The Natural Conditions of the Işıklı Lake Watershed and its Reflection on Land Use

This study is focused on the mutual interaction of the Işıklı Lake Watershed land use and the characteristics of the natural environment. Işıklı Lake is one of the significant marshlands in our country which is located within the province boundaries of Denizli. The study was carried out by utilizing surface analysis of geographical information systems and controlled classification technique of remote perception techniques. Most of the land in Işıklı Lake Watershed area is occupied by agricultural land (200920 ha) while forest areas (90800ha) take second place. This means that the economy of the watershed is based on agriculture. The wide variety of agricultural products in the watershed and high yield has prevented migration from the watershed area. While the mountainous areas in the watershed are covered with forests the depression floor and lake periphery have been dedicated to agriculture. In terms of land usage in the area, the most significant problem is the increased drought caused.