‘Guide to Landscape Integration Criteria for Industrial Parks and Economic Activity Sectors’

Industrial activities and the so-called economic activity sectors are productive spaces with a more than evident importance in local and regional economies. They are part of the driving fabric of territorial development and have become a fundamental engine of the economy. The industry, by the very nature of its function, is in a continuous process of change. This evolution is also manifested in the industrial landscapes it generates and in the predominant types of activities that take place within them. Their location, as well as the unique needs of their site, entail complex, even controversial, effects from the perspective of land use planning and landscape.

For some time now, industrial spaces have evolved and diversified, thus providing more opportunities for companies. Their typology has also diversified and consequently their nomenclature. Thus, in addition to the traditional "industrial zone," today there is a diversity of spaces for which it seems more appropriate to use terms such as "economic activity sector" or "industrial parks," "business parks," "technology parks," and "logistics parks," among others.

We must therefore be capable of creating landscapes free from the prejudices and neglect of the past that associate industry with noise, smoke, and visual impact. However, now more than ever, talking about industry is talking about social well-being, and its image must respond to the new quality demands arising from more competitive socioeconomic environments.

At all levels -regional, municipal, business- there exists, and it is a relatively new process, a clear awareness of these new demanded models. It is therefore time to face a new challenge, that of landscape integration, as established by the European Landscape Convention (ELC, Florence 2000) ratified by the Spanish Government on November 26, 2007. The Convention establishes that the landscape is an essential element for the quality of life of populations and, since March 1, 2008, a responsibility for everyone.

This Guide constitutes an innovative contribution because it does not impose additional urban planning or regulatory instruments. It is about
to offer preliminary reflections that can influence the final decisions for planning, constructing, and maintaining a business park. The text covers general considerations, especially on topics such as location, ecological connectivity, morphological unity, rationality of uses, heritage context, relief and character of the landscape, but also other detailed considerations like the formal definition of plots, the representative value of roadways and vegetation, visual filters, the quality of architecture, and the impact of advertising, among others.

It is therefore proposed a reflective and non-dogmatic process in planning. It is not about establishing rigid models, the result of an abstract regulation, but about creating trends and criteria whose value lies not in the norm, but in the dialectic.
The objective is none other than to generate a positive disposition towards the introduction of good landscaping practices in the sector, developing an awareness activity that leads to the generalization of a useful and quality product for all the companies and professionals involved.