Abstract:

Since land, one of the natural life resources, is a scarce resource, it should be evaluated based on its potential. In cities with a rapidly growing population, residential areas tend to expand into agricultural areas that have the potential to feed the urban population. It is observed that the expansion activities gained momentum as the borders of metropolitan municipalities are expanded to the provincial borders. Metropolitan municipalities were first expanded to the provincial border in Istanbul and Kocaeli in accordance with the 2004 Law on Metropolitan Municipalities. With the amendment to the Law numbered 6360 & enacted in 2012, all metropolitan municipalities were expanded to the provincial borders, the jurisdiction of the municipalities was expanded, and the status of rural areas was changed with the execution of the law. Villages were transformed into neighborhood’s and became natural extensions of cities. In this study, we scrutinized the agricultural potential of rural areas of which status was changed within the provincial borders of Istanbul but which can still maintain their agricultural characteristics. The effects and benefits of the eligibility of these areas for agriculture on meeting the food requirements of people living in and around the city were investigated.

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