La qualité de vie en Argentine : dimension environnementale à l’échelle des départements

Guillermo Ángel Velázquez,Juan Pablo Celemín

doi:10.4000/belgeo.11794

Abstract

To evaluate the population Quality of Life, several factors should be considered, including the environmental dimension, which has gained notorious attention in the study of this subject. The development and use of indices has become increasingly necessary in order to understand and properly grasp the problems linked to the different dimension associated with population wellbeing. An Environmental Quality Index (EQI) made up of twenty-three variables grouped into three dimensions known as: a) nature-based recreation resources, b) socially constructed resources, and c) environmental problems is applied to the 511 departments of Argentina in 2010. The first dimension of the index yields a very asymmetric distribution along the Argentine territory, and evidences a strong deficit in the metropolitan region of Buenos Aires city, the capital of the country. The second dimension exhibits greater relative presence in large and mid-sized cities and in the metropolitan region of Buenos Aires. At last, the presence of environmental problems is strongly showed to large urban areas.

Highlights

Background and methodology10 In Argentina, several researchers developed indices at different scales considering the environmental dimension
In Argentina parks and green spaces were created in almost all cases improving previously existing green areas, so we considered them as natural-based recreational resources and not as socially-constructed recreational resources
Valpreda (2007), in turn, relied on other methods to assess variables, such as on the so-called Analytical Hierarchy Process – multicriteria approach – developed by Saaty (1980) and based on comparisons of pairs of criteria that can be used in environmental analyses (Balasubramaniam and Voulvoulis, 2005) and in urban studies associated with life quality (Mendez and Otizuki, 2001)

Summary

Background and methodology

In Argentina, several researchers developed indices at different scales considering the environmental dimension. Valpreda (2007), in turn, relied on other methods to assess variables, such as on the so-called Analytical Hierarchy Process – multicriteria approach – developed by Saaty (1980) and based on comparisons of pairs of criteria (variables) that can be used in environmental analyses (Balasubramaniam and Voulvoulis, 2005) and in urban studies associated with life quality (Mendez and Otizuki, 2001). Celemin and Lucero (2008) assigned direct weight to the dimensions of a quality of life index for Mar del Plata city, which included an environmental component. Celemín and Velázquez (2012) constructed an index of environmental quality for the metropolitan area of Buenos Aires, combining subjective and objective variables. Our Environmental Quality Index (EQI) is composed of twenty-three variables, broken down into three major dimensions (Table 1):

Objective

Results and discussion

Conclusion