A Scale–Diversity–Connectivity Framework for Assessing the Green Infrastructure Potential of Post-Industrial Sites: Evidence from Chuncheon, South Korea

Post-industrial sites accumulate across cities as a structural consequence of deindustrialization, offering underused spatial resources for nature-based solutions (NbS). Yet existing research has largely assessed such sites by their individual attributes, overlooking the spatial relations between them. This study proposes the Scale–Diversity–Connectivity (SDC) framework, which diagnoses the transformation potential of post-industrial sites through their inter-site relations rather than standalone physical characteristics. Each site is treated as a spatial module, and the three core indicators—spatial scale, typological diversity, and connectivity (defined here as infrastructural accessibility to the road network)—are operationalized through GIS using kernel density estimation, DBSCAN clustering, and threshold-based normalization. Applied to a database of 688 spatial records across 44 post-industrial sites in Chuncheon, South Korea (consolidated into 61 analytical points), the analysis derives three spatial types—urban composite hub, linear connective corridor, and wider-area gateway—each corresponding to distinct NbS transformation strategies. The framework provides a data-driven basis for translating vacant land data into strategic planning priorities.