Presenting the Ideal Model for the Management of Tehran Metropolitan Area

During the last few decades, the number of population and activity in the suburbs of Tehran has grown rapidly and as a result, the buffer zone of the capital city has faced major challenges. Changing the land use, especially natural covers, gardens and agricultural lands in favor of authorized and unauthorized constructions, is the manifestation of these challenges. Factors such as the growing population of Tehran, the extensive needs for land and the inability to respond to these needs as well as the weakness of urban space management have doubled the scope of the negative changes that have occurred. Although different solutions have already been presented to manage the capital's hinterland, they have not been able to match the existing institutional-organizational and spatial structures. Now, the question is, in order to overcome the problems in the capital city, what characteristics should the ideal model have? To answer this question, a qualitative method based on content analysis of documents and interviews with trustees and experts was used. The results show that the appropriate and effective model of hinterland management requires the following: the participation of all management levels from the national to the local, maximizing the role of various departments and organizations involved in hinterland issues, the participation of non-governmental sectors, the provision of a continuous monitoring mechanism of hinterland according to policies, regulations and various programs. If the inadequacies in thehinterland management mechanisms continue, it won't be long before some valuable biological and natural spaces around Tehran metropolis and its surrounding cities will be lost.