Spatial Analysis of Fish Farming in the Gulluk Bay (Eastern Aegean)

Marine aquaculture in Turkey has been rapidly growing during the last two decades in the coastal zone. This growth has led the government to take measures to reduce environmental degradation. After the new regulation for aquaculture, in 2007, most sea farm cages were relocated from shallow water to relatively deeper areas in Gulluk Bay. In this study a spatial analysis of marine fish farming was performed, using several GIS data layers to assess Allocated Aquaculture Zone (AZA) and to monitor operations. A spatial analysis of fish farming the Gulluk Bay in the context of the other major sea users and their relative percentages in the sea use pattern were determined. The Allocated Aquaculture Zone (AZA) amounted to 20.8 % of total water surface area; licensed cage areas occupied 0.45%, trawl areas 34.4%, important natural areas 35.4% and multi-usage zones the rest. The study used water quality index (TRIX) data for evaluation in conjunction with GIS. The study shows how different terrestrial and marine activities interact with each other, and that certain areas are subject to layers of multiple usages and water quality index (TRIX) data was evaluated by using a GIS