PROBLEMS ABOUT UTILIZATION OF COAST AND APPLICATION OF COASTAL EDGE LINE ON ORONTES DELTA (SAMANDAĞ)

After Industrial Revolution, utilization of coastal region in purpose of tourism and industrial has caused disruption of coast and coastal ecosystem. Legal arrangements about coast which do not included coastal dynamics thoroughly and are changed frequently cause new problems. Today a similar situation exists on the coast of Orontes which is located in Samandağ district of Hatay province at the southern part of Turkey. In this study the legal arrangements about utilization of coastal region in Turkey have been investigated. According to these arrangements, the utilization of Orontes Delta’s coastal region and the utilization problems have been handled. In this context the utilization of coastal region has been evaluated by dividing into 5 periods as 19391956, 1957-1975, 1976-1983, 1984-1990, and 1992-20014. The utilization of coast on Delta has been shown as consistent with legal arrangements up to 1970s. However after coastal edge line which had been identified in 1976 at first time, some building throughout coastal region which exist at northern of Hızır tomb have been placed out of coastal region, the others which located southern part of Hızır tomb have been placed on coastal region. Together with these, the obligation of expropriation of coastal region depends on legislation after 1992 have caused many juridical problems. In addition due to disregarding the effect of wind on coastal formation in the current coastal edge line, many others problems have been occurred on delta. In order to solve all these problems, it is required to make legal arrangement about coastal utilization that including all dynamics affecting coastal formation and to arrange the private property on delta After Industrial Revolution, utilization of coastal region in purposeof tourism and industrial has caused disruption of coast and coastalecosystem. Legal arrangements about coast which do not includedcoastal dynamics thoroughly and are changed frequently cause newproblems. Today a similar situation exists on the coast of Orontes whichis located in Samandağ district of Hatay province at the southern partof Turkey. In this study, since Hatay has been participated in Turkey at1939; the periods which coastal arrangements has been changeddistinctly and Orontes Delta’s coastal utilization in these periods havebeen investigated by using aerial photographs, satellite images andzoning plans of the legal arrangements about utilization of coastalregion in Turkey. In this context the utilization of coastal region hasbeen evaluated by dividing into 5 periods as 1939-1956, 1957-1975,1976-1983, 1984-1990, and 1992-20014. In these periods, the legalconformity of the coastal utilization and the roles of legal or naturalfactors that caused problems have been questioned.The information about legal arrangements for coastal utilization ofTurkey has been taken from related official journal and literatures. Thedevelopment of determining coastal edge line of Orontes Delta has beendetermined from approved Coastal Edge Line Maps with scale of 1/1000taken from Hatay Directorate of Environment and Urbanization. Theutilization of coastal region in past and present, and encounteredproblems in this region evaluated by field studies and also from aerialphotographs taken from General Command of Mapping (1956, 1975,1992 and 2009), Turkey Topographic Map with scale of 1/25000 (1960)(Mersin P35-c3 sheet), the existing map of Samandag (1984) taken fromGeneral Directorate of Provincial Bank, and satellite images taken fromGoogle Earth (2014). In order to determine the ownership of coastalregion and experienced judicial problems, the data taken from archivesof Goods Directorate of Samandag District, and Land Registry andCadastre Directorate of Samandag District have been used. In addition,for evaluating the natural origin problems, besides using the data takenfrom Samandag Station of General Directorate of Meteorology, severaltrenches have been excavated during field studies. Thence the boundaryof coastal sand carried by winds and marine transgression has beendetermined. Generated maps in this study have been drawn in ArcGIS10.2.Orontes Delta has been formed by sediment carried by OrontesRiver into a tectonic depression. Delta coast has low coast property andconsists of geomorphologic units; sandy beach, coastal dunes, coastalberms, coastal bar, old lagoon, swamp, coastal spit which is developingin mouth of Orontes River.Utilization of coastal region on delta has been consistent withlegislation between 1939 and 1956, and in this period there have been10-15 buildings around Hızır Tomb. Coastal region and coastal bandhave consist of sand-dune, sandy plants, swamp and marshy placebetween Hızır Tomb and Meydan in particular.During 1957-1975 period, endeavours of Hatay Governorship andSamandag Municipality for improving sea tourism have caused toincrease the number of constructions at north and south part of HızırTomb. Throughout this coastal region many dwellings, hotels andrecreational facilities belonging to public and private sector have beenconstructed. In this period, the regions consist of sandy dunes, sandyplants, marshy place and swamp between Meydan Gendarmerie Stationand Acı Stream also between Hızır Tomb and Çevlik have beenconverted into agricultural area. In addition legal or illegal sand Coastal Edge has been determined first time in 1976-1983 periodon several part of Delta. The constructions located on northern of HızırTomb have been leaved outside of the coastal region while theconstructions located southern of Hızır Tomb have been leaved inside.Furthermore, in this period, new buildings have been constructedthroughout the coastal region and legal or illegal sand quarries havebeen operated on coastal region where Coastal Edge Line had not beendetermined yet.Coastal Edge Line has been determined at first time in