Brownfield sites as catalysts for sustainable urban regeneration in Middle Eastern contexts and the demand for objectives, tools and classifications for the support of their redevelopment

Abstract

Almost two decades today, the topic ofhas extensively been researched in urban sociology, urban planning, and human geography, and numerous Western-Centric studies have linked the redevelopment of the abandoned, contaminated, vacant or derelict sites to sustainable urban regeneration and achieving smart cities and sustainability goals in general. Yet, until this day, the concept has received little academic and practical attention in Middle Eastern contexts.Western contexts on the other hand including Europe, UK and USA continue to offer unique perspectives on approachingin ways that reduce the alarming spatial cluttering and addressdisparities and spatial segregation in addition to achieving economic and environmental goals, and similar to the global scene, brownfield sites make a large portion of the post-industrial city of Amman, the capital of Jordan. However, with the lack of a systematic definition for the urban phenomenon objectives, methods to identifying potential brownfield sites and evaluating theof their redevelopment that takes into consideration context particularities, and with the absence ofapproaches that include the local community in the decision-making regarding these spaces, city planners fail to include the increasingly growing number of brownfield site that proliferate their cities in the urban planning practice.Through the examination of literature discussions on objectives, approaches, classification systems, methodologies, assessment and evaluation tools for the support of design anddecisions for brownfield regeneration in different contexts, and through looking at the numerous potential alternatives for brownfield sites regeneration these contexts highlight, this paper bids tothe importance of developing context specific,tools tailored for the Middle Eastern case.Building on the above, this paper identifies five potential brownfield typologies in the context of Amman; (1) residual planning outcomes; (2) discontinued mines and quarries; (3) unfinished mega-projects; (4) contaminated and hazardous sites, and; (5) miscellaneous abandoned sites and buildings, and ends on the note that looking at the increasing demand to meeting smart growth and sustainability needs, these urban landscapes may function as catalysts for achieving comprehensive sustainable urban regeneration.