Housing and Rural Environment
Year:2016 | Volume:34 | Issue:152|Papers Count:9

Human beings are constantly interacting with their surrounding environment. This interaction tends to adapt the surrounding environment to human inner context (culture) and eliminate undesirable environmental tensions. As an important and specific component of culture, ‘Lifestyle’ plays an important role in human and environmental adaptation. “Lifestyle” has number of manifest and hidden aspects that influence the built environment and constantly change it. Based on the concept of “affordance” and “meaning”, this study describes the “human and environment adaptation” through the analysis of Qashqai dwellings. The theoretical framework of this study is based on ‘Environmental adaptation to human lifestyle’. The adaptation of human and environment happens under the influence of values, human mental meanings and affordances. In order to study human and environmental adaptation aspects, the structure of the built and natural environment, the structure of lifestyle, and finally the structure of meanings have been analyzed. Human and environment adaptation is a creative issue, with affordance-meaning continuous adaptation as its central component. Changes in the Built environment are reflections of the continuous evaluation and adaptation of affordance-meaning. The findings, in addition to providing a theoretical structure for studies of man-environment relation and introducing human and environmental adaptation properties, help to understand why people form their environments and dwellings in a particular fashion.

Disasters are identified as main causes of change in place, which seriously disrupt the person-place emotional relationship. The disruption, as the most important consequence of the disasters, happens through corporeal alterations in the place, and physical and psychological damages in people, leading to anxiety and feeling of loss in residents. Recent settlement reconstruction processes tend to not only rebuild the survivors’ neighborhood physically, but also to reduce the psychological damages to the residents- as the main achievement of a rehabilitation process.Due to the lack of theoretical frameworks of environmental sciences, especially environmental psychology and place attachment discussions, in disasters and the disasters’ effects on person-place relationship in one hand, and post-disaster reconstruction role in recreating place-attachment and reducing the disruptions on the other hand, the research seeks to develop a theory based on understanding and assessment of the factors causing disruption in place attachment after disasters. The sample community for performing the research was chosen among the residents of Bam who experienced the massive damages of the 2003 earthquake and the resulting changes in place.Due to the qualitative nature of the research, it is based on the ethnographic research methods. The qualitative data collection is conducted through field observations and in-depth, face-to-face interviews applying a field study approach. Data analysis and the composition of the theory and the relevant explanations are done within the framework of "grounded theory", comprised of the process of open coding, axial coding, and selective coding (Strauss-Corbin, 1998).In this study, in-depth interviews are conducted among 40 old residents of Emamzade Zeid and Emamzade Qasr-e-Hamid, with the age range of 25 to 65 years, living in the neighborhood prior to the earthquake, who could remember pre-while-post earthquake events. These people have reconstructed their homes during 10 years.Research findings reveal that the most important factors causing post-earthquake disruption in place-attachment, from the residents’ viewpoint, were the loss of elements related to the city-identity, such as the Arg (citadel) and the Nakhlestans (palm groves). The residents also pointed out the loss of the sense of home, leading to reduction of social kinship and neighborhood relationships, as well as neighborhood identity degradation due to the physical destruction of the place. Finally, Bam residents interpret the interferences in place attachment as “Neighborhood Past Nostalgia”; causing a loss of interest in the neighborhood.Contrary to the common belief in the importance of physical reconstruction to the survivors, other factors such as the reconstruction of identity-related elements of the city were emphasized along with necessary infrastructures for promotion of living conditions, neighborhood social relationships and neighborhood identity revival. These factors seem to have a positive impact in recreating the residents’ emotional bond with the reconstructed neighborhoods, which is a matter to be considered in post-disaster reconstruction planning, especially at neighborhood level.

Reusing concrete that is obtained through recycling provides significant environmental and economic benefits. Approximately, 25 billion tons of concrete is produced annually that is 3.8 tons per capita worldwide. In Iran, the booming construction as well as decayed urban fabric renovation and reconstruction have caused pure aggregate mines to diminish and increasing amount of wasted construction materials. As a result, the significance of recycling wasted materials is further emphasized especially since there are huge amount of fresh and used wasted during production process as well as great amount of remained concrete after disasters. Reduction in usage of pure aggregates, landfill disposal for the wasted concrete and CO2 emission in comparison to processing and transporting new aggregates are among the advantages of recycling wasted concrete. This study attempts to present a new perspective of using recycled aggregates for a better sustainable planning by gathering and processing past data producing new results to pave the way for recycled concrete applicability in Iran.Earthquake stricken city of Bam Post-Disaster management is a good case in order to determine how recycling waste materials could significantly reduce costs. According to a report from “Bonyad-e-Maskan” housing foundation, A thousand trucks were needed to transport and dispose twelve million tons of wasted material, which costed 3.375 million dollar for the government. However, this could have been greatly reduced by using recycling plant sites in different places of city.The other case for transportation in cycle time reduction is the renovation project of Eden Highway in 1950 in USA. The study showed that in case of using recycled aggregates for repairing the surface of the road, the constructors could have saved 85% of their trips to infill sites.Many methods are available for recycling wasted materials especially for concrete recycling among which, is rubbing and crushing wasted material to obtain aggregates is very common. Studies show that the water absorption of these aggregates made of different sizes is more than pure ones, which leads to heighten the W/C ratio. In addition, the resistance of concrete made by recycled aggregates could be stabilized by replacing 10% of recycled aggregates. The Germans engineers measured the percentage of 45 for allowable replacement needs to maintain the resistance. Other recycling methods include electrical shocks, Heating methods and using microwave radiation. HRM (Heating and Rubbing Method) is also one of the optimized ways of recycling.In conclusion, there are numerous advantages in recycling waste materials. Aggregates from recycling process used in sub-base layer of road pavements could be used for recycled concrete in case of disaster by using HRM powder (product of HRM process).

Today, we are faced with a variety of rural residential architecture with significant differences with their precursors. Studies show that, in the past fifty years, modernization has caused considerable changes in the architecture of rural housing in Fars province. These changes have transformed village features and have caused different problems in rural areas.Although, the initiation of this change can be found in the relationship of urban and rural areas, agrarian reforms in 1342, can be considered the actual onset of transformation in villages.The main objective of this paper is modernity review of the modernization process in the rural housing in Fars Province. In this regard, based on the literature on rural housing and field studies, and without a critical stance to the modernization per se, the changes in rural residential architecture have been evaluated.The residential architecture of villages was observed through different methods including direct observation, statistical data and mapping the houses. Data analysis was done by the regression analysis and analysis of variance (F) with “SPSS” software.The results indicate that the new constructions in the past fifty years, have not complied with time-honored rural identity. Also, the results show that the building materials, spaces of residential units and the number of households living in housing units in the last half century have had significant changes.With regard to the importance of rural housing, the results of this research reveal important factors to consider in the plannig of the rural residential developments.

Throughout the history and all around the world, ever since the establishment of the rural settlements, some of these communities have been moved to different locations. The reasons for these displacements are diverse and include natural disasters, protection of natural resources, war, development projects and other factors. A review of the documented experiences reveals that in spite of the positive effects of some relocation projects, the settlers were sometimes displeased with its mode of execution. The most important reasons for the dissatisfaction include loss of land, legal disclaimer of properties, the rupture of services and social networks, loss of sources of income, social tensions, problems in the allocation of funds for housing construction in new location, the urban style of design in the overall form of the rural settlement, weakness or loss of cultural identity, traditional patterns of authority and potential for collaboration, obstacles to the participation of the rural dwellers in the relocation process, physical problems in new settlements, and other factors.Islamieh village as part of Shirvan district of Shirvanchardavol township of Elam province is one of villages in which the relocation process was performed due to shortage of space, physical and health considerations.The method of this research is descriptive and analytical, and the relevant data has been collected through field research and observation, complemented with questionnaires and interviews. In this study, several indexes including housing conditions and funds, villagers’ access to some services, evaluation of the rate of participation in the execution of project, the effects of relocation on livelihood, and other factors have been considered. Also, a poll has been carried out among 44 households in the new village. The aim of this paper is a survey of rural dwellers’ opinion in Islamieh village on the relocation plan, considering the physical dimensions of the settlements (housing quality, rural routes and footpaths, management of runoff and sewage), access to services, infrastructure and superstructure, participation of villagers in the project, displacement effect on the livelihood and satisfaction of villagers.The results show that villagers are satisfied with some aspects of the village relocation plan including the location of site, adjustment with neighbors and access to some of the services However, some other aspects, such as the condition of routes and water canals, participation of villagers in the project and effect of the relocation on the livelihood choices have been sources of dissatisfaction among the residents.

Temporary Housing is a critical yet challenging issue in earthquake stricken areas. Families affected by natural disasters often need a safe place to restart their daily activities. If temporary housing is not provided in an appropriate time, immediately after the earthquake, it can cause social and individual problems for affected people. The purpose of this investigation is the evaluation of temporary housing in earthquake stricken village of Chubanlu Sardarlu- Heris, based on the poll of the female population. It is noteworthy that despite the responsibility of the female population to care for the home environment, they are faced with many impediments including the scarcity of livelihood choices, poverty, and physical limitations.This study is a qualitative research with a phenomenological interpretation approach. For this purpose, unstructured interviews were conducted with the female population of Chubanlar. The results showed that female inhabitants recognized two catagories of temporary housing issues; the issues related to the outside of the tent (peripheral factors) and those related to the inside of the tent (immediate surrounding factors). According to information from the interviews, women deal with some problems like lack of safety, sanitary defects of the facilities, shortages inwater supply, lack of privacy, poor ventilation, and overcrowding inside of the tents.Hence, measures were taken to remedy the drawbacks including the fencing and a Chinese wall around the premises. Also, the public baths were relocated to a more secluded area, and were separated by gender. Bathrooms for disabled women were located in their residential vicinity. The numbers of water taps were increased to at least one per tent. In other locations water barrels were placed near the tents. A temporary mosque was also erected.In order to maintain the health and comfort of the tent space, it was suggested for the area to be divided into two parts; the living space and the storage area. In this manner, the ordinary routine of separated resting area from other household endeavors such as washing and cooking were replicated.To solve the problem of poor ventilation a vent can be embedded in the body of the shelter or the number of windows can be increased in the upper parts of tents.

The history of window as a “wind-eye” is as old as the history of architecture. But the history of glass as window glazing is relatively new. For centuries windows were covered with materials other than glass. In china and Japan oiled paper made of rice, protected by a sliding wooden shutter, allowed light in and kept cold drafts out. Colored chunks of glass in cement frames were used in Syria and Egypt. Thin slabs of marble were used by Romans. Even the windows of the early new England houses were covered with stretched animal skins. During the middle ages small pieces of colored glass were used only in windows of very important churches.Window glazing as we know it today is practically the product of the industrial revolution in England. In the first decades of the 20th century glass manufacturers began to produce large sheets of glass. This trend caused windows to become larger and larger, to the point that the whole walls and ultimately the facades of some buildings were covered with thick sheets of glass. This trend of using glass and usually steel structures in building design became known as the “international style”. In this movement Iran also was not an exception. Unfortunately today, the construction of diverse types of glass-covered buildings is a common practice in almost every city in this country.After the energy crises of 1970’s, an extensive research in architectural glazings and window frames has been undertaken by different institutions and glass manufacturers to improve the thermal behavior of windows and to develop the new more efficient glazing materials and window frames. The aim of this study is to investigate:- The external forces and physical conditions influencing the thermal behavior of architectural glazing under different circumstances.- The impact of environment forces, orientation of windows and their shading.- The materials, components of windows, different types of glazing and window frames.The final part of this study contemplates on the thermal behavior of window frames made of different conventional and new materials. Windows in almost every climate can considerably alter the amount of purchased energy required to maintain comfort.Well-designed, they can actually provide a net energy gain; poorly designed, they can be an enormous energy burden. This study provides design strategies to make windows more energy efficient.

During the last three decades, village rehabilitation and development, particularly the improvement of spatial/corporal conditions of these settlements have been the basic priority of planners and managers of the country. One of the programs initiated with this goal was the implementation of Guide-plans for the improvement of spaces within the village boundaries and the outskirts. These projects have been devised and implemented in many rural areas of the country since 1983.. This research is an applied study conducted through descriptive-analytical methods. After collecting the data through questionnaires and oral interviews, the study proceeds to analyze and evaluate the spatial/corporal effects of implementation of the Guide-plan in Fathabad village; an area in the central part of Marvdasht city.To collect the data, the research team combined literature review with field studies. Finally the SPSS software was used to process the collected data. An average coefficient of 0.79 for Cronbach's Alpha confirmed the validity of the questionnaire while the counselling sessions with local experts and academics proved the validity of the survey. Also, in order to analyze the questions, the test of "single sample t test "was used to examine each question in the form of a number related to direct effects, indirect effects and final effects in the region. The statistical population of research consisted of 1080 heads of households for rural families in this settlement, out of which 110 were selected as sample. In view of physical or corporeal impact, the results indicate that the implementation of the Guide-plan has been assessed as positive and successful, due to the improvement of routes and transportation network, and facilitating village access through improving asphalt quality, beautifying the perspective and improving the views in the inner limits of the village, and improving waste management. However, the project has been found almost unsuccessful with regards to improvements in spatial properties of the village and capacity building for future developments. The shortcomings of Guide-plan include the lack of access to superstructures and facilities such as education, healthcare, recreation, etc. The Guide-plan has also failed to create incentives for community participation in inception or implementation of the plan.

One of the problems originated with the rapid growth of population and rural development in developing countries, especially Iran, is the expansion of solid wastes produced in domestic, agricultural, animal husbandry sections and health care centers. Villages greatly affect their surrounding environment and are affected by it due to their close relationship with the environment. With regards to this proximity, it is crucial to protect the rural environment from wastes. However, the rural residents are less aware of the hazards of contamination caused by scattering of wastes and its mismanagement.After the Islamic Revolution, as the previous systems were put aside, the villages lacked a consistent governance system which led to a myriad of problems. Assigning the management of the rural settlements to Dehyaris (governors of villages), and to some extent to the people, has caused both challenges and opportunities.The present study is done using analytical-descriptive method. First, attempts have been made to determine appropriate indicators by conducting preliminary observations in some rural areas of Zabol.. Subsequently, a set of indicators suitable to the geographical area and the situation in the villages of Zabol township are determined to investigate the quality of managing wastes and their level of environmental hazards. Therefore by using descriptive - analytic studies, theoretical investigations, field observations, and interviews with Village Islamic Councils, local experts and Dehyars, an estimation on the status of solid waste management in rural areas of Zabol township was formed.Data was analyzed through analytic hierarchy process (AHP) in the ArcGIS software. Research findings indicate that management quality of solid waste in the 4.5 percent of these villages is medium and in other villages is weak and very weak. So considering the current status of solid waste management, it is expected that these villages have different levels of environmental hazards according to the type and amount of solid waste. Research Findings also confirmed that the level of environmental hazards of solid waste in 15.9 percent of the villages is high, in 25percentof the villages is medium and the level in other villages is low or very low. Therefore, in order to reform the current patterns of waste disposal in rural setting, promoting the awareness and systematic training of the residents on the topics pertaining to environmental hazards and solid waste management is suggested.