Abstract
Environmental disputes arise due to opposing views of various groups about their environmental concerns and their economic or developmental interests. Development and protection of the environment constitute two main contradictory objectives within the sustainable development paradigm, which are often in conflict. The decision support system, GMCR II, which implements the graph model for conflict resolution, is employed to model and analyze an environmental dispute arising over the construction of a new freeway between the Iranian capital, Tehran, and the city of Chalous located in the north of the country. This study demonstrates that the graph model for conflict resolution can be used as a methodology to promote a reasonable balance between economic development and environmental protection from a strategic viewpoint. In addition to systematically modelling the conflict by putting the existing information into proper perspective, it is shown how conflict analysis can be used for comparing alternative scenarios and predicting possible future outcomes.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Similar content being viewed by others
Explore related subjects
Discover the latest articles and news from researchers in related subjects, suggested using machine learning.References
Brown, L. R. (1981). Building a sustainable society. NY: W.W. Norton & Co., 433 pp.
Fang, L., Hipel, K. W., & Kilgour, D. M. (1988). The graph model approach to environmental conflict resolution. Journal of Environmental Management, 27(2), 195–212.
Fang, L., Hipel, K. W., & Kilgour, D. M. (1989). Conflict models in graph form: Solution concepts and their interrelationships. European Journal of Operational Research, 41(1), 86–100.
Fang, L., Hipel, K. W., & Kilgour, D. M. (1993). Interactive decision making: The graph model for conflict resolution. NY: Wiley, 221 pp.
Fang, L., Hipel, K. W., Kilgour, D. M., & Peng, X. (2003a). A decision support system for interactive decision making, part I: Model formulation. IEEE Transactions on Systems, Man, and Cybernetics, Part C: Applications and Reviews, 33(1), 42–55.
Fang, L., Hipel, K. W., Kilgour, D. M., & Peng, X. (2003b). A decision support system for interactive decision making, part II: Analysis and output interpretation. IEEE Transactions on Systems, Man, and Cybernetics, part C: Applications and Reviews, 33(1), 56–66.
Fang, L., Hipel, K. W., & Wang, L. Z. (2002). Gisborne water export conflict study. In G. H. Schmitz (Ed.), Proc 3rd int’l conf. on water resources and environment research ( Vol. 1, pp. 432–436). Dresden, Germany: ICWRER.
Fraser, N. M., & Hipel, K. W. (1984). Conflict analysis: Models and resolutions. NY: North-Holland.
Glasby, G. P. (2002). Sustainable development: The need for a new paradigm. Environment, Development and Sustainability, 4, 333–345.
Hipel, K. W. (2001). Conflict resolution. In M. K. Tolba (Ed.), Our fragile world: Challenges and opportunities for sustainable development (forerunner to The Encyclopedia of Life Support Systems) (Vol. 1, pp. 935–952). Oxford, United Kingdom: Eolss Publishers.
Hipel, K. W., Kilgour, D. M., Fang, L., & Peng, X. (1997). The decision support system GMCR in environmental conflict management. Applied Mathematics and Computation, 83(2 and 3), 117–152.
Hipel, K. W., Kilgour, D. M., Fang, L., & Peng, X. (2001). Strategic decision support for the services industry. IEEE Transactions on Engineering Management, 48(3), 358–369.
Hipel, K. W., & Obeidi, A. (2005). Trade versus the environment: Strategic settlement from a systems engineering perspective. Systems Engineering, 13, 211–233.
Hipel, K. W., & Yin, X. (1987). Conflict analysis in hydroelectric power development. International Journal of Hydroelectric Energy, 5(3), 213–228.
Howard, N. (1971). Paradoxes of rationality: Theory of metagames and political behavior. Cambridge, Massachusetts: MIT Press.
Jamejam Newspaper (2004). Tehran-north freeway: Unclear condition (24 May). Tehran, Iran (http://www.jamejamdaily.net/shownews2.asp?n = 57189andt = env).
Keyhan Newspaper (2004). Special report on Tehran-north freeway construction (10 May) Tehran, Iran (http://kayhannews.ir/830230/5.htm).
Kilgour, D. M., Fang, L., & Hipel, K. W. (1995). GMCR in negotiations. Negotiation J., 11(2), 151–156.
Kilgour, D. M., Hipel, K. W., & Fang, L. (1987). The graph model for conflicts. Automatica, 23(1), 41–55.
Kilgour, D. M., Hipel, K. W., & Fraser, N. M. (1984). Solution concepts in non-co-operative games. Large Scale Systems, 6(1), 49–71.
Levy, J. K., Hipel, K. W., & Kilgour, D. M. (1995). A holistic approach to sustainable development: the graph model for conflict resolution. Information and Systems Engineering, 1, 159–177.
Noakes, D. J., Fang, L., Hipel, K. W., & Kilgour, D. M. (2003). An examination of the salmon aquaculture conflict in British Columbia using the graph model for conflict resolution. Fisheries Management and Ecology, 10, 123–137.
Okada, N., Hipel, K. W., & Oka, Y. (1985). Hypergame analysis of the lake Biwa conflict. Water Resources Research, 21(7), 917–926.
Tehran-north Freeway Company (2002). Tehran-north Freeway, Technical Report, Tehran, Iran.
World Commission on Environment, Sustainability (1987). Our common future. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Additional information
Readers should send their comments on this paper to: BhaskarNath@aol.com within 3 months of publication of this issue.
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Ghanbarpour, M.R., Hipel, K.W. Sustainable development conflict over freeway construction. Environ Dev Sustain 11, 241–253 (2009). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10668-007-9107-2
Received:
Accepted:
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10668-007-9107-2