Document Type : scientific-research article
Authors
Abstract
Natural and environmental conditions of the province of East Azerbaijan has caused the concentration of the majority of its population in certain geographical places such as valleys, foot of the hills and limited fertile plains. The increase of population together with the expansion of urban industrial centers means greater pressure to these spaces and serious treats to the environment. These conditions are more perceptible in green valleys near the city of Tabriz where destruction of agricultural lands apart from economic damages, causes ecological imbalances in this metropolitan area. This paper evaluates the impact of the increase of population and settlement expansion on the destruction of agricultural lands and environment. Based on the findings of a research entitled: “Patterns of Oskoo valley settlements and arrangement with special reference to the environment,” the writers of the article found that, Oskoo valley is crucially important for the ecology of the region and it is considered as one of the natural regions of Tabriz area. The valley contains 4800 hectares of lands and a population of 40743. It includes two towns and six villages. According to the findings of the research, during a period of thirteen years from 1989 to 2002, 12 percent is added to the population of the area and 77 percent to the constructed areas. In other words, during this period, an increase in the area of land under construction has been much faster than that of the number of population. Also there has been a considerable decline in the area of agricultural lands in favor of residential and other non-agricultural uses. If the process of converting the agricultural lands continues the naturalness and the beauty of the region will be totally destroyed in the near future and the area will encounter an environmental crisis.
Keywords: Expansion of settlement, agricultural lands, land use and change, environmental destruction, Oskoo valley.
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