Evolution of Golpazari-Huyuk karst system (Bilecik-Turkey): indications of morpho-tectonic controls

Abstract

The Golpazari-Huyuk karst system is located in the Central Sakarya Basin whose geo- morphologic evolution is mainly controlled by the Post-Miocene epirogenic continental rise. Drastic change in the drainage pattern and dissection of the carbonate platform were the major consequences of this tectonic movement. Rapid incision of the Sakarya river changed the position of the erosion base which consequently distorted the direction of surface and subsurface flow. The Golpazari and Huyuk plains are two topographically distinct, flat bottomed geomorphic features separated by a carbonate rock relief. The dif- ference in elevation between these 10 km distant plains is 350 m. Morphological, geo- logical and hydrological behavior of the plains suggests that the both have functioned as closed basins connected to each other through subsurface flow paths. Drainage has changed from subsurface to surface after the emplacement of the Sakarya river into its modern course. In this study, the authors suggest a conceptual model to reconstruct the hydrological-geomorphological processes that have been effective in the evolution of this karst area. The methodology is based on the records preserved in the morphological and sedimentological archives as well as the hydrogeological setting in the study area. According to the suggested model, the present landscape which exhibits a late stage of karstification has evolved in three main phases, after an initial stage attributed to Lower Miocene. The first phase represents karstification of carbonate rocks of Jurassic age at the Huyuk area and the limestone of Paleocene age at the Golpazari area. This region must have been significantly elevated from the karstification (erosion) base. The geomor- phologic and drainage setting reveal that the karstification was controlled mainly by major drainage elements in Late Miocene-Early Pliocene.The second phase is character- ized by the uplift of the region and the subsequent rapid incision of drainage during the pluvial period thereby the ponors that drained the polje were completely clogged and the polje turned out to be a lake in late Pliocene-Early Pleistocene. The third phase consists of a re-arrangement of drainage pattern and related geomorphologic processes mainly controlled by tectonic movements during Early Pleistocene. Consequently, surface drainage started in the Golpazari lake. Meanwhile Sakarya river incised its bed through the fractured carbonate rocks, capturing also the Huyuk depression complex.