Author
PhD Student of Geography and Urban Planning, University of Zanjan, Zanjan, Iran
Abstract
The south region of Iran has experienced extensive changes during the past 60 years. This paper aims to monitoring changes in the network of urban settlements in the south region of Iran to determine its balance status. The methodology of the research is based on descriptive-analytical approaches and the required data were collected from the last eight censuses. The cities in the region are classified and then the urban network of the region was examined using different models including the urban primacy indices such as two cities, Ginsberg, Mehta, Moomaw and Alwosabi, Mousavi's supremacy; and the centralization indices including Herfindal, Henderson and balance indices including entropy, coefficient of variation and rank-size rule. The results of urban primacy and centralization indicators shown that that urban primary and concentration rates have decreased in all periods, except for the year 1976. The results of balance indices also revealed that has always increased an imbalance in the spatial distribution of population in the urban network of the region from 1956 to 2016. The results of the rank-size index also indicate a relatively large difference between the actual population and the desirable population and also the domination of primacy on the urban network of the region from 1956 to 2016. Considering that the two main reasons for the imbalance in the urban network of the region are migration from rural to urban areas and the conversion of villages in the center of the district to urban areas of any population size, solutions Planning strategies for regional planning are presented to strengthen the economy and develop job opportunities in rural areas, and as well as amending the law to convert rural to urban, in the form spot of a minimum population criterion for convert rural to urban.
Extended Abstract
Introduction
An urban network is a set of interconnected cities that form the structure of a network of urban settlements in an area, region, country and world. The urban network is not only limited to the physical set of urban settlements, but also includes the flows and connections between these settlements. These flows are: population, capital, factors of production, ideas, information, innovation and their dynamics depend on the amount of movement of goods, services, thoughts and population movements between towns and rural areas. In fact, the dependence and connection of settlements to each other is the most important feature of urban networks. Change in urban networks is a continuous process that occurs simultaneously at different spatial levels. Due to the importance of urban networks, most strategies of urban and regional planners such as top-down decentralization approaches and bottom-up decentralization approaches have been done to balance urban networks. Urbanization and the strong tendency of the population to live in urban areas are the result of specific economic and social policies and strategies of each country. In Iran, demographic changes have had tremendous effects on the socio-economic and physical structure of the country. The increase in population and their displacement and migration from deprived to privileged places has upset the regional balance. Its natural reflection is the occurrence of problems such as urban domination, concentration of activities and services, imbalance in the urban hierarchy system and so on. One of the most obvious problems is the improper distribution of the urban system, which occurs mainly based on the concentration of economic, social and demographic activities in a large urban network. On the other hand, the lack of logical communication between cities of different levels has caused the inefficiency of urban networks on a regional and national scale. In this regard, the southern region of Iran is no exception to this rule. The rapid growth of urbanization and urban population growth has accelerated in the south region of Iran over the past few decades and it seems that its urban network does not have a good spatial balance. Accordingly, in this research, the network of urban settlements in the south region of Iran from 1956 to 2016 has been monitored and analyzed. In general, in urban and regional studies, the study of the number and distribution of urban centers and how the population is distributed in these settlements has a special place. Evaluation and analysis of urban networks indicate policies and how the population is distributed throughout the land. By studying this, the mode of distribution and the amount of balance in the distribution of the population become more clear. Government actions in the field of regional planning, decentralization, and the strengthening of small and medium-sized cities over the past decades have yielded mixed results. Familiarity with the existing urban network of the south region of Iran and its comparison with previous periods determines the spatial consequences of government decisions and population movements in this region. In fact, the study of the urban network of the south region of Iran indicates the movements of capital, labor and population in the territory of this region between different urban classes. The main purpose of this study is to identify the demographic changes in the network of urban settlements in the south region of Iran during the years 1956 to 2016 using different models to determine the balance of the urban network in the southern region of Iran. In general, this study seeks to answer the following questions:
1- What have been the changes in the network of urban settlements in the southern region of Iran during the periods 1956 to 2016?
2- Have the urban primacy indicators, centralization and balance of the urban network in the south region of Iran improved over the past 60 years?
Methodology
The research method is descriptive-analytical in nature and applied in terms of purpose. Library resources have been used to formulate theoretical foundations and the results of general population and housing censuses of the country during the years 1956 to 2016 have been used to collect data. The statistical population includes all urban areas of the southern region of Iran in the period 1956 to 2016. In this study, using Excel software, while classifying demographic data of urban areas, the study of the network of urban settlements in the region are discussed using the urban primacy models including the urban primacy Indicator such as two cities, Ginsberg, Mehta, Moomaw and Alwosabi, Mousavi's supremacy and centralization models including Herfindal and Henderson Indicators as well as balance models including entropy Indicator, coefficient of variation and rank-size. The southern region of Iran includes the two provinces of Hormozgan and Bushehr in the south of the country. In the National Body Plan, Iran is divided into ten planning regions, 12 demographic and urban areas and 85 planning areas, which today have increased to 90 areas. In this plan, region 9 is the southern region of Iran (Hormozgan and Bushehr).
Results and Discussion
The results of urban primacy and centralization indicators shown that that urban primary and concentration rates have decreased in all periods, except for the year 1976. The results of balance indices also revealed that has always increased an imbalance in the spatial distribution of population in the urban network of the region from 1956 to 2016. The results of the rank-size index also indicate a relatively large difference between the actual population and the desirable population and also the domination of primacy on the urban network of the region from 1956 to 2016.
Conclusion
The southern region of Iran due to lack of proper management facing with challenges such as migration from rural to urban areas and the conversion of villages in the center of the district with any population to urban areas, population concentration in the coastal strip and threatening valuable natural resources and the spread of environmental pollution in all coastal areas which, among other issues, has endangered the sustainable urban development of the region. If the results of balance indicators express that the balance of the urban network of this region during the last 60 years has always been facing imbalance. To meet these challenges and stop the trend towards imbalance, the following solutions are suggested:
1- Strengthening economic foundations and increasing job opportunities in rural areas of the region.
2- Amending the law of turning a village into a city by considering other criteria besides the population.
3- Strengthening small cities by benefiting from the minimum facilities based on the hierarchical system.
4- Balanced regional planning in order to create equal growth grounds in terms of investment and service provision.
5- Using the capacities and potentials of the higher areas of the region to establish more population in order to prevent excessive population density in the plains and fertile lands suitable for agriculture.
Keywords
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