Post Syrian-war material recovery, reuse and transformation in the Old City of Aleppo

Abstract

Purpose Eight years of civil war in Syria severely impacted the historic core of Aleppo, with about 30 percent of its buildings completely destroyed and huge amounts of debris generated. This paper proposes recovery strategies for some of the most badly damaged sites in the city through material reuse and transformation, one of the goals of which is to ensure the continuity of the city’s urban cultural heritage. The purpose of this paper is to presents not only risks but also opportunities with respect to the integration of technologies to support recovery and reconstruction. Design/methodology/approach The paper analyzes the current situation in the Old City of Aleppo by identifying the most seriously damaged sites, namely those that have sustained damage to between 80 and 100 percent of the site. It reviews comparable international post-disaster examples and investigates appropriate options for dealing with the damage caused by the war and the management of debris, with consideration given to minimal intervention, the retention of structural integrity, technology and the integration of historic materials within new components and buildings. The methodology has relied on research through field work, including interviews with stakeholders in Aleppo. Findings The paper proposes two strategies to guide post-war rebuilding and conservation efforts in the Old City of Aleppo through: the creation of new multi-purpose, public open spaces and the use of debris in the repair of buildings and construction of new components and buildings, including infrastructure for solar panels within the new public spaces. Originality/value This paper contributes to the development of a post-civil war sustainable material recovery approach for the Old City of Aleppo and for Syria more generally, where a disaster waste management strategy is still in development.

Is research with qualitative data more prevalent and impactful now? Interviews, case studies, focus groups and ethnographies

“…In these cases, some of the interviews might be with people in senior or creative roles (e.g., managers, artists), and focus groups would be inappropriate for this type of application. For example, one Arts and Humanities study interviewed heads of libraries in Ghana (Dzandza, 2019) and another conducted "interviews with stakeholders" from the cultural industry in Syria (Kousa & Pottgiesser, 2019). In a similar Business, Management and Accounting example, "18 semi-structured interviews were carried out with chief investigators" (DeSisto, Cavanagh, & Bartram, 2019).…”

World Heritage on the Move: Abandoning the Assessment of Authenticity to Meet the Challenges of the Twenty-First Century

“…For example, the Syrian civil war generated nearly 15 million tons of debris in Aleppo according to the World Bank [77] (p. 27). Under these circumstances, the reuse of salvaged materials in situ such as stone and timber in the reconstruction of the Old City of Aleppo World Heritage property, which are already compatible materials, can help mitigate climate change by reducing energy and transportation requirements to keep emissions low while ensuring "continuity of the city's urban cultural heritage" and providing a much needed "sense of familiarity" to its residents [78] (pp. 90,92).…”

Historic development of policies and regulations concerning residential heritage in the Old City of Aleppo

“…Moreover, it's debatable whether existing Syrian policies and regulations can be applied to a post Syrian-war context without any change. The extent of devastation, involving 70% of the buildings (Kousa and Pottgiesser, 2019), the urgency for reconstruction and the costly and time-consuming procedures for obtaining permits suggest that policies might need to be significantly modified (Kousa et al, 2021).…”