Abstract

This paper represents a preliminary stage of a multiphase research-project, carried out at the Arab
Academy for Science and Technology (AAST) by the Environmental Design Research Group (EDRG)
looking at alternative proposals for urban development strategies at Abu Qir Area in Alexandria, Egypt.
Abu Qir is located east of Alexandria has a very important productive bay on the Mediterranean Sea and
its eastern and south east coast is the only mirror of Egypt on the Dead Sea. Besides being one of the
most important spots on Alexandria bay, Abu Qir is considered one of the highest polluted areas in
Alexandria, although the area itself has a very high potential on the Mediterranean and the Dead Sea.
This paper explores the design and development of an ecological park as a part of the urban
development at Abu Qir bay. The paper investigates the proposals of conceptual design strategies for an
Ecological Park at Abu-Qir. Lessons learnt from examples that have successfully introduced and
developed the ideas of Ecological parks in the international built environment are reviewed.
Parks are key elements in the urban ecosystem, serving dual roles as core zones of urban nature and
as multi-use recreational open space. Moreover, as part of an open space system, they play important
functional roles as part of landscape-scale habitat and hydrological networks.
Today, there is an urging need for the development of urban parks. As urban populations have rapidly
increased through civilization and industrialization, cities have been enlarged, nature has been impaired,
and human relations have been damaged. For these reasons, people have lost the opportunity to come
into contact with nature. Environmental problems such as air and water pollution have resulted, in
conjunction with a gradual decrease in natural surroundings. Ecological destruction has caused the
landscape to be devastated. For this reason, ecological parks, places serving to reintroduce beautiful
birds and insects into the devastated landscape, are needed. There is a need for ecological parks as
places where sound ecological values can be instilled and established through the observation and study
of nature. Higher priority is given to the ecological environment than in other parks.
The design proposal of the ecological park is a place that is ecologically restored and preserved for the
purposes of scientific observation and study, and also to provide an easily accessible place for visitors to
observe plants, animals and insects living in their natural environment. The proposed park also plays an
important role as an educational open classroom for the community and aims at raising global awareness
issues in Abu-Qir, thus ensuring that children grow up with an awareness of the global problems facing
the world today, and how they can contribute, as active members of the society, in reducing the
consequences of pollution and global warming we have created with our own hands. The paper analyses
the Abu Qir village potentials and constraints and put forward an urban development strategy based on
this analysis. The paper then presents the strategy that has been established to thoroughly preserve,
protect and maintain areas of rich natural resources at Abu Qir, and method have been developed to
allow enjoyment of them with minimum artificial influence. Eco-tours have been developed for observation
of ecosystems. A variety of opportunities to experience nature has been made available by minimization
of human interference and by the introduction of an "Environment Commentator" as will be discussed in
this paper.