Cristina Merciu - Academia.edu (original) (raw)
Papers by Cristina Merciu
Sustainability
The value of historical railways and their important role in social, economic, technical, politic... more The value of historical railways and their important role in social, economic, technical, political, and cultural terms has led to their inclusion as industrial heritage attractions. This study aims to evaluate the heritage value of the Oraviţa–Anina linear railway, the first mountain railway in Romania. The assessment of the value of the railway involved both quantitative and qualitative methods. The value was assessed on the basis of a rigorous quantitative evaluation of key attributes of heritage railway, using a system of criteria and indicators. On the other hand, the selected qualitative methodology facilitated the critical interpretation of the perception of the local community as a beneficiary of the railway heritage and as an active stakeholder involved in its reuse. The qualitative evaluation of the heritage railway was also highlighted based on a critical analysis of tourists’ perceptions. The results indicate the usefulness of a mixed methodology for the complex evaluati...
Annals of the University of Bucharest: Geography Series, Jun 13, 2012
The Romanian rural area is a space that, in the context of the transition from centralized econom... more The Romanian rural area is a space that, in the context of the transition from centralized economy to market economy, has accumulated multiple dysfunctions, whose resolution requires the identification of viable solutions, matching local potential and at the same time preserving traditional specificity. In terms of cultural, historical, natural and economic values, the Romanian village has proved to be a highly original tourism product. The article analyzes the evolution of Romanian rural tourism, highlighting the stages of its development, and paying special attention to the current stage that witnesses the solid consolidation of the extant niche of rural tourism as part of Romanian tourism. This consolidation led to several rural tourism destinations in Romania standing out on the international market (Bran-Moeciu, Maramureş, the Danube Delta, the Banat, Bucovina).
The Parâng mountains have a sizeable white dominant mountain area, which justified the touristic ... more The Parâng mountains have a sizeable white dominant mountain area, which justified the touristic outfitting of ski areas as early as the 1960s, which turned it into one of Romania's traditional tourist destinations. In this present paper, the authors analyze the impact of tourist establishments evolution upon mountain landscape and try to configure a sustainable development model of Parâng resort. The most profound changes in the mountain area analyzed occurred in the post-1990 period, consisting in the modernization and expansion of the accommodation capacity. In the current context, competition-consisting in other tourist destinations specialized in winter sports in Europe, in the Alps and Carpathians regions-combined with the uncertainty and turbulence of the touristic market, require the creation of an innovative strategy that should focus on carrying on steps to modernize the resort and on satisfying consumer tourists, with the goal of creating an integrated and flexible to...
The present paper sets on contributing to transcend the idea of associating ecomuseums with the r... more The present paper sets on contributing to transcend the idea of associating ecomuseums with the rural vernacular heritage, which reflects the current approach to this new form of museums nationwide, by drawing up a model of organization for ecomuseums with a general level of implementation. Essential in the conservation of local identity, ecomuseums can compete for the revitalization of spaces when they are based on clear legislation and a complex management that allows for a wide range of decisional participants. Aside from the part these can in economic terms, the study focuses, based on worldwide experience applied at a national level, on the contribution of ecomuseums to the process of territorial planning and which can become a tool in territorial management policies. Key-words: ecomuseums, economuseums, incorporation into the patrimony, territorial management
This paper explores some issues and suggests how policies and institutions can induce and furnish... more This paper explores some issues and suggests how policies and institutions can induce and furnish an urban environment that supports regeneration activities that turn lead to sustainable development of post industrial cities. Cultural regeneration is one of the most frequent measures taken in order to support the renewal of industrial areas that have undergone a reorganization of their functions. Those actions involve the preservation and cultural capitalization of those industrial heritage assets that are suited to be exploited as touristic resources. Mention should be made of Romania’s openness to initiatives to better capitalize on the technical and industrial heritage, resulting in the work done on various types of industrial assets in order to include them in the tourist circuit (decommissioned mines converted into museums, vineyards, industrial Recent Researches in Tourism and Economic Development ISBN: 978-1-61804-043-5 531 museums specializing in cultural capitalization of v...
One of the most important problems of the contemporary society is represented by the elimination ... more One of the most important problems of the contemporary society is represented by the elimination of discrepancies from the level of national territories, which appeared as a result of the unbalanced economic and social development. This can be accomplished only by a balanced and especially integrated development, a fact which will determine, in the end, the elimination of the disparities starting from national level and reaching even the local level. The situation is extremely complicated in case of an influence area, and this is the reason why we considered necessary an approach of the variation of development on a determined route: town - the limit of the influence area. In the present study, we aim at identifying the development level of localities from the influence area of the town Râmnicu Vâlcea, a consequence of the economic and social development which took place along the time.
The Parâng mountains have a sizeable white dominant mountain area, which justified the touristic ... more The Parâng mountains have a sizeable white dominant mountain area, which justified the touristic outfitting of ski areas as early as the 1960s, which turned it into one of Romania’s traditional tourist destinations. In this present paper, the authors analyze the impact of tourist establishments evolution upon mountain landscape and try to configure a sustainable development model of Parâng resort. The most profound changes in the mountain area analyzed occurred in the post-1990 period, consisting in the modernization and expansion of the accommodation capacity. In the current context, competition consisting in other tourist destinations specialized in winter sports in Europe, in the Alps and Carpathians regions – combined with the uncertainty and turbulence of the touristic market, require the creation of an innovative strategy that should focus on carrying on steps to modernize the resort and on satisfying consumer tourists, with the goal of creating an integrated and flexible tour...
Journal of Heritage Tourism, 2016
uac.incerc.ro, 2012
Abstract. The development of the connections between cities and their surrounding spaces led to t... more Abstract. The development of the connections between cities and their surrounding spaces led to the creation of highly complex emergent structures, which require particular attention from specialists and decisionmakers. This study emphasizes the importance of regional ...
annalsreview.geo.unibuc.ro
The radical changes generated by the process of industrial restructuring and accelerated urban de... more The radical changes generated by the process of industrial restructuring and accelerated urban development have brought to the center of attention the industrial heritage as a valuable cultural resource, but at the same time vulnerable. Regeneration projects focused on the adaptive reuse of industrial heritage elements take many forms, from economic, residential to cultural conversions, the latter being correlated with the use of industrial buildings as tourist attractions. The purpose of this study is to identify the interest of Romanian tourists to practice industrial tourism, based on assessing the degree of knowledge and their desire to visit industrial monuments. For this purpose, an online questionnaire was applied, the results of which were statistically interpreted using the Covariance Analysis (ANACOVA). The main results of the study reflect the fact that there is a low share of Romanian tourists who know the significance of the concept of industrial heritage and who consider it attractive. Selecting 5 representative industrial buildings for the Municipality of Cluj-Napoca selected as a case study, only a third of the respondents stated that they know them. However, there is a relatively high interest of respondents to visit industrial monuments, mentioning as main motivations: the age of the buildings, the specific architecture, and curiosity or even form of reuse of industrial monuments. Almost half of the respondents stated that they would introduce industrial buildings in their travel itineraries if they were better promoted. The main conclusion of the study is that industrial tourism is not sufficiently promoted at national level.
Geographica Pannonica
The urban vegetation needs adequate monitoring and conservation, being a critical resource of urb... more The urban vegetation needs adequate monitoring and conservation, being a critical resource of urban landscape. To its deeply esthetic values, the practical values and, respectively, ecosystem services delivered by the urban biodiversity are added (amelioration of the environment and urban microclimate, flood control, diminishing of the environmental pollution, increasing of biodiversity and habitats etc.). Accurate remote sensing techniques have been used widely in locating and mapping urban vegetation (Light Detection And Ranging-LiDAR, satellite images). The purpose of this study is to point out the vegetation status in correlation with the number of the bird species (as indicator of the ecosystem's health), using remote sensing techniques (Landsat satellite images), between 1991-2006 in Bucharest, Romania's capital. Rapid urban evolution of Bucharest led to important changes within the structure of the city, underlined by the increasing of the built area to the detriment of the green one. The intensity of the urbanization rate also led to the decreasing of the number of the bird species. The results obtained through analysis of satellite images indicate the necessity to acquire the up-to-date information related to the vegetation status in order to establish in the future, through urban landscape projects, protection measures for the vegetation cover and for the bird habitats in Bucharest Municipality.
Journal of Settlements and Spatial Planning, May 27, 2019
Nicula et al., 2017) nature are established. They are further strengthened due to the polarizing ... more Nicula et al., 2017) nature are established. They are further strengthened due to the polarizing centre constantly demanding space for economic activities, recreation and habitation (Ianoş, 1987; Drăghici et al., 2011; Peptenatu et al., 2012). Urban areas provide goods and services that also attract the population from Centre for Research on Settlements and Urbanism Journal of Settlements and Spatial Planning J o u r n a l h o m e p a g e: http://jssp.reviste.ubbcluj.ro The delineation of urban influence area has been analysed since the beginning of the 19 th century and has also attracted the interest of specialists in the current period, as a result of the socioeconomic changes that have a strong impact on the evolution of urban agglomerations. The importance of delineating influence areas results from the need to quantify the polarization degree of cities and the extent to which they influence adjacent territories. The aim of this study is to delineate the influence area of Focșani city, a secondranked urban centre and the seat of Vrancea county. The main hypothesis of this paper is that Focșani city is able to structure the urban and rural surrounding areas through the influence and power of attraction it exerts on them. Authors use two comparative methods to delineate the influence area both theoretically (applying the Reilly-Converse formula) and empirically on the basis of a dynamic and comprehensive analysis using a set of key criteria: transport systems, economic, demographic, social and cultural aspects. Based on specific indicators for each of these criteria, authors analyse several data series (2002-2017) to identify transport areas, social and cultural areas, supply area, etc. Individualizing each influence area and overlapping them using GIS techniques led to the delineation of the influence area of Focșani city. Taking into consideration the intensity of territorial relationships established between Focșani city and the other settlements within Vrancea County, we identified that the influence area could be divided into three areas of primary, secondary and tertiary importance. The comparative analysis of the different indicators revealed, as a main conclusion, that Focșani city has influence on the entire territory of Vrancea County.
Planning for post-disaster accessibility is essential for the provision of emergency and other se... more Planning for post-disaster accessibility is essential for the provision of emergency and other services to protect life and property in impacted areas. Such planning is particularly important in congested historic districts where narrow streets and at-risk structures are more common and may even prevail. Indeed, a standard 15 method of measuring accessibility, through the use of isochrones, may be particularly inappropriate in these congested historic areas. Bucharest, Romania, is a city with a core of historic buildings and narrow streets. Furthermore, Bucharest ranks second only to Istanbul among large European cities in terms of its seismic risk. This paper provides an accessibility simulation for central Bucharest using mapping and GIS technologies. It hypothesizes that all buildings in the Risk 1 class would collapse in an earthquake of a similar magnitude to 20 those of 1940 and 1977. The authors then simulate accessibility impacts in the historic center of Bucharest, such as the isolation of certain areas, and blockages of some street sections. In this simulation, accessibility will be substantially compromised by anticipated and extensive building collapse. Therefore, policy makers and planners need to fully understand and incorporate the serious implications of this compromised accessibility when planning emergency services and disaster recovery responses. 25 Armaș & Avram, 2008; Atanasiu & Toma, 2012). Their impacts demand a prompt response from decision 30 makers and the wider population, through the proper management of emergency situations (Waugh & Streib, 2006). Many areas of high seismic risk are urbanized and densely populated (Pollino et al., 2012; Vatseva et al., 2013). In addition, and coincidentally, many countries experiencing economic transitions are characterized by urban growth that is uncontrolled and, in large and medium-sized urban centers, such growth can be especially 35 chaotic (Salvati, 2014). Thus, an increase in the human and economic cost of such disasters can be reasonably anticipated. Furthermore, many new buildings, new structures and, sometimes, newer pieces of infrastructure frequently fail to comply with the construction regulations established for areas of differing seismic vulnerability, especially when there are strong pressures for rapid development. Finally, the characteristically long time lags between pairs of strong earthquakes (Schweier & Markus, 2009) can dull public awareness of the 40 potential impacts of such disasters, and render those in charge of emergency management complacent. Earthquakes require a specific disaster planning approach (Armaș, 2008; Boștenaru Dan & Armaș, 2015). This is because, unlike disasters that can be anticipated in the short term (such as storms), there is little or no delay between the occurrence of the earthquake and the subsequent loss of life and property damage. Therefore, emergency response activities must be executed very quickly and efficiently (Wegscheider et al., 2013). For 45 cities with a high earthquake risk, an important factor is public awareness of such events. This conditions the population towards the importance of quick response measures, which can help to reduce property damage and, more importantly, the number of casualties (Armaş & Avram, 2008). However, no matter how well organized the mitigation process, the disastrous effects of major earthquakes cannot be totally avoided (Momani & Salmi, 2012). 50 In recent years, seismic risk management has been more fully studied and developed so as to establish a series of priorities related to the rehabilitation of those buildings considered to be of major importance, including
Natural Hazards and Earth System Sciences
Planning for post-disaster accessibility is essential for the provision of emergency and other se... more Planning for post-disaster accessibility is essential for the provision of emergency and other services to protect life and property in impacted areas. Such planning is particularly important in congested historic districts where narrow streets and at-risk structures are more common and may even prevail. Indeed, a standard method of measuring accessibility, through the use of isochrones, may be particularly inappropriate in these congested historic areas. Bucharest, Romania, is a city with a core of historic buildings and narrow streets. Furthermore, Bucharest ranks second only to Istanbul among large European cities in terms of its seismic risk. This paper provides an accessibility simulation for central Bucharest using mapping and geographic information system (GIS) technologies. It hypothesizes that all buildings in the risk 1 class would collapse in an earthquake of a similar magnitude to those of 1940 and 1977. The authors then simulate accessibility impacts in the historic centre of Bucharest, such as the isolation of certain areas and blockages of some street sections. In this simulation, accessibility will be substantially compromised by anticipated and extensive building collapse. Therefore, policy makers and planners need to fully understand and incorporate the serious implications of this compromised accessibility when planning emergency services and disaster recovery responses.
ISR-Forschungsberichte
Former industrial spaces represent an important territorial asset to direct development and growt... more Former industrial spaces represent an important territorial asset to direct development and growth processes. Romania possesses a large industrial heritage after the de-industrialisation started in the 1990s. The aim of the study is to highlight the role of cultural regeneration in revitalising the abandoned industrial areas. In Romania's particular case, the conversion of industrial sites is a recent process. Different brownfield industrial sites were chosen as case studies to develop different models of cultural re-use for their reintegration as urban public spaces. The selected 1 This study was supported by the UB 1322 project "integrated and sectorial analyses in trans-scalar territorial dynamics". * cristina merciu et al., PhD. Researchers, interdisciplinary
Geographica Pannonica
The main purpose of the study is to depict the evolution of technical museums across Romania, hig... more The main purpose of the study is to depict the evolution of technical museums across Romania, highlighting a new trend-visible in the past few years-towards preservation of industrial heritage assets in areas that have undergone functional reorganization. This trend is the result of the country's adaptation to the new socioeconomic conditions, but also an accession into the stage of cultural and touristic capitalization on industrial heritage assets, acting as a support-activity in boosting the economy of disadvantaged industrial areas. The second purpose of the study consists of elaborating a critical analysis of technical museums from Romania in order to identify the caracteristics to use to increase their cultural role. Also, the analysis is focused on the premise to make technical museums stand out as tourist attraction hubs and to preview their role in the redevelopment of industrial areas in decline, banking on a positive economic and socio-cultural impact.
Sustainability
The value of historical railways and their important role in social, economic, technical, politic... more The value of historical railways and their important role in social, economic, technical, political, and cultural terms has led to their inclusion as industrial heritage attractions. This study aims to evaluate the heritage value of the Oraviţa–Anina linear railway, the first mountain railway in Romania. The assessment of the value of the railway involved both quantitative and qualitative methods. The value was assessed on the basis of a rigorous quantitative evaluation of key attributes of heritage railway, using a system of criteria and indicators. On the other hand, the selected qualitative methodology facilitated the critical interpretation of the perception of the local community as a beneficiary of the railway heritage and as an active stakeholder involved in its reuse. The qualitative evaluation of the heritage railway was also highlighted based on a critical analysis of tourists’ perceptions. The results indicate the usefulness of a mixed methodology for the complex evaluati...
Annals of the University of Bucharest: Geography Series, Jun 13, 2012
The Romanian rural area is a space that, in the context of the transition from centralized econom... more The Romanian rural area is a space that, in the context of the transition from centralized economy to market economy, has accumulated multiple dysfunctions, whose resolution requires the identification of viable solutions, matching local potential and at the same time preserving traditional specificity. In terms of cultural, historical, natural and economic values, the Romanian village has proved to be a highly original tourism product. The article analyzes the evolution of Romanian rural tourism, highlighting the stages of its development, and paying special attention to the current stage that witnesses the solid consolidation of the extant niche of rural tourism as part of Romanian tourism. This consolidation led to several rural tourism destinations in Romania standing out on the international market (Bran-Moeciu, Maramureş, the Danube Delta, the Banat, Bucovina).
The Parâng mountains have a sizeable white dominant mountain area, which justified the touristic ... more The Parâng mountains have a sizeable white dominant mountain area, which justified the touristic outfitting of ski areas as early as the 1960s, which turned it into one of Romania's traditional tourist destinations. In this present paper, the authors analyze the impact of tourist establishments evolution upon mountain landscape and try to configure a sustainable development model of Parâng resort. The most profound changes in the mountain area analyzed occurred in the post-1990 period, consisting in the modernization and expansion of the accommodation capacity. In the current context, competition-consisting in other tourist destinations specialized in winter sports in Europe, in the Alps and Carpathians regions-combined with the uncertainty and turbulence of the touristic market, require the creation of an innovative strategy that should focus on carrying on steps to modernize the resort and on satisfying consumer tourists, with the goal of creating an integrated and flexible to...
The present paper sets on contributing to transcend the idea of associating ecomuseums with the r... more The present paper sets on contributing to transcend the idea of associating ecomuseums with the rural vernacular heritage, which reflects the current approach to this new form of museums nationwide, by drawing up a model of organization for ecomuseums with a general level of implementation. Essential in the conservation of local identity, ecomuseums can compete for the revitalization of spaces when they are based on clear legislation and a complex management that allows for a wide range of decisional participants. Aside from the part these can in economic terms, the study focuses, based on worldwide experience applied at a national level, on the contribution of ecomuseums to the process of territorial planning and which can become a tool in territorial management policies. Key-words: ecomuseums, economuseums, incorporation into the patrimony, territorial management
This paper explores some issues and suggests how policies and institutions can induce and furnish... more This paper explores some issues and suggests how policies and institutions can induce and furnish an urban environment that supports regeneration activities that turn lead to sustainable development of post industrial cities. Cultural regeneration is one of the most frequent measures taken in order to support the renewal of industrial areas that have undergone a reorganization of their functions. Those actions involve the preservation and cultural capitalization of those industrial heritage assets that are suited to be exploited as touristic resources. Mention should be made of Romania’s openness to initiatives to better capitalize on the technical and industrial heritage, resulting in the work done on various types of industrial assets in order to include them in the tourist circuit (decommissioned mines converted into museums, vineyards, industrial Recent Researches in Tourism and Economic Development ISBN: 978-1-61804-043-5 531 museums specializing in cultural capitalization of v...
One of the most important problems of the contemporary society is represented by the elimination ... more One of the most important problems of the contemporary society is represented by the elimination of discrepancies from the level of national territories, which appeared as a result of the unbalanced economic and social development. This can be accomplished only by a balanced and especially integrated development, a fact which will determine, in the end, the elimination of the disparities starting from national level and reaching even the local level. The situation is extremely complicated in case of an influence area, and this is the reason why we considered necessary an approach of the variation of development on a determined route: town - the limit of the influence area. In the present study, we aim at identifying the development level of localities from the influence area of the town Râmnicu Vâlcea, a consequence of the economic and social development which took place along the time.
The Parâng mountains have a sizeable white dominant mountain area, which justified the touristic ... more The Parâng mountains have a sizeable white dominant mountain area, which justified the touristic outfitting of ski areas as early as the 1960s, which turned it into one of Romania’s traditional tourist destinations. In this present paper, the authors analyze the impact of tourist establishments evolution upon mountain landscape and try to configure a sustainable development model of Parâng resort. The most profound changes in the mountain area analyzed occurred in the post-1990 period, consisting in the modernization and expansion of the accommodation capacity. In the current context, competition consisting in other tourist destinations specialized in winter sports in Europe, in the Alps and Carpathians regions – combined with the uncertainty and turbulence of the touristic market, require the creation of an innovative strategy that should focus on carrying on steps to modernize the resort and on satisfying consumer tourists, with the goal of creating an integrated and flexible tour...
Journal of Heritage Tourism, 2016
uac.incerc.ro, 2012
Abstract. The development of the connections between cities and their surrounding spaces led to t... more Abstract. The development of the connections between cities and their surrounding spaces led to the creation of highly complex emergent structures, which require particular attention from specialists and decisionmakers. This study emphasizes the importance of regional ...
annalsreview.geo.unibuc.ro
The radical changes generated by the process of industrial restructuring and accelerated urban de... more The radical changes generated by the process of industrial restructuring and accelerated urban development have brought to the center of attention the industrial heritage as a valuable cultural resource, but at the same time vulnerable. Regeneration projects focused on the adaptive reuse of industrial heritage elements take many forms, from economic, residential to cultural conversions, the latter being correlated with the use of industrial buildings as tourist attractions. The purpose of this study is to identify the interest of Romanian tourists to practice industrial tourism, based on assessing the degree of knowledge and their desire to visit industrial monuments. For this purpose, an online questionnaire was applied, the results of which were statistically interpreted using the Covariance Analysis (ANACOVA). The main results of the study reflect the fact that there is a low share of Romanian tourists who know the significance of the concept of industrial heritage and who consider it attractive. Selecting 5 representative industrial buildings for the Municipality of Cluj-Napoca selected as a case study, only a third of the respondents stated that they know them. However, there is a relatively high interest of respondents to visit industrial monuments, mentioning as main motivations: the age of the buildings, the specific architecture, and curiosity or even form of reuse of industrial monuments. Almost half of the respondents stated that they would introduce industrial buildings in their travel itineraries if they were better promoted. The main conclusion of the study is that industrial tourism is not sufficiently promoted at national level.
Geographica Pannonica
The urban vegetation needs adequate monitoring and conservation, being a critical resource of urb... more The urban vegetation needs adequate monitoring and conservation, being a critical resource of urban landscape. To its deeply esthetic values, the practical values and, respectively, ecosystem services delivered by the urban biodiversity are added (amelioration of the environment and urban microclimate, flood control, diminishing of the environmental pollution, increasing of biodiversity and habitats etc.). Accurate remote sensing techniques have been used widely in locating and mapping urban vegetation (Light Detection And Ranging-LiDAR, satellite images). The purpose of this study is to point out the vegetation status in correlation with the number of the bird species (as indicator of the ecosystem's health), using remote sensing techniques (Landsat satellite images), between 1991-2006 in Bucharest, Romania's capital. Rapid urban evolution of Bucharest led to important changes within the structure of the city, underlined by the increasing of the built area to the detriment of the green one. The intensity of the urbanization rate also led to the decreasing of the number of the bird species. The results obtained through analysis of satellite images indicate the necessity to acquire the up-to-date information related to the vegetation status in order to establish in the future, through urban landscape projects, protection measures for the vegetation cover and for the bird habitats in Bucharest Municipality.
Journal of Settlements and Spatial Planning, May 27, 2019
Nicula et al., 2017) nature are established. They are further strengthened due to the polarizing ... more Nicula et al., 2017) nature are established. They are further strengthened due to the polarizing centre constantly demanding space for economic activities, recreation and habitation (Ianoş, 1987; Drăghici et al., 2011; Peptenatu et al., 2012). Urban areas provide goods and services that also attract the population from Centre for Research on Settlements and Urbanism Journal of Settlements and Spatial Planning J o u r n a l h o m e p a g e: http://jssp.reviste.ubbcluj.ro The delineation of urban influence area has been analysed since the beginning of the 19 th century and has also attracted the interest of specialists in the current period, as a result of the socioeconomic changes that have a strong impact on the evolution of urban agglomerations. The importance of delineating influence areas results from the need to quantify the polarization degree of cities and the extent to which they influence adjacent territories. The aim of this study is to delineate the influence area of Focșani city, a secondranked urban centre and the seat of Vrancea county. The main hypothesis of this paper is that Focșani city is able to structure the urban and rural surrounding areas through the influence and power of attraction it exerts on them. Authors use two comparative methods to delineate the influence area both theoretically (applying the Reilly-Converse formula) and empirically on the basis of a dynamic and comprehensive analysis using a set of key criteria: transport systems, economic, demographic, social and cultural aspects. Based on specific indicators for each of these criteria, authors analyse several data series (2002-2017) to identify transport areas, social and cultural areas, supply area, etc. Individualizing each influence area and overlapping them using GIS techniques led to the delineation of the influence area of Focșani city. Taking into consideration the intensity of territorial relationships established between Focșani city and the other settlements within Vrancea County, we identified that the influence area could be divided into three areas of primary, secondary and tertiary importance. The comparative analysis of the different indicators revealed, as a main conclusion, that Focșani city has influence on the entire territory of Vrancea County.
Planning for post-disaster accessibility is essential for the provision of emergency and other se... more Planning for post-disaster accessibility is essential for the provision of emergency and other services to protect life and property in impacted areas. Such planning is particularly important in congested historic districts where narrow streets and at-risk structures are more common and may even prevail. Indeed, a standard 15 method of measuring accessibility, through the use of isochrones, may be particularly inappropriate in these congested historic areas. Bucharest, Romania, is a city with a core of historic buildings and narrow streets. Furthermore, Bucharest ranks second only to Istanbul among large European cities in terms of its seismic risk. This paper provides an accessibility simulation for central Bucharest using mapping and GIS technologies. It hypothesizes that all buildings in the Risk 1 class would collapse in an earthquake of a similar magnitude to 20 those of 1940 and 1977. The authors then simulate accessibility impacts in the historic center of Bucharest, such as the isolation of certain areas, and blockages of some street sections. In this simulation, accessibility will be substantially compromised by anticipated and extensive building collapse. Therefore, policy makers and planners need to fully understand and incorporate the serious implications of this compromised accessibility when planning emergency services and disaster recovery responses. 25 Armaș & Avram, 2008; Atanasiu & Toma, 2012). Their impacts demand a prompt response from decision 30 makers and the wider population, through the proper management of emergency situations (Waugh & Streib, 2006). Many areas of high seismic risk are urbanized and densely populated (Pollino et al., 2012; Vatseva et al., 2013). In addition, and coincidentally, many countries experiencing economic transitions are characterized by urban growth that is uncontrolled and, in large and medium-sized urban centers, such growth can be especially 35 chaotic (Salvati, 2014). Thus, an increase in the human and economic cost of such disasters can be reasonably anticipated. Furthermore, many new buildings, new structures and, sometimes, newer pieces of infrastructure frequently fail to comply with the construction regulations established for areas of differing seismic vulnerability, especially when there are strong pressures for rapid development. Finally, the characteristically long time lags between pairs of strong earthquakes (Schweier & Markus, 2009) can dull public awareness of the 40 potential impacts of such disasters, and render those in charge of emergency management complacent. Earthquakes require a specific disaster planning approach (Armaș, 2008; Boștenaru Dan & Armaș, 2015). This is because, unlike disasters that can be anticipated in the short term (such as storms), there is little or no delay between the occurrence of the earthquake and the subsequent loss of life and property damage. Therefore, emergency response activities must be executed very quickly and efficiently (Wegscheider et al., 2013). For 45 cities with a high earthquake risk, an important factor is public awareness of such events. This conditions the population towards the importance of quick response measures, which can help to reduce property damage and, more importantly, the number of casualties (Armaş & Avram, 2008). However, no matter how well organized the mitigation process, the disastrous effects of major earthquakes cannot be totally avoided (Momani & Salmi, 2012). 50 In recent years, seismic risk management has been more fully studied and developed so as to establish a series of priorities related to the rehabilitation of those buildings considered to be of major importance, including
Natural Hazards and Earth System Sciences
Planning for post-disaster accessibility is essential for the provision of emergency and other se... more Planning for post-disaster accessibility is essential for the provision of emergency and other services to protect life and property in impacted areas. Such planning is particularly important in congested historic districts where narrow streets and at-risk structures are more common and may even prevail. Indeed, a standard method of measuring accessibility, through the use of isochrones, may be particularly inappropriate in these congested historic areas. Bucharest, Romania, is a city with a core of historic buildings and narrow streets. Furthermore, Bucharest ranks second only to Istanbul among large European cities in terms of its seismic risk. This paper provides an accessibility simulation for central Bucharest using mapping and geographic information system (GIS) technologies. It hypothesizes that all buildings in the risk 1 class would collapse in an earthquake of a similar magnitude to those of 1940 and 1977. The authors then simulate accessibility impacts in the historic centre of Bucharest, such as the isolation of certain areas and blockages of some street sections. In this simulation, accessibility will be substantially compromised by anticipated and extensive building collapse. Therefore, policy makers and planners need to fully understand and incorporate the serious implications of this compromised accessibility when planning emergency services and disaster recovery responses.
ISR-Forschungsberichte
Former industrial spaces represent an important territorial asset to direct development and growt... more Former industrial spaces represent an important territorial asset to direct development and growth processes. Romania possesses a large industrial heritage after the de-industrialisation started in the 1990s. The aim of the study is to highlight the role of cultural regeneration in revitalising the abandoned industrial areas. In Romania's particular case, the conversion of industrial sites is a recent process. Different brownfield industrial sites were chosen as case studies to develop different models of cultural re-use for their reintegration as urban public spaces. The selected 1 This study was supported by the UB 1322 project "integrated and sectorial analyses in trans-scalar territorial dynamics". * cristina merciu et al., PhD. Researchers, interdisciplinary
Geographica Pannonica
The main purpose of the study is to depict the evolution of technical museums across Romania, hig... more The main purpose of the study is to depict the evolution of technical museums across Romania, highlighting a new trend-visible in the past few years-towards preservation of industrial heritage assets in areas that have undergone functional reorganization. This trend is the result of the country's adaptation to the new socioeconomic conditions, but also an accession into the stage of cultural and touristic capitalization on industrial heritage assets, acting as a support-activity in boosting the economy of disadvantaged industrial areas. The second purpose of the study consists of elaborating a critical analysis of technical museums from Romania in order to identify the caracteristics to use to increase their cultural role. Also, the analysis is focused on the premise to make technical museums stand out as tourist attraction hubs and to preview their role in the redevelopment of industrial areas in decline, banking on a positive economic and socio-cultural impact.