Urban growth management in Jeddah

The towns and cities of Saudi Arabia have been subjected to sustained growth pressures since the transformation of the country's economy following the discovery of oil in the Eastern Province of the Kingdom. The rapid growth which has been experienced has created major problems for the central and local government agencies responsible for planning and managing urban growth. The experience of Jeddah, one of the major cities in Saudi Arabia, is described and the problems of planning and managing its growth are analysed. Weaknesses relating to the structure of the planning system are identified, as are major difficulties in relation to the quality and quantity of professional staff. Recent attempts to improve the operation of the planning system are described and evaluated.     

DROUGHT PLANNING: A PROCESS FOR STATE GOVERNMENT1

ABSTRACT: Drought has been a prevalent feature of the American landscape during the latter part of the 1980s, producing serious socioeconomic and environmental consequences. These recent experiences with drought have renewed concern about the inadequacy of federal and state contingency planning efforts and the lack of coordination for assessment and response efforts between these levels of government. This paper presents the results of research aimed at facilitating the preparation of drought contingency plans by state government in conjunction with a state's overall water management planning activity. The ten-step drought plan development process reported is intended to improve mitigation efforts through more timely, effective, and efficient assessment and response activities. Officials in appropriate state agencies should examine the proposed framework and alter it to best address drought-related concerns, adding or deleting elements as necessary.     

建设城市中的防火安全系统

本文根据调查分析，指出建设城市防火安全系统的迫切性。阐述了建设城市防火安全系统的基本原理和规划方法。并探讨了城市防火安全系统的运用管理。     

Systematizing the production of environmental plans: an Australian example

Environmental planning legislation in New South Wales now requires local government authorities to draw up statutory plans that take into account, among other concerns, both the biophysical and the social environmental issues within their jurisdictions. The SIRO-PLAN method of plan production provides a systematic mechanism for fulfilling this requirement. This article describes the application of the method by planning researchers over 18 months to the production of a Local Environmental Plan for a rural local government in New South Wales. The policy formulation, the purposive data collection, and the deliberate adjustment of plans in order to recognize interest group requirements were all found to be valuable features of the method, while the translation of the ultimately chosen land-use plan into the explicit regulatory controls available to the local government authority was found to require further refinement. The capacity of SIRO-PLAN to quantify the resolution of competing environmental concerns in the final plan, although of value to planning researchers, proved too arcane for traditionally trained planners.     

Woodlot scale: A method for rapid assessment of woodlot values

A method is described for the rapid survey and determination of the ecological value of woodlots. The three dominant tree species in a stand are given a visual ranking that is converted to awoodlot index through the use of species adaptation values. The woodlot index is scaled by presettlement vegetation type to yield awoodlot scale. The ecologically most valuable woodlots in a region are identified by using the woodlot scale and data on woodlot area, human disturbance, and tree density. The woodlot index corresponds closely to results from conventional methods of woodlot surveys. This method should be valuable to land-use planners for environmental impact assessment and regional planning.     

Privatisation,liberalisation and simplification of Statutory land use planning in Britain

A central government Consultation Paper issued in 1984 argues the case for simplified planning zones. These are seen to offer greater speed and certainty to developers and are closely related to the Enterprise Zone concept. This paper examines the context to the proposal, reviews the details of the Consultation Paper, and identifies the nature of the response to the idea.     

Housing in the new cities of Egypt

The New Cities of Egypt represent a major effort to redistribute investment and population away from Cairo and the Delta in a brave attempt to use desert land. Through a study of three cities under construction, the reliance on government‐built walk‐up flats for housing provision is discussed and its relevance for later phases questioned. In conclusion, the efficacy of the New Cities as counter‐attractions is doubted in the absence of effective controls on the growth of Cairo.     

Evaluation of guild-indicator species for use in resource management

We followed selection guidelines commonly used by management agencies to select mountain quail (Oreortyx pictus) as an indicator species for an ecological guild of birds. We then evaluated the ability of mountain quail to indicate the presence of other species from the guild and to index the quality of the habitat for other species. The ability of quail to indicate the presence of species from the ecological guild varied widely within and among vegetation types. Species compositions of the ecological guild were more consistent in comparisons of sites within vegetation types than they were in comparisons of sites between vegetation types. Mountain quail habitat was significantly different from the habitats of sympatric species from the guild for 14 of 15 multivariate contrasts. We suggest that managers use indicator species with caution. If indicators are used, they should be applied to guilds composed of species that closely share ecological affinities. The habitat of the indicator species should overlap extensively with those of all other guild members. The use of indicators should be restricted to very similar sites within the same general vegetation type.     

Environmental considerations for levees and floodwalls

Levees and floodwalls are used extensively throughout the United States for flood control. Levee projects often lack ecological, recreational, and aesthetic values, except for incidental fish and wildlife benefits derived from borrow pits and recreational facilities found in some urban settings. In recent years increased environmental concern within construction agencies and greater responsiveness to public opinion have resulted in increasing numbers of levee projects designed, built, and maintained with environmental objectives in mind. This paper reviews environmental concepts successfully employed on levee projects constructed in recent years by the US Army Corps of Engineers. Some of the most innovative concepts are described and illustrated and design considerations are discussed.     

Against idealistic beliefs in the problem-solving capacities of integrated resource management

Integrated resource management (IRM) is currently implemented in many parts of the world. This article promotes a pragmatic interpretation and suggests that idealistic beliefs in the problem-solving capacities of IRM are not justified. Successful implementation and performance of IRM are primarily a function of the historical context into which a project is placed. A comparative analysis of several case studies in Western Canada provides evidence for this argument, and the results can be summarized in a conceptual model about integration in resource management. IRM is interpreted as a process of constructing an objective reality of integration for sectorial management decisions, and this construction involves the transformations of power structures. This article suggests several pragmatic conclusions for IRM practice.