- Urban Sprawl Risk Assessment based on ecological Infrastructure: an approach to smart conservation    701 kb by    LI, Bo | libogw0910@163.com    Short Outline This paper discusses an approach to smart conservation in the context of great pressure of urbanization in China through the assessment of urban sprawl risk based on ecological infrastructure. Hangzhou city is used as a case study. Abstract Using Hangzhou city of Zhejiang province as a case study, this paper discussed an approach to smart conservation based on holistic integration of abiotic, biotic, cultural and urban growth processes, which can meet the needs of ecological protection and the needs of urban healthy growth. There are three steps for smart conservation during the urban sprawl risk assessment. First, the ecological infrastructure (EI) network which consisted of greenways and strategic hubs should be planed through the analysis of landscape security patterns for flood and storm water management, bio-diversity conservation, cultural heritage protection and recreation. It was the prohibited or restricted development area for conservation, which ensured the integrity of the ecological service and the connectivity of landscape processes. Secondly, three urban growth pattern scenarios with different development policies were figured out based on analysis of self-organized and other- organized forces. With simulation of the self-organized urban dynamic spatial processes through cellular automata, and consideration of the stimulative and restrictive factors of urban growth in plan, alternative urban future scenarios emerged finally. At last, The urban growth pattern scenarios were compared with EI, and then the overlay areas with potential urban sprawl risk were found and ranked to several risk levels. Conversation priority of EI was valuated based on risk level and ecological value. Measures of planning and management should be taken to deal with the conflicts between conservation and development in these areas in order to reduce the hazard of urban sprawl. It is the key that whether smart conservation is in effect or not in the context of rapidly growing urbanization rate of Chinese cities. Keywords ecological infrastructure, urban sprawl risk, smart conservation, urban growth pattern, Hangzhou Case Study presented on the ISOCARP Congress 2008: Urban Growth without Sprawl   Click to open the full paper as pdf document   Click to send an email to the author(s) of this paper