Abstract:
Ecological destruction in human-dominated landscapes has significant impacts on environment sustainability internationally. Landscape planning can play a role in mitigating the effects of human-related activities. One element of landscape planning involves the analysis of the biological, spatial and social arrangement of areas in an urban environment and identifying characteristics that are underrepresented in urban natural public spaces. In this study, the quality of public spaces resulting from the regeneration of Tehran’s river-valleys’ natural environment is assessed in relation to landscape ecology principles. We use the components of Bio-spatial-social Logic, Eco-environmental- societal Function, Mind-experiential-aesthetic Logic and Eco-environmental-societal Excellence, as the components of a framework, to examine the quality of existing urban natural public spaces and to define deficiencies in the current urban landscape system. Based on multivariate ecological, environmental and societal space, the evaluation made by this component model indicates that the principles of landscape ecology have been disregarded in Tehran’s River- valleys land development and various ecological problems have been evolved from its river-valleys’ regenerating projects. Our criterion is based on the alteration of landscape’s content composition and spatial configuration variables to eco-environmental-societal excellence features. The analysis provides a systematic, function evaluation of urban natural public spaces, in three hierarchical levels of Environmental Equilibrium, Geographical-anthropological Sustainability and Eco-environmental-societal Excellence features. Some strategies are introduced for Tehran’s river- valleys’ landscape variables change.
Machine summary:
(رجوع شود به تصویر صفحه) Human Ecology / Urban Ecology System Ecology Fig. 3: The component model of Sustainable Landscape (extended) Source: Authors Fig. 4: The component model of Sustainable Landscape Source: Authors Table 3: Criteria for component model of "Sustainable Landscape’’ based on ecological, environmental and societal principles Source: Authors Criteria Appropriate Content Composition Appropriate Spatial Configuration Bio-spatial-social Logic Ecological Structure Nature & Bio-system Geography, Living compo- nents, Man-made products - macro- & micro-climate, natural sources - tectonic condition, slope, land slip - soil coverage, plants, animals - Eco patches, preserving living conditions (Noss and Harris, 1986) - Eco corridors, preserving ecological connec- tions: cycle of matter & energy, linking nature reserves, cultural features and historical sites (Little, 1990) Spatial Structure Environment & Built-system Environmental proportion, permanence & Health - consumption of local materi- als - eco compatible construction & repairs - consumption of non-pollutant materials - eco compatible locations of storing pollutants - Intra- & extra-habitat structural equilibrium, preserving species diversity - Intra- & extra-habitat relation-isolation equi- librium, preserving patch heterogeneousness Social Structure Landscape & Human-system Social health - sociological processes, maintaining natural elements & environmental equipment - public cooperation, continu- ous maintenance-supervision of nature & manmade environ- ments - Eco corridors, preserving natural & man- made patch heterogeneousness, natural patch abundance, environmental positions and socio- economic functions (Ahern, 1991) Eco-environmental-societal Function Ecological Function Nature & Manmade Cycle of matter & energy - optimum cycle of matter & energy - Spatial-temporal perspective of eco corridors, preserving unified system of ecosystems and place and interconnected system of climate and territory (Forman 1995; Zonneveld, 1995) - Spatial connectivity and integrity of eco corridors, preserving balanced function of eco-anthropological processes (Jongman and Pungetti, 2004; Forman, 1995) Environmental Function Environment & Human Activity Spatial comfort, access & compatibility - optimized ecological condi- tions (climate, landscape ...