A re-thinking of coastal urbanization. The structural urban plan of the Catalonian coastal system

Abstract

The urbanization of the coastal areas constitutes, in the last few decades, one of the most characteristic aspects of the transformation of territory in the European Mediterranean countries. The managing of this  process requires the adoption of new instruments of planning and urban management. This article analyzes  this problem starting with the case of the Urban Structural Plan of the Catalonian Coastal System (PDUSC), in function since 2005. This article is subdivided into four parts: in the first part, the urbanization of the Catalonian coastal area is described; in the second section the need for extra-municipal innovative instruments of planning; in the third part the methodology and the goals of the PDUSC are discussed; and the fourth part the results of four years of activity are analyzed.