Shaul Amir

A framework for street tree planning in urban areas in Israel

Abstract This article presents the methodological aspects of a proposed planning process for an urban street tree system. The process specifies goals and objectives for street tree planning, criteria for evaluation of process output, development stages in the preparation of conceptual and detail planting plans and a case study for demonstrating the use of an analysis method to determine the suitability of site/tree profile of a given street. Based on the use of subjective and objective data sources, the process could be adapted for use in the planning of other urban vegetation areas. The contribution of such a process to decision making depends on availability of data on site conditions and on species selection choices that are provided by the list being used.

Natural self-cleaning of oil-polluted beaches by waves

Abstract Changes in the magnitude of oil pollution on five prototype study beaches on Israels northern Mediterranean coast had been monitored at 2- to 4-weekly intervals from 21 November 1980 to 19 March 1981. Statistical analyses of these changes were employed to rank the beaches in order of decreasing self-cleaning capacity. Records of storm-induced wave data records for the winter of 1980–1981 were correlated to incidence of change in the magnitude of subsurface tarball pollution and the rate of emplaced fuel sample dissipation on the study beaches. Specific wave breaking processes, overtopping of offshore obstacles and wave refraction were singled out as accelerating or retarding wave energy transfer to the polluted beaches. Attribution of the occurrence of specific local littoral processes to observed change in beach pollution magnitude made it possible to assess potential oil spill damage. Elucidation of the causative processes provided theoretical corroboration for beach sensitivity ranking established earlier by statistical analysis.

Classification of coastal resources: A Mediterranean case study

Abstract This paper describes, with the help of a case study, a coastal resources survey and classification process developed for the implementation of a national policy for the 190-km-long Mediterranean coast of Israel. The survey and classification were conducted in three main stages: definition of coastal resources, which made it feasible to define a “coastal zone”; identification of coastal types; and (lastly) division of the coast into homogeneous coastal units (HCU). The coastal zone was delineated on the bases of geomorphological types and of vegetation and wildlife habitat types. Biotic and abiotic types were combined using a factor combination method so as to produce homogeneous coastal units. The delineation of coastal zones on the basis of designated natural values, and of homogeneous coastal units on the basis of various resource types, have produced spatial land data entities with ecological significance. These land areas could serve multiple objectives for coastal planning and management.

Israel's coastal program: Resource protection through management of land use

Abstract Presently, much of Israels 190‐kilometer‐long Mediterranean coast is either unoccupied, devoted to unsuitable uses, or is in use by activities which have no special need to be near the waters edge. This has resulted from years of lack of appreciation by policy‐makers of the coast as a valuable resource, of national development policies that directed attention to other regions, and of the relatively limited demand for coastal recreation. In the last decade the importance of these factors has diminished. In turn, there is now mounting pressure for the development of coastal land. Increasingly, rising standards of living with a greater demand for recreational facilities, the growth of tourism as a major industry, and demands of the environmental lobby for conservation of part of the coastal land are factors bound to cause intensive change along the coast and to affect the quality of its resources. These trends have brought about public intervention in deciding the future of the coast. This paper r...

Generating and Evaluating Alternative Regional Development Plans

The generation of alternative spatial regional development plans is one of the two most important steps in a comprehensive rational planning process. The other step is the plan-evaluation process, which enables us to rank-order the alternative plans and, subsequently, to make a rational selection of the ‘best plan’. In order to generate the set of alternative spatial plans, it is necessary to identify and define adequately and clearly the goals and objectives that the plan is designed to serve. In this paper we report on an actual planning process in which development plans were generated and evaluated, and then the best plan was selected and prepared for the Northern (or Galilee) region of Israel. The Northern region is one of the most fascinating regions in Israel in terms of the composition of its residents, its settlements, and its landscape. The region is well endowed with breathtaking views and a wealth of natural resources. It is therefore necessary for the preferred spatial development plan both to respect and guard this diversity of human and natural assets and to provide opportunities for economic growth that will result in an improvement in the standard of living of the inhabitants and their quality of life. The delicate balance between preservation and development is thus of paramount importance. We describe the process in which alternative spatial development plans were generated. This set of plans took into consideration existing and future development of transport and communication networks in the region as well as alternative spatial development patterns—concentration versus dispersal. The impact of each plan generated on the social, economic, and environmental objectives was carefully reviewed with the EVAMIX computer program. Sensitivity analysis was also conducted in order to ascertain the stability of the rank order of the alternative plans.

Evaluation of environmental impacts of large scale physical development in central Galilee : role of experts and policy makers

This article reports on the content and process used to evaluate environmental impacts caused by the development of 50 new settlements in the central Galilee region in northern Israel between 1978 and 1988. Some 60 different environmental and developmental factors and their interrelationships were identified. Selected physical changes that were defined as impacts were later evaluated.The evaluation method was based on intensive use of interviews with resource scientists and decision makers as experts. The data from interviews were used as the basis for factors identification, impact screening, and their rating. Experts used three types of criteria in the latter process: intensity of impact, the potential for its mitigation and compatibility with existing natural resource conservation, and environmental quality protection policy.Researchers concluded that reliance on experts with broad local experience eliminated the need for a more structured and detailed assessment method. The case study shows that experts provided creditable and reliable findings. They substituted the need for long periods of observation and largescale and costly data gathering, analysis, and evaluation.

Local Environmental Sensitivity Analysis (LESA): A program to improve the preparation of environmental impact statements

Abstract Amir, S., 1976. Local Environmental Sensitivity Analysis (LESA): A program to improve the preparation of environmental impact statements. Landscape Plann ., 2: 229–241. The prime purpose of recent environmental impact assessment legislation has been to make the public decision maker aware of the environmental cost associated with any single proposed project development. The procedures often require that information gathered be fully disseminated to the public to enable groups and individuals affected by the proposed project to study the impact. Two different approaches and types of programs exist to attain these objectives. The more common approach is typified by the programs developed in the U.S. following the legislation of the National Environmental Protection Act (NEPA), in the form of a requirement to assess the environmental impact of projects and the preparation of an Environmental Impact Statement (E.I.S.). The main feature of this program is that it is only done when a project is proposed for a site. A broader approach to environmental assessment is the one now being developed in Israel as the Local Environmental Sensitivity Assessment Program (LESA). Under this program the project by project approach becomes a phase in a wider environmental protection effort. The LESA program is developed independently of a project or site and then applied on a local basis. It is thought that an E.I.S. program could be made more efficient and valuable if it is based on a combined program constituting the LESA type assessment and the project by project approach. This paper summarizes the experience, so far, of the project by project approach, explains the properties and gives an example of the LESA program, and suggests a way to combine the two phases to improve the preparation of E.I.S.

The contribution of open spaces to the physical image of an agricultural village

Abstract This paper reports on empirical research conducted in a semi-cooperative village, Nahalal, Israel, where an investigation was made of the relationship between the physical characteristics of open spaces in the village and their contribution to the positive image of the village. The 94 persons, who were surveyed at home, provided the data for testing. Several hypotheses were proposed concerning the relationships between the level of contribution to the image of the village open space and their landscape type, the quality of their maintenance and the facilities on the site. The findings did show a close relationship between various open spaces, their level of maintenance or facilities and their contribution to the physical image of the village. The relationships indicate that “urban” and “green” open spaces with well-maintained and highly developed facilities were found to be greater contributors to the image of the village over “rural” and “agricultural” or less developed open spaces. The findings are in correlation with existing socio-economic trends occurring in the rural population. They provide directions for future planning and management of open spaces in rural settlement in Israel.

The role of water importation on regional landscape and land use in Israel.

Abstract Irrigation is one of the many directed changes that give new form to the organization of the total territory affected. In arid regions, irrigation often results in the creation of new landscapes. Irrigation creates a new form of organization — usually one that is foreign to the local landscape. In uninhabited arid regions, irrigation is a most important factor for the development of a new landscape. The paper analyses the unique role of irrigation in the reorganization of Israels rural landscape and identifies the as-yet untapped potentials of the new landscape.