Patterns in the Utilization of Constructed Land in Israel 2007

8/7/2019 Patterns in the Utilization of Constructed Land in Israel 2007

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TheJerusalemInstitute IsraelMinistryof

forIsraelStudies EnvironmentalProtection

TheCenterforEnvironmentalPolicy OpenSpacesDepartmentEstablishedbytheCharlesH.Revson

Foundation

PatternsintheUtilizationofConstructed

LandinIsrael

MotiKaplan

LioraDarom

RanHaklai

NiritVitman

ShiraBuckwald

HanitaDean

SaritCaspi-Oron

2007


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TheCenterforEnvironmentalPolicyStudiesSeriesno.28

PatternsintheUtilizationofConstructedLandinIsrael

MotiKaplan

LioraDarom

RanHaklai

NiritVitman

ShiraBuckwald

HanitaDeanSaritCaspi-Oron

Thispublicationwasmadepossiblebyfundsgrantedby

theCharlesH.RevsonFoundation.

Thestatementsmadeandtheviewsexpressedaresolelytheresponsibility

oftheauthors.

2007,TheJerusalemInstituteforIsraelStudies

TheHayElyacharHouse

20RadakSt.,92186Jerusalem

http://www.jiis.org.il

E-mail:[email protected]


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Abstract

1.1 Background

Planningisnaturallymeanttoarrangefuturereality,withthepresentasitsstarting

point. So, too,istheplanning inIsrael:ittriestoputorderintocomplexand

complicated systems that are managed in the connes of a small piece of land, on

whichaconstantlygrowingpopulationlives.

Themajorissuewithwhichnationalplanninghasbeentryingtocopeforthelastdecadeisthedemandforbuildinganddevelopment,whichhascomeinresponse

totheincreaseinpopulationandtheriseinhousingstandards.Theresultsofthis

demandincludeurbansprawl,extendingoutwardfromthecitiesintoopenspaces,

thebuildingofsuburbs,andincreasingpopulationdispersal.Israel'splanning

authoritieshavebeentryingforyearstotemperandcurbthisphenomenonthat

threatensIsrael'sopenspaces,aswellasthequalityandstabilityofitscities.

ThisproblemisexacerbatedbythespecialcircumstancesinIsrael,whichinclude

highpopulationdensity,ahighrateofnaturalpopulationgrowth,increasesinthestandardofliving,andwiththemconstantdemandsfortheconversionofopen

landtolandforbuilding.

The starting point for planning for the future is the dimensions of area for

constructiontoday,andthesizeofthepopulationlivinginit.Thisinformation

raisesanumberofbasicquestions:

Whataretheproportionsofthebuiltareatoday?

What uses aremade of theareas forbuilding building of various sorts,

industry,employment,etc.,andwhatarethedimensionsofeachofthese?

Howisthebuilt-uplanddistributedgeographically?

Whatisthesizeofthepopulationinthebuilt-upareas,andintowhatcategories

canitbedividedup?

How are the built-up areas distributed in terms of municipalities and

nationally?


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DifferentdatabaseswereavailabletothenationalplanningauthoritiesofIsrael,

beginningwiththedatafromthe2020MasterPlanforIsraelfrom2000andupto

theNationalMasterPlan,no.35("TAMA35").Butthesedatabaseswerebuilt

upindifferentways,usingdifferentmethods,overdifferentperiodsoftime.

Thisprojecttriestosolvetheproblemofthelackofasinglesetofdata,organized

andopentocriticism,setinasinglepointoftimeandusedasastartingpointfor

thecomingyears.Thedatabasethatthisprojecthascreatedisintendedtobe

usedasanagreed-uponbaseonanationallevel.

Thesedatabasesincludelandelementsitsextent,uses,nationaldistribution,

and itsmunicipal status aswell as the element of population, its size and

characteristics. The inclusion of these statistics and theirprocessingmake it

possibletolearnabouthowthelandiscurrentlyusedandhowitcanbetaken

advantageofinthefuture.

Therealsuccessofthisresearchwillbefoundinitsimplementationanditsuse.

Wehopethatmasterplansatalllevelswilltakeadvantageofthisworkandthat

thedatabaseitselfwillbeupdatedperiodically.

1.2 Goals

Thisresearchhastwomaingoals:

the creation of a data base that reects the extent of built area in Israel, its

distribution, thepatternsof itsusage, and theways it is utilized. Such a

databaseisessentialforunderstandingprocessesnaturalanddirectedof

concentration in the built-upareas, theirsaturation andwidening, and for

useasastartingpointfornationalpolicyandforfutureplanningofrelations

betweenbuiltandopenareas.

thecomparisonofamappingofbuilt-upareasanda databaseupdated to

2003withamapandadatabasethatwascreatedandprocessedbythesame

methodology in 1998. This comparison reects the development in size and

thepatternsofbuildinginIsraeloverthatperiodoftime.


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1.3 Methodology

ThemappingworkwasexecutedwithaGeographicInformationSystem(GIS)

usingESRIArcViewsoftware.

Themappingand theconstructionofthepolygonsforthebuilt-upareaswere

done on the basis of rectied aerial photos (orthophotos) from the years 1998 and

2003.

Intherst stageprecisepolygonaldigitalizationwasperformedonbuilt-upareas

inorthophoto1998.Themappingofthebuilt-upareaswasdoneatascaleof

1:4,000.Thepolygonswerecategorizedintofourmaingroupsaccordingtoland

use:1)residentialareas, 2) industrialand employmentareas,3)quarries, and

4)other.

Inthesecondstagemappingwasdoneofadditionalareasthatwerebuiltupafter

1998(i.e.,overtheperiod1998-2003)onthebasisofcomparisonsbetweenthe

aerialphotosfromthosetwoyears.

Resultsoftheworkincludethefollowingmaps:

1. Amapofbuilt-upareasin1998;

2. Amapofareasbuiltupbetweentheyears1998and2003.

Thefollowingdatabasesareincluded:

1. Adatabaseoflanduseforeachpolygononthemap;

2.AdatabasefromtheCentralBureauofStatisticswithcalculateddensityfor

theresidentialareasineachsettlement(nameofsettlement,municipalstatus,

populationstatistics,populationgroups,characteristicsofthesettlement).

OntothisdatabasewasaddedtheareaofroadsinIsrael,basedontheroadmap

ofthe"Mapa"company.Theareawascalculatedaccordingtoasetwidthfor

eachtypeofroad.


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1.4 AnalysisoftheDataBases

Analysisofthedatabasewasperformedinthreeways:

1. Landcoveranditsuses(2003):includesanalysisoftheutilizationofthebuilt

upareas,theirproportions,andtheirassociationwiththeregion(inthiscase

wewillrefertoallbuilt-uponlandofeverykindas"landcovering");

2. Population,landcoveringfor residence,andpopulationdensity (2003): in

thiscaseweanalyzetheuseoflandforresidenceandthepopulationdensity

ofsettlementsaccordingtodifferentcriteria;

3. Comparisonbetween1998and2003:inthisanalysiswepresenttheadditions

tolandcoveranddensity,andanalyzethechangesthattookplacebetween

1998 and 2003. In addition we analyze the former land use of new land

cover.

Each of the analyses is presented according to three cross-sections: national,

regional,andmunicipal.

Inadditionthecorrespondencebetweenthedataonpopulationdensityandthe

socio-economic data was evaluated, as was the utilization of environmental

resourcesineachsettlement.


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Graph1.1


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1.5 PrimaryFindings

Thelandcoverinthecountry,forallusescombined,reached1,094square

kilometers in2003,which is approximately 5%of the country's territory.

NorthofBeersheva,landcoveris11%.

Roadscomprise130squarekilometersoftotallandcover.

Thepercentageoflandusedforresidences,asof2003,was70%ofallbuilt-

onland.

Israel's population in 2003 was 6.5million. Average population density

inbuiltareaswas7.7 inhabitantsperdunam(1dunam=k2/1000);median

densitywasclosetotheaverage,andstoodat9.5inhabitantsperdunam

Thedatafrom2003suggestsadichotomization inthedistributionofland

resources:

Halfofthepopulationuses70%ofthebuilt-uponlandforresidences,whereas

thesecondhalfusesonly30%;

Populationdensityvarieswidely,rangingfrom0.5to28.5inhabitantsper

builtdunam;Populationdensity in75% of the settled areas (768 settlements)was less

than4inhabitantsperdunam;only600,000peopleresideinsuchconditions,

comprisinglessthan10%ofthecountry'spopulation.Mostofthesearerural

settlementsbelongingtoregionalcouncils.

AveragedensityinIsrael'scitiesis10.5residentstodunam.Averagedensity

inlocalcouncilsis5.7andinregionalcouncils2.5perdunam.

TheaveragepopulationdensityinArabvillagesis6.1residentsperdunam.Building standards are relatively uniform in this sector, and no signicant

differenceswerefoundbetweendifferentregionsormunicipalcouncils.

Between 1998 and 2003 Israel's population grew by approximately 0.6

millionpeople(about2.2%ayear)andthebuilt-uponareasgrewby48square

kilometers (agrowth rateofapproximately1%per annum). The average

nationaldensitythereforegrewby0.5residentsperdunamoverthisperiod,a

rateof1.3%peryear.


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Thepolarizationinlanduseisgrowing,despitethefactthatoveralldensity

hasgrown.Thedatashowsamovementofpopulationandofbuildingtowards

thelocalcouncils,withacontinuingtrendofpopulationmigrationfromthe

densecitiestosettlementsoflowerdensity.

Nocorrelationwas foundbetweenpopulationdensityand socio-economic

statusorusageofenvironmentalresourcesaswereevaluatedinthisresearch

wasteproductionperperson,vehiclesperperson,waterusageperperson.

TheGISmapsonlayersofbuildingcanbeviewedonthesiteoftheMinistryof

Environmentalattheaddress:www.sviva.gov.il

DistributionofLandCoverAccordingtoUse:

Table1.1DistributionofNationalLandCoverAccordingtoUse

TotalRoadsSubTotal

notincluding

Roads

Other

Uses

QuarriesIndustry

andEmploy-

ment

Residence

1,224,051130,0001,094,05132,75828,109192,469840,714

Total

National

Land

Cover(in

(Dunams

100%10.6%2.7%2.3%15.7%68.7%

UsageofLandas

Percentage

ofTotal

Usage


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PopulationDensityandPolarizationofLandUse2003

Table1.2Population,LandCoverforResidence,andNationalDensity

MedianMaximum

Density

Minimum

Density

Average

Density

(Residence/

dunamof

residential

(landcover

Coverfor

Residence

(in

(Dunams

Population

2003

9.528.50.57.7840,7146,436,870

Total

National

Graph1.2PopulationDistributionAccordingtoDensity

(Residents/dunamofresidentiallandcover)

Density range (Residents/dunam of residential land cover)


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Graph1.3DistributionofSettlementsAccordingtoDensity

(Residents/dunamofresidentiallandcover)

Graph1.4DistributionofSettlementsAccordingtoDensity

(residents/dunamofresidentiallandcover)

0.0-0.5

2.5-3.0

5.0-5.5

7.5-8.0

10.0-10.5

12.5-13.0

15.0-15.5

17.5-18.0

20.0-22.0

Density range (Residents/dunam of residential land cover)


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1.5.2TheArabSector2003

Table1.3Population,LandCoverforResidence,andDensityAccording

toSectorinNationalPerspective

Average

Density

(Residence

per

dunamof

residential

cover)

Numberof

Settlements

as

Percentage

ofNational

Total

Numberof

Settlements

Residential

Land

Coveras

Percentage

ofNational

Total

Residential

LandCover

(indunams)

Population

2003as

Percentage

ofNational

Population

Population

2003

6.110%10418%150,22214%921,084

Arab

Settlements

8.090%88882%690,49286%5,515,786

Jewish

andMixed

Settlements

7.7100%992100%840,714100%6,436,870Total

1.5.3ComparisonofData1998-2003

NationalComparisonofPopulationandPopulationDensity1998-2003:

Table1.4Population,CoverforResidence,andDensity1998-2003

inNationalPerspective

DensityStatistics(Residentsperdunamofresidentialcover)

LandCoverforResidence(indunams)

Population

AverageMedianMaximumMinimum

7.22.427.50.5806,633.65,794,2561998

7.72.528.50.5840,714.16,436,8702003

0.50.11.00.0134,080.45642,614

Growth

Relative

to1998

6.6%4%3.5%2.9%4.2%11.1%

Rateof

Growth

Relative

to1998

(%)


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ComparisonofMunicipalPopulationandDensity1998-2003:

Table1.5Population,LandCoverforResidenceandDensity

1998-2003,MunicipalCross-section

AverageMunicipalDensity

(Residents/dunamofresidential

landcover)

ResidentialLandCover(indunams)Population

Rateof

Growth

inDensity

Compared

to1998

Growth

in

Average

Density

20031998Rateof

Growth

inLand

Cover

Compared

to1998

Growth

ofLand

Cover

20031998Rateof

Population

Growth

Compared

to1998

Population

Growth

20031998

5.2%0.510.510.03.7%16,582464,522447,9409.1%408,7944,896,2944,487,500Cities

13.1%0.75.75.06.1%10,886189,136178,24920.0%179,6931,079,192899,499

Local

Councils

9.3%0.22.52.33.7%6,612187,056180,44413.3%54,127461,384407,257

Regional

Councils

6.6%0.57.77.24.2%34,080840,714806,63411.1%642,6146,436,8705,794,256Total

1.5.4SocialandEnvironmentalMeasures

Table1.6CorrelationValuesBetweenSettlementDensityandSocio-

EconomicParametersandUseofEnvironmentalResources

Waste

Per

Capita

MunicipalWater

Consumption

PerCapita

Average

MonthlyWage

ofSalaried

Employees

Socio-economic

Level

0.1300.2980.0680.042CorrelationWith

Density-All

Settlements


DensityArab

Settlements


DensityJewish

Settlements


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Methodological Signicance

Thiswork presents the distribution of land cover and density in the country,

divided according to different types of settlement and according to national

geographicdistribution.Thestatisticalbasismaybeusedasastartingpointfor

futureestimationsoftheneedsforbuildinganddevelopment.

Thedatabasemayalsobeusedforestablishingmeasureswiththehelpofwhich

itwillbepossibletoevaluatetherateoflossofopenlandandtolocatesensitive

areas,inwhichthedevelopmentrateisswiftanddangerous.Thiskindoftool

integrateswellwithanattempttocreateindicatorsforquantitativemeasurement

andfollow-uponenvironmentalchangesinthecountry.

The Signicance for Planning

Thenationalmapofdensityshowsdensitydistributionandthegreatdifferences

inlevelsofdensity.Withtheassistanceofthismapitispossibletolocatesparsely

settled areas that may bemade denser or fuller.Of course, amore thorough

evaluationmustbemadeoftheparticularconditionsinthesettlementpriorto

development.

Cross-checking between density maps and sensitivity maps may help locate

groups of settlements in areas of low-sensitivity, in order to create a unied and

contiguousregionofdensersettlement.

Thepolarizationintheuseoflandisthebasisforwaste,wrongandunequal

divisionofthelandanditsresources,andforenvironmentalinjustice.

Currently, the frameworks for land settlement and land utilization are well-

ingrainedandunchanging.Newframeworksofdevelopmentareneededinorder

toalterthecourseandcreatemoreequaldivisionsoflandresources.

Practicallyspeaking,inthepresentsituation,high-densityurbansettlementsare

encouraged,whilenexttothemsettlementsofhighqualityandhighstandardsof


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livingaredeveloped(asonecanseefromtheinformationgatheredabouturban

settlements);theexpansionofexistingruralsettlementsandsuburbsshouldbe

avoided,andthebuildingofnewsettlementsofthesesortsshouldcertainlynotbe

initiated.Thedirectionoflargepopulationstoruralandsuburbansettlementswill

inessenceincreasepolarization,widengaps,anddistancethegoalsofequality

andenvironmentaljustice,exacerbatingproblemsthatarealreadyextremeand

deeplyembeddedinthesocialinfrastructureandenvironmentinIsraeltoday.

10. Implementation

10.1 Methodological Signicance

Thisworkprovidesaspreadofdensitybydifferentdivisionsofsettlement

types,bynationalgeographicdivision.Thissetofdatamayserveasastarting

pointforplanningpopulationdistribution,accordingtodifferentprograms

andintermsofdifferentassumptionsandscenarios.

Thedatabasesmakepossibletheanalysisaccording todifferentcriteriabeginningfromthelevelofthedistrict,theregion,thecity,theregionalcouncil,

thesettlementsoftheArabsector,andforpolicy-makinguptothelevelofa

wholecategoryofsettlementsortoasinglesettlement,urbanorrural.

Theworkpresentsadatabasefromtwoknownpointsintime.Thecontinuation

oftheworktoadditionalpointsintimewillallowforobservationsofchanges

in the proportions of built-up areas and in the density of settlements in

different,whichwillmakeitpossibletotrytointerveneandoffsetprocessesofchange.

Thedatabaseswillenableanalysestobemadeinthefutureoftherateofloss

ofopenareas(thatwillvaryaccordingtodifferentpossiblecircumstances).

Itwillbepossibletoidentifyareasoffastordangerousdevelopment,andto

mitigatethelossoflandinsensitiveareas.Thisisofgreatimportancefor

thedevelopmentofindicatorsandquantitativemeasurementsforsurveying

environmentalandotherchangesthataffectthequalityoflife.


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10.1 The Signicance for Planning

Thenationaldensitymapshowsthenationaldistributionofdensityandthe

greatdifferences inthe levels ofdensitynationwide.Usingthismap,onecansetpolicyforrespondingtotheriseorfallofsettlementdensity:onecan

encourageanincreaseindensitybyoffering incentives tothisend,where

higher density may make land use more efcient and entail better use of

existinginfrastructure;ontheotherhand,onecandiscouragethescattering

ofpopulationbyofferingdisincentives.Ofcourse,thoroughevaluationof

the specic conditions must be insured for each case.

Thecross-checkingofmapsofpopulationdensitywithmapsofenvironmental

sensitivity will help in the location of adjacent settlements in relatively

insensitive areas, so as to allow the creation of denser, more unied blocs of

settlementsbyjoiningtogetherexisting,smallerones.

The map of national population density may serve as an aid in dening the

bordersofsettlements,especiallyindenseandlimitedsettlementsforwhich

noadditionallandforexpansionisavailable.Thisdocumentincludesdetailed

tables ofcomparisonofsettlements, including theirdensities, fromwhich

onecanestimatetheirrateofgrowth,landreservesfordevelopment,and,in

essence,theirpotentialfordevelopment.Thesenationaltablescanbeused

asinstrumentsfordecision-makingintheprocessofsettingbordersbetween

settlements,accordingtotheirrealneeds.

Demandforqualitybuilding(low-density,land-attached)shouldbedirected

toperipheralareas,especiallytotheNegev.Inthisway,strongpopulations

canbeattracted.Ontheotherhand,ifland-attachedpropertyisofferedinthe

centerofthecountry,landwillbewastedandlost;inaddition,incentivestomovetotheNegevwillbemadeineffective.

The polarization in land use, according to which a small portion of the

population uses a large portion of the land, is the basis for waste and signies

theunequaldivisionoflandresources.

Currently, the frameworks for land settlement and utilization are inexible

andunchanging.Newframeworksofdevelopmentareneededinorderto

changecourseandestablishamoreequaldivisionoflandresources.


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Practicallyspeaking,inthepresentsituation,high-densityurbansettlementsare

encouraged,whilenexttothemsettlementsofhighqualityandhighstandardsof

livingaredeveloped(asonecanseefromtheinformationgatheredabouturban

settlements);theexpansionofexistingruralsettlementsandsuburbsshouldbe

avoided,andthebuildingofnewsettlementsofthesesortsshouldcertainlynotbe

initiated.Thedirectionoflargepopulationstoruralandsuburbansettlementswill

inessenceincreasepolarization,widengaps,anddistancethegoalsofequality

andenvironmentaljustice,exacerbatingproblemsthatarealreadyextremeand

deeplyembeddedinthesocialinfrastructureandenvironmentinIsraeltoday.

ThisoutlookfoundexpressionintherecommendationsoftheNationalMaster

Plan ("TAMA 35 "), in its preference for and fosteringof urban life: "in the

competition for strong populations, of employment requiring great human

resourcesandqualityservices,TAMA35emphasizestheneedtoguaranteethat

thecityhasclearpriorityoversuburbsorruralcommunities(TAMA35,volume

1:PrimaryFindingsandPolicyRecommendations).

11. AfterwordSustainableDevelopmentandBuilt-upSpace

Policy for sustainabledevelopmentforcitiesorbuilt-upspaceingeneral,is a

centralchapterintheoverallpolicyforsustainabledevelopmentonanational

level.

ForyearsIsraelhasbeengoingthroughaprocessoflossoflandresources,both

inqualityandinquantity,whichthreatensthefoundationsoftheenvironmentand

the society in almost every eld. The open spaces take upon themselves a rangeofrolesforthosearoundthemasnatural,ecologicalsystems,as"greenlungs",

andasamanifestationofthecountry'shistoricalandsocialvalues.

Itwillnotbepossibletotalkaboutthepreservationofbiologicaldiversityifthere

is not enough open land for the ora and fauna of which it is composed: as the

availableopenspacediminishes,thevarietyoflifewillaswell.Therewillbe

nopenetrationofprecipitationandrun-offwaterintothegroundwaterwithout

open land with the appropriate properties to enable this downward ow. Different


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species andbiologicalmaterialwillnot betransferredbetweenareas,without

ecologicalpathwaysopenacrossthelengthandwidthofthecountry.Society's

worriesandconcernswillgrowasthepopulationbecomesevermorecrowded,

and people will nd themselves without the green spaces they need for recreation

and relaxation; they will nd themselves, instead, overwhelmed by clogged

transportationroutes,caughtincentersofairpollution,andwithconcentrations

ofwastewithintheirmidst.Allthesearethedirectconsequencesofthelossof

landandtheoverloadofdevelopment.

ButIsraelcannotescapefromwhatisnecessarytheneedtoaccommodatea

largeandgrowingpopulation,ariseinstandardsoflivingandqualityofhousing,

andasteadyincreaseintheamountofbuilt-upland.

Theroleofasustainabledevelopmentpolicyistodirect,regulate,andestablish

rationalguidelinesthatcanprovidegoodandsuitableresponsestotheexisting

needs,onthebasisofprinciples:

To preserve the land and environmental resources for this and coming

generations,offeringthewidestrangeofchoiceintheirabilitytochoosea

wayoflife;

Toseetoitthatdevelopmenttakesintoconsiderationthelong-termcostsand

consequences,andincludesarealisticestimationofwhatthesewillbe;

To avoid making maximum use of the development of spaces, in order

to maintain room for opportunities and freedomof choice to the coming

generations;

To leave as many options open as possible, and to avoid steps that are

irreversible. It is important to remember that decisions to build are

fundamentallyirreversible;built-onlanddoesnotgobacktobeingopen;

Toavoiddevelopmentthatentailsuncertainties,whoseresultsorimplications

areunknown;

Toevaluateplanninginaholisticandbroadway,andnottomakedowith

assessingpartsofplansordetailsalone.


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Theseprinciples,expressingthebasisforsound,generalpoliciesforsustainable

development, are especially important for matters of land resources, which

must be protected and guarded for the benet of all the surrounding and related

systems,andwhoselosswillmeananendtoallchancesforpreservingthenature

dependentonit.

Accordingtotheseprinciples,bothbuilt-uplandandopenlandshouldbeseen

aspartofasingleframework,orastwopartsofoneframeworkthatcomplement

oneanother.Theopenspacescannotbepreservedwithoutprovidingsolutions

fortheconstantdemandsforbuildinganddevelopment.

The basic principle of sustainable development is to maintain a distinction

betweentheurbanfunctionsthatshouldbeconcentratedwithinthecityandthe

functionsreservedfortheopenspaces.Clearlinesmustbedrawnbetweenthe

typesoflanduse.Ifbuildingexpandsandinfringesupontheopenareas,the

centerandfocusofthecitieswillbelost,aswillbetheopenspaces.

The fearofsmudgingwhat should bea clearlinebetweenopenand built-up

spacewaswellarticulatedbyLordRogers:

"Overthelastseveraldecadeswehavewitnessedintheworldatendencyof

therichtoleavethecitiesforthesuburbsandnewareasinasearchforbetter

and cheaper schools, less trafc and less crime. The free market of the last

decades has brought with it a policy of laissez-faire, in the eld of planning

aswell. Looseningcontroloverplanningandbuildinghas quickened the

growthofsuburbs.InEnglandbuildinghasbeengoingoninruralandopen

areas,insuchawaythatcitycentershaveemptiedoutanddependenceon

private vehicleshas grown. This destructiveprocess ofsub-urbanization,workingunderneaththesurfaceinmanyareasoftheworld,isgoingtheway

oftheAmericanmodel.

Thewastefulandexaggerateduseoflandhasbroughtabouttheworstpossible

result.Allovertheworldwearelosingruralareasandtheirviews,andwe

arebuildinglowdensityurbanareas.Insuchawaytheworstformsofurban

living imaginable are beingdeveloped. On the otherhand,areasofhigh

density,highqualityofurban life inwhichbuildings are used for awide


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varietyofusesstores,schools,workplaces,andrecreationthesearethe

attractiveplacestolive."

Andthesolutionheproposes:

"Theaspirationsforaworld-classurbanrevivaldemandsanumberofdecisions:

the encouragementofhigher-density livingandawidevarietyofuses for

buildings;thediscouragementoflow-densitybuildingorthedevelopmentof

residential areas beyond city limits, if it is possible to nd spaces for building

withinthecity;buildingtobedoneinindustrialareaspollutedareasthat

mustbecleanedandcultivated;re-useofurbanareaswithinthecity,thatcan

berevitalizedandre-builtbeforetheuseofruraloragriculturalland."1

Createqualityurbanculture:thatisthemessageofthemodernnationalmaster

plan,andonlythuswillthecitybeabletoattractpopulation.Manypeoplewill

nd themselves drawn into a compact city, internalized and efcient, frequently

renewing itself with dynamism and activities of interest, and will nd in it a good

andqualitychoice,tobepreferredoverthesuburbandtheruralareas.Ithasbeen

foundthatthebeststrategyforpreservinggreenandopenspacesisactuallyto

dealwithandimprovetheotherpartoftheequationthecreationofgoodqualitycities.

Thiswork,whichdealswithdatabasesofthebuilt-upareasandtheiruses,may

assist in the planning strategies for compact, efcient, and internalized cities, and

inthiswaycontributetothesustainabledevelopmentofbothtypesofareasthe

built-upandtheopen.Balancedandcarefuldevelopmentofbuilt-upareaswill

helpinthepreservationoftheopenareasthatstillremaininIsrael.

1 LordRogersofRiverside,Towards an Urban Renaissance.London:TheDepartment

oftheEnvironment,Transport,andtheRegions,1999.

Patterns in the Utilization of Constructed Land in Israel 2007

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