order to transform Malatya into a water sensitive city. Keywords: Climate Change, Water Sensitive Urban Design, Water Culture, Thematic Analyses, Geographic Information Systems, Malatya