GEOMORPHOLOGICAL FEATURES OF MERAM DERE VALLEY AND ITS SURROUNDINGS (KONYA)

Abstract

The aim of the study, entitled “Geomorphological Features of Meram Dere Valley and Its Surroundings (Konya)”, is to reveal the geomorphological features of the valley and its vicinity. In order to carry out the study, firstly maps and reports were used. After the data collection and preparation process, field studies were started. During these studies, the current status of the site was determined and mapped. In addition, the processes affecting the formation of the valley and their impact values were observed on-site and recorded. The thematic maps of the study were drawn in 1 / 100.000 scale detail with the help of MapInfo 9.5 program. In the last stage, all the information obtained was analyzed in line with the principles of Geography. Meram Dere Valley and its surroundings, Meram Dere Valley, Plateau fields and skirt plain are remarkable geomorphological units. Meram Dere Valley is formed on Upper Miocene-Lower Pliocene formations. Later, the tectonism and the area under the control of the Old Konya Lake were buried in the bed due to changes in the level of Lake Konya. Today, the valley is buried in the Lower Triassic-Upper Jurassic dolomitic limestones and Upper Cretaceous-Lower Paleocene aged sandstone, siltstone, gabbro and peridotites. The plateau areas in the research area have been formed as a result of tectonic events and erosional activity from the Upper Pliocene to the present. The plateau surface is curved and fractured. The plateau surfaces in and around the Meram Dere Valley show high and low plateau characteristics. The high plateau was formed by karstification and erosion before the Upper Miocene between 14501800 meters and then covered by volcano-sedimentary sediments in Upper Miocene-Pliocene. In the PlioceneHolocene interval, it was eroded by fluvial and tectonic effects and gained the present appearance. The Low Plateau was formed between 1250 and 1450 meters due to the erosion of the Upper Miocene-Pliocene. In the area where the Meram Dere Valley opens to the Konya Plain, there is a skirt plain formed by alluvial fans in the north-south direction between the plateau field and the plain floor. The skirt plain is composed of late Pleistocene alluvial fan at the bottom and Holocene fan deposits at the top. As a result, it was understood that the fluvial, tectonic, karstic and limnic events were effective in the current appearance of Meram Dere Valley and its surroundings.