Transformations in the agricultural heritage urban landscape: The case of the Family Orchards in Talcahuano, Chile

Abstract

Since the end of the twentieth to the first decades of the twenty-first century part of the peri-urban space of Talcahuano –in the Bío-Bío Region in Chile– has experienced dramatic urban change. The characteristic Family Orchard landscape has almost disappeared under the construction of industries and warehouses. This shift has had an important impact on the site –which is adjacent to an important wetland- as well as in the traditional way of life of the inhabitants. In this context our main aim was to explore how the planning instruments may have facilitated the loss of the agricultural landscape. The research design considered comparative analysis between the urban form and the planning  instruments implemented during the period. The research methods were photo interpretation and semi-structured interviews in order to analyze historical and current land plans and urban morphological analysis which was compared with the different planning instruments and morphological analysis of urban change. The results suggest that the deregulation of urban development, along with the lack of continuity of the Family Orchard policy, has facilitated urbanization of the area occupied by orchards and led to land use change.