Hashem Dadashpoor; Mojtaba Refieian; Nariman Jahanzad
Abstract
There exist three major approaches to land use: economic-oriented approach, an egalitarian approach, and sustainable development. In recent few decades, sustainable development theory and subsequently the ecological approach has become the dominant paradigm in the land use planning thought. In this approach, ...
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There exist three major approaches to land use: economic-oriented approach, an egalitarian approach, and sustainable development. In recent few decades, sustainable development theory and subsequently the ecological approach has become the dominant paradigm in the land use planning thought. In this approach, land use planning is a reasonable use of land which is based on the maintenance of green lands and environment generally. In Mashhad metropolitan area in recent years, the uncontrolled growth of urban settlements has led to the deterioration of agricultural lands and pastures. So, in this study, it is attempted firstly to determine an optimal ecological land-use pattern on the basis of the ecological approach. Secondly, the pattern was compared to the existing land-use situation. For this purpose, Makhdum’s method was applied and data were processed using the AHP model in ArcGIS 9.3. For this purpose, twelve natural criteria were chosen, and based on Saati’s table we assigned weights to them. Then, based on the mentioned twelve criteria, twelve suitability maps were generated. Finally, using mathematical overlaying, the layers were merged together and the final optimal pattern was introduced. The results of the present study indicated that the existing land-use situation is not in accordance with the optimal land use pattern and this could lead to irreparable environmental, economic and sociological damages. Thus, it is necessary to remind that planning authorities should think about controlling the growth of the city and consider some arrangements for urban development and management of the region.
