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A framework to analyse urban sprawl in the French Mediterranean coastal zone

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Abstract

As in many other European countries, urbanisation and urban sprawl along the French Mediterranean coast are a major concern. Understanding this phenomenon requires both multi-level and multi-disciplinary approaches. In this perspective, this article presents a framework for the observation and analysis of urban sprawl in the French Mediterranean coastal zone. Developed in the context of a scientific coastal observatory with four contrasting study sites, the framework was designed to structure the observation and analysis of urban sprawl dynamics and their driver variables. Although urban expansion is currently slowing in coastal zones, local exceptions can be found and accounted for by historical urban planning and environmental protection measures, local residential tax policies and contradictory perceptions of coastal zones by residents. Our multi-disciplinary initiative is capable of integrating different temporal and spatial scales and has proven relevant in analysing urban sprawl in coastal areas. It shows the need to study coastal areas at finer scales to identify specific dynamics in their local contexts, since these represent the scale at which administrative decisions are made.

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Notes

  1. United Nations World Tourism Organisation press release, 15035, 27 May 2015

  2. URL: http://www.ohm-littoral-mediterraneen.fr/

  3. Centre national de la recherche scientifique. URL: http://www.cnrs.fr/

  4. ‘Residential taxes’ mean taxes paid by households to their municipality of residence. They refer to both the housing tax and the property tax on buildings.

  5. VIPLI-Med (Intégrer une connaissance de la représentation et de la visibilité et des représentations du paysage pour la gestion et la planification de l’espace en zone côtière. Analyse spatiale et approche socio-culturelle sur trois littoraux méditerranéens): project funded by Fondation de France.

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Funding

This work was funded by the Labex DRIIHM, French programme “Investissements d’Avenir” (ANR-11-LABX-0010) which is managed by the ANR.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. ESPACE, UMR 7300, CNRS, Aix Marseille Université, Avignon Université, Université Nice Sophia-Antipolis, F-06204, Nice Cedex, France

    Samuel Robert, Dennis Fox, Guilhem Boulay, Aurélie Prévost, Alexandra Schleyer-Lindenmann & Marie-Laure Trémélo

  2. ESPACE, UMR 7300, CNRS, Technopole de l’Environnement Arbois Méditerranée, Aix Marseille Université, BP 80-13545, Aix-en-Provence Cedex 04, France

    Samuel Robert

  3. TELEMME, UMR 7303, CNRS, Aix Marseille Université, F-13094, Aix-en-Provence Cedex 2, France

    Antoine Grandclément

  4. Department Strategies and Marine Sciences, Office of Environment of Corsica, F-20600, Bastia, France

    Marie Garrido

  5. Sciences pour l’Environnement, UMR 6134, CNRS, Université de Corse, F-20250, Corte, France

    Marie Garrido & Vanina Pasqualini

  6. Stella Mare, UMS 3514, CNRS, Université de Corse, F-20250, Corte, France

    Vanina Pasqualini

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  1. Samuel Robert
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Correspondence to Samuel Robert.

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Editor: James D. Ford

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Robert, S., Fox, D., Boulay, G. et al. A framework to analyse urban sprawl in the French Mediterranean coastal zone. Reg Environ Change 19, 559–572 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10113-018-1425-4

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10113-018-1425-4

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