Investigation of Kaçkar Mountains National Park and its near environs from the natural resources management point of view

SUMMARY Investigation of Kaçkar Mountains National Park and its Near Environs From The Natural Resources Management Point of View Squeezed under the pressure of heavy demands of tourism and other commercial investments are the historical, archeologic and cultural resources in addition to the natural ones such as forests, rivers, pastures, thermal springs, waterfalls, glaciers, various geological formations and wild animals. Any planning approach designed to keep the negative effects of these demands at the minimum level and protect the resources is of a typical natural resources planning. Kaçkar Mountains National Park is not only a national but also an international park due to the value of resources it contains. The main purpose of this study is to determine all kinds of elements of resource and threat against the planning of the area, having very pecious natural and cultural resource values, and suggest management approach to ensure the sustainable use of all natural and cultural resources. It's the forest areas containing historical and cultural objects and the places with rivers and waterfalls that have taken the highest score when determining the best landscape of view at the end of the research. According to the results of a questionnaire applied to the local people, the first management choice concerning the development of the area was stockbreeding and tourism, and second was the co-operation of the people for the management of the national park. According to the results of this questionnaire, the followings have respectively been determined as the most serious problems threatening the environment: construction of hydroelectric generators, illegal hunting, decrease of the forest area and the problem of home disposal. According to the research results, the area presents great biological diversity. It has been discovered that there are 30 mammals, 136 birds and 116 endemic plant species existing in this area. In this study, also traditional life on plateau and stockbreeding was also studied, and it was observed that stockbreeding has rapidly decreased, while a plateau-life concept has dominantly taken its place. It has been understood that there's an extremely high recreational potential in the study area and thus 27 courses of trail appropriate for various activities have been established. In connection to this study many activities were thoroughly been studied and tables of activities with touristic attraction have been prepared. These results were evaluated with respect to the threat originating from human and natural ones in the area, and suggestions have been made regarding the management of the area. Key Words: National Park, The Kaçkar Mountains, Natural Resources Management, Ecotourism