Türkiye'deki Büyük Ölçekli Altyapı Projelerinde Arkeolojik Miras Etki Değerlendirme Çalışmalarına Yönelik Yeni Yaklaşım ve Öneriler: Ankara-Niğde Otoyolu Projesi Örneği

Abstract

The archaeological cultural heritage inventory of Türkiye has not yet been completed. Many archaeological heritage assets across the Anatolian geography remain buried and undocumented. Construction and infrastructure projects pose a significant threat primarily to those archaeological heritage assets that have not yet been identified. Currently, there is no established or widely applied archaeological heritage impact assessment framework in Türkiye for identifying and evaluating the impacts of large- or small-scale infrastructure and construction projects on archaeological heritage. This gap frequently leads to the destruction or severe damage of undocumented and unregistered archaeological heritage assets located within project impact zones—sites that lack legal protection due to the absence of official identification or registration processes. In addition, projects with inadequate heritage impact assessments can cause archaeological assets to be removed from their geographic and sociocultural contexts, leaving them isolated. This not only hinders future scientific research but also makes the monitoring and enforcement of conservation conditions significantly more difficult. The following conclusions were reached from this doctoral thesis: • The historical and current state of archaeological heritage impact assessment practices in Türkiye in the context of infrastructure and construction projects were reviewed to identify their strengths and weaknesses. • The past and present archaeological heritage impact assessment practices implemented in developed countries within similar project frameworks were evaluated to identify the key strengths and limitations of those systems. • A new “archaeological heritage impact assessment methodology” compatible with Türkiye’s legal framework and can be applied across infrastructure and construction projects was developed and presented as a conclusion of this thesis.