Journal of Multidisciplinary Research in Sustainability

Editorial

2018-06-15T10:51:38-04:00

A Relay Race on Sustainability…

2018-06-15T10:51:39-04:00

Professor Atabay’s Contributions to Sustainable Land Management and Ecological Planning

2018-06-15T10:51:39-04:00

Sustainable Development as a Pathway for Building Ecological Cities

2018-06-15T10:51:39-04:00

Weather forecasting and Flood Simulation for Sustainable Land Use Management: Bentota River Basin in Sri Lanka

2018-06-15T12:13:04-04:00

Flood simulation modeling related to land use management is very important for mitigation and integration of disaster risk reduction in the development process. Flood estimation data obtained through gauging stations, Geographic Position System (GPS) devices and participatory-based mapping are poor in accuracy, and current software for flood simulation is costly and requires a vast amount of input data. Hence, it is essential to have a proper method to simulate flooding in the context of changes in rainfall patterns in a relatively fast and accurate manner for flood-prone areas of Sri Lanka. This study analyzes the time series characteristics of total monthly rainfall and maximum daily rainfall of the Bentota River basin applying Mann–Kendall (MK) tests to rainfall trends as major input data for a flood simulation model which has been developed applying Arc Geographic Information System (GIS) software and Python scripting. The model combined various factors such as rainfall, slope, hydrology, soil, land use, storm water drainage, and human behavior factors. The developed flood simulation model showed a good level of consistency between observed and simulated results, with 64.03% accuracy. Maximum daily rainfall of this area shows a general increasing trend, whereas total monthly rainfall shows a general decreasing trend. According to the results of this study, there will be an extreme variability of rainfall once every 5 years during any month from April to July resulting in a minor flood situation in the area. Introducing riparian buffers, a flood resistive green home gardening model, green paving, rain water harvesting, drenching inland waterways, and converting selected marshy lands as park areas could be implemented as sustainable land management strategies for flood disaster risk reduction in the area. Farmers and the local community will be the main beneficiaries of the findings of this study. Moreover, decision makers could make decisions based on this prediction relating to future flood occurrences, vulnerable areas, and flood levels. The approach adopted in this study will also be useful for other researchers, agriculturalists, and planners to identify future climatological influences and to develop flood simulation models for other river catchment areas.

Cultural Ecosystem Services and Recreational Use: A Review Study in Belgrad Forest, Istanbul.

2018-06-15T12:06:24-04:00

This paper discusses Cultural ecosystem services (CES) as a part of ecosystem services (ES) and recreational use as a sub issue in the CES. Concepts, perceptions, cultural differences, and historical processes on the subject are explored by examining previous research studies. Explanations are illustrated through a case study of Istanbul’s Belgrad forest. Istanbul is the largest city of Turkey, with a population of over14 million inhabitants. Belgrad urban forest is located in the North West part of Istanbul, approximately 20km from the city center. An urgent management strategy is required to sustainably meet the recreational requirements of the population. Belgrad Forest is a multifunctional forest; it retains a protected status owing to its role in water production. In Belgrad Forest all ES are covered, but recently the recreational function of the forest has gained dominance relative to the other ES. It is operating over its capability from the perspective of CES. Picnicking, jogging, walking, cycling, and sight-seeing are the types of outdoor recreation activities most preferred by visitors. The total area of the forest is 5.442 ha, but the area allocated for recreation activities is just 181.5 ha. This allocated area is insufficient and other service areas are being used due to the high demands. For this review, recent studies and technological tools are examined using research papers and previous studies implemented on Belgrad Forest to identify the optimum management for the recreational requirements with consideration to the sustainability of ES.

Search for Plans for Drinking Water Basins: Ömerli Drinking Water Basin as an Example

2018-06-15T11:58:32-04:00

Water resources are vital for ensuring the continuity of life on Earth and should be protected. However, water supplies to large cities are currently being polluted and depleted owing to gradual ecosystem degradation from anthropogenic activities. Studies focusing on solutions to pollution and the depletion of water resources must include the rural–urban systems that strain basin ecosystems at every planning stage, including every country, region, and basin at every level. The aim of this study was to determine a new planning method enabling sustainability in water basins within residential areas. The scope of the study included elements of the basin ecosystem and the negative anthropogenic effects of urban systems on the basin ecosystem. Therefore, through systematic and comprehensive planning, basin and urban ecosystems, as well as regional parameters and the interaction between parameters, were examined regarding the current and future situation. The aim was to achieve targets at the maximum level by enabling the applicability of plans and coordination, to align planning decisions with the unique sociocultural aspects of each region, and to integrate them into the current system. Therefore, addressing ecological and socioeconomic systems together and reducing the limitations were the focus of this study. Ömerli Drinking Water Basin, located on the Asian side of Istanbul, was chosen as a project basin to implement the plans, because it meets one-third of Istanbul’s water requirement, with a high biodiversity, including rare vegetation types, and has experienced considerable human population growth since 1980. Industrial and mining activities in its vicinity have resulted in environmental impacts, such as erosion, owing to intense agricultural activities and overpopulation. The proposed new planning model, which could be integrated into existing laws through broad participation in the law-making process, is a system in which basin ecosystem boundaries and protected areas are based on scientific facts and where the system is managed from a single center.

A GIS-Based Walkable Service Area Analysis from Smart Growth Perspective in the city of Edirne

2018-06-15T12:02:49-04:00

Today it is generally agreed that one of the most important problems of many cities is uncontrolled urbanization. Different approaches have been tried to investigate how cities should be developed. Among these approaches, the Smart Growth movement initially emerged as a response to all of the negative externalities (environmental corruption, rising costs, poor infrastructure, and operational and maintenance issues) resulting from urban sprawl. The Smart Growth approach is based upon 10 main principles. Among these principles, “creating walkable environments” plays a crucial role in promoting society’s health, relating to both physical and mental conditions. Moreover, walkable areas stimulate revitalization of public spaces, open space, and local shops. From the perspective of Smart Growth, evidence has shown that there is excessive use of the automobile, which dramatically increased greenhouse gas emissions in many cities, including the city of Edirne in Turkey. However, the topography of the city is quite suitable for walking and cycling trips. The main purpose of this paper is to measure walkability in Edirne City and to identify areas with low walkability scores. In this way, the quality of pedestrian facilities, safety, and the comfort of walking can be increased. Different methodologies exist in the literature for walkability analysis. One of them, Walkable Service Area Analysis (WSAA), is a spatial network analysis based on a Geographic Information System (GIS). ArcGIS software from the Environmental Systems Research Institute (Esri) has been used to perform WSAA in this article. Through the GIS-based walkability analysis and using the calculated index, the walkability scores of neighborhoods were determined and the results have been classified into five categories (not walkable, low walkable, medium walkable, high walkable, and exceptionally walkable) in the city of Edirne.

An Analysis of “Sustainable Mobility” Research: From a Planning Perspective

2018-06-15T12:10:31-04:00

Factors such as housing, mobility, and recreation all cause environmental pressures. Lifestyles and consumption patterns play an important role here. When examining energy use rates, transportation is a key area. As one of the pillars of sustainable development, urban mobility is at the center of climate change debates, crucial to meeting targets for the reduction of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, and for quality of life. This paper aims to understand how this issue is handled within the academic literature and to reveal the research areas and geographies which deal with this issue. A combination set of keywords has been used as the basis for the literature review. The methodology applied is based on the Web of Science database, referencing the most recognized and trustworthy indices in academic areas such as the Science Citation Index Expanded, the Social Sciences Citation Index, and the Arts & Humanities Citation Index. The study focuses on (a) research area, (b) publication year, (c) geography of study, and (d) citation count in order to analyze the current situation of mobility research in the academic literature. The results are centered on the research fields of environmental science and technology, transportation, business economics, engineering and geography. Considering the significant role of urban planning and public administration on environmental implications of mobility, these research areas make up a small proportion of available research as a result of our literature review within these intersected keywords and it should be noted that individual consumption habits have great emphasis on twenty-first century’s dominated debates.