Contribution to the Characterization of Peri-urban Natural Areas of Sidi Bel Abbes Town (Northwestern Algeria)

Abstract

Peri-urban areas are very important in the geographical structure of the city, a boundary for urban sprawl, diversifying the territory and its landscape, creating continuity. These areas constituted a problem to geographers and statisticians who wished to assign them contours. The delimitation of peri-urban areas is indeed difficult and must combine geographic, urban, economic and human parameters that might render account of a movement that affects almost all areas. Our approach is a contribution to the use of simple and rapid decisions as a tool for the characterization of natural space in the suburban town of Sidi Bel Abbes. It is based on a diagnosis of the current situation in this municipality. The study allowed us to identify 106 natural areas in a suburban area of over 3969.36 hectares.