Changing urban environments – the essentials

Changing urban environments – the essentials

UrbanisationWhat is urbanisation?It is a process where an increasing proportion of the population lives in towns and cities (i.e. less people living in rural areas).

It began at different times in different parts of the world (in the 1850s in the UK) and occurred at different paces. In the richer continents e.g. Europe, N.America and Australasia, most people now live in towns and cities.

Causes of urbanisationThere are 2 causes of urbanisation:A.Rural-urban migration - this is the process in which people move from the countryside to the towns/cities. In the UK in the 19th century, mechanisation led to unemployment on farms and people moving to towns/cities to work in factoriesB.Natural increase – the people moving into towns/cities were generally young adults, resulting in high levels of births and therefore the natural increase in population. With improved medical care, death rates have fallen (less people dying), which further increases the urban population.

What causes rural-urban migration?

How does land use vary in an urban area?

Key terms:

Land use: The type of buildings or other features that are found in an area e.g. terraced housing, banks, industrial estates, roads, parks etc.

Function: The purpose of a particular area e.g. for residential use, recreation or shopping etc.

Central business district (CBD): The main shopping and service area in a city. It is usually found in the middle of the city so that it is easily accessible e.g. High Street, Exeter

Inner city: The area around the CBD - usually built before 1918 in the UK e.g. Quayside, parts of Heavitree.

Outer city or suburbs: the area on the edge of the city. Many are built after 1945 and get newer as you reach the edge of the city e.g. Exwick, Pinhoe, Digby etc.

Issues for people in urban areas (MEDCs) There are many issues in towns/cities, including those relating to housing, traffic, services and provision for a mixed community.

ISSUE 1: HOUSINGPopulation in the UK has increased by 7% since 1971. The number of households (a person living alone; 2 or more people living at same address) has risen by 30% since 1971. Most of this is due to more people living alone. This is due to:People leaving home to rent or buy younger than previouslyPeople marrying laterPeople getting divorced

The government target is to build 240,000 new houses every year by 2016. Many will be built in towns/cities on brownfield sites (sites which have previously been built on e.g. old factory sites in the Inner Cities). However, some housing will inevitably be built on greenfield sites (land that has never been built on, usually in the countryside or on the edge of towns/cities).

Advantages and disadvantages of building on brownfield and greenfield sites

ISSUE 2: THE INNER CITYSuccessive governments have had a variety of strategies to improve living in inner cities since 1945.

Strategy 1: Urban Development Corporations (UDCs)These were a major strategy, introduced in the 1980s. The London Docklands Development Corporation (LDDC) was established in 1981. These were set up with public funding to buy land and improve the inner city, partly by attracting private investment.

Although it ceased to exist by 1998, the LDDC claimed in its achievements to have:Sold land for developmentBuilt new roads and improved existing roadsConstructed the Docklands Light RailwayReclaimed derelict landBuilt nearly 25,000 new homesHelped 2,700 businesses to start tradingPut funding towards new primary/secondary schools and post-16 collegesHelp create 85,000 new jobsContributed to funding 5 new health centres

Strategy 2: City ChallengeThis was a big initiative of the 1990s. Local authorities, private companies and the local community worked together from the start.

Strategy 3: Sustainable communitiesThese allow people to live in an area where there is housing of an appropriate standard (reasonable Quality of Life), with access to a job, education and healthcare.

ISSUE 3: TRAFFIC

As we demand greater mobility and accessibility, the number of cars has increased (as a result of incomes increasing), as has the problem of traffic congestion.

In the UK in 2002, only 27% of people had 1 or more cars, compared to 55% today.

Problems increased car ownership causes:

Congestion (people discouraged from visiting settlement/area)

Air and noise pollution

Increase in accidents

Buildings can become discoloured

Strategies to reduce the use of cars include:

Park and ride schemes

Pedestrianising town/city centres

Resident parking permit only zones

Weight restriction zones (stop lorries accessing areas) Car sharing lanes Speed humps Congestion charging (e.g. London) Cycle/bus only lanes

ISSUE 4: MULTICULTURAL MIXDespite the apparent racial mix in many cities, a significant number of immigrants choose to live with people from similar areas and away from others with different ethnicity and culture. This represents segregation.

Why do people of the same ethnic group choose to live near each other?

Support from othersPeople feel safe and secure when they can associate with other people from the same background. There is a sense of belonging and protection from racial abuse.

A familiar cultureIn a strange country, there is comfort from being with people who have similar ideas and beliefs and speak the same language.

Specialist FacilitiesIn many areas, these are provided so that, for example, Sikhs can worship in a gurdwara. Familiar foodstuffs will be available in shops.

Employment factorsImmigrant groups tend to do low-paid jobs or have a high rate of unemployment. They have limited money and so can only afford cheaper housing in certain parts of the city.

ISSUE 5: THE CBD (CENTRAL BUSINESS DISTRICT)The rise of the motorcar and the cheapness of land at the edge of the city led to a rise in out of town shopping centres from the 1960's to 1980's.  Shopping centres such as Meadowhall in Sheffield, Lakeside in Essex and the Metro Centre Gateshead all developed and posed a threat to city centre shopping. 

At the same time, a lack of investment in the CBD (central Business District) led to the dereliction of some buildings and a general decline in the shopping environment. 

In addition, city centres suffered from crowding, poor air quality, a crime ridden image and poor parking availability.  There was genuine concern that many CBDs would not survive and that we would experience the urban doughnut effect (what is it?)

Initiatives were put into place in order to try and protect and revitalise the CBDs of many cities e.g.

The problems caused by rapid urbanisation in LEDCs

Industrial accidents e.g. explosion at chemical plant, Bhopal, India Air and noise pollution (e.g. from increasing car ownership) Creation of electronic waste (e-waste) e.g. old PCs, monitors etc. Untreated sewage (water pollution) in major rivers e.g. Ganges (from humans/cows, as well as cremated remains and chemicals) Toxic waste from industry (particularly waste from the construction industry) Growth of squatter settlements (lack of shelter)

How do you reduce these problems?

There are 3 main problems which need to be reduced, particularly in LEDCs:

WASTE DISPOSAL AIR POLLUTION WATER POLLUTION

WASTE DISPOSAL Use of incinerators (Sao Paulo, Brazil burns 7,500 tonnes/day) Safely disposing of toxic waste in MEDCs e.g. USA Recycling plants need to be set up to dispose of e-waste

AIR POLLUTION Switching to cleaner, alternative sources of energy (used by industry) Introduce fines (carbon taxes) to stop countries e.g. China and India using so much coal Greater monitoring and safety checks to avoid disasters e.g. Bhopal Limits need to be set and enforced on companies with regards to carbon dioxide and sulphur dioxide emissions (fitting filters to industrial chimneys) Transport strategies need to be considered e.g. reducing traffic in cities (congestion charges) and improving public transport

WATER POLLUTION Introduce water pollution limits e.g. the 1986 Ganga Action Plan successfully introduced water treatment works

Issues for people living in squatter settlements in LEDCsWhat , where and why are squatter settlements found?

A squatter settlement is a slum settlement (sometimes illegal or unauthorised) of poor people who live in improvised dwellings made from scrap materials: often plywood, corrugated metal and sheets of plastic.

Squatter settlements are usually found in LEDCs. They are often called favelas, bustees, shanties, slums etc. Often they will be found on steep hillsides, near roads, railway lines on the outskirts of a city.

They have developed as a result of rapid urbanisation. The pace of rural-urban migration is often too fast to allow the building of proper houses and for the economy to grow to provide jobs. Therefore, people find unoccupied areas of land (usually on edge of city) and materials and begin to build their own makeshift shelters. As a result of few official jobs, people create their own employment and income (informal sector) e.g. taking in washing, mending bikes, cleaning, gardening, selling drugs, prostitution etc. These jobs are not included in official figures.

Living in a squatter settlement There is no basic infrastructure e.g. sanitation (sewage disposal/ toilets), piped water, electricity and road access Houses/shacks/dwellings are often very overcrowded Water must be collected and paid for from a nearby source and carried back Rubbish is not collected i.e. disease is common Quality of life is poor Crime is a problem Children often do not go to school

How can squatter settlements be improved?

Self help schemes e.g. Sao Paulo (Brazil), Rocinha (Rio de Janeiro, Brazil) and Kibera (Nairobi, Kenya) occur where local authorities support the residents if the squatter settlements in improving their homes. Legal ownership of the land is sometimes given to encourage improvements to take place.

Other improvements to consider/include are: co-operation between residents to remove rubbish local authority offering grants, cheap loans and possibly materials standpipes set up for access to clean water residents with help from local authority may begin to build health centres and schools

Strategies to improve living conditions in squatter settlements

Site and service schemesThese are a more formal way of helping squatter settlement residents. Land is identified for the scheme. Water, sewage pipes and electricity lines are then supplied to marked plots. People then build homes with affordable materials at the time. They can then add to and improve these at a later date if they can afford to.

Local authority schemes may take the form of large scale improvements made to squatter settlements or building new towns to reduce population pressure on cities e.g. 10th of Ramadan City, Cairo, Egypt. Here, high-rise blocks of flats, shops, a primary school and a mosque have been built. Industries were also planned to provide jobs for the new inhabitants.

How do you make urban areas sustainable? Build APPROPRIATE HOUSING in MEDCs and LEDCs. Tackle TRAFFIC problems. Improve public transport e.g. more

frequent buses, freeze fares and extend bus lanes to quicken journeys. Address issue of POLLUTION (water, air and waste disposal). Recycle

more waste, particularly household. Reduce waste – does so much supermarket food need plastic packaging? Will we need to incinerate more waste as landfill sites are filling up?

Build on brownfield sites. Why? Protect open spaces from building developments, so that it can be

used for recreational purpose. Consult local people at planning stages before decisions are made (if

they feel involved, they are more likely to care for the building and environment in which they live)

How do you make urban areas sustainable?Give special status to previous industrial, historic commercial and

cultural areas e.g. Liverpool. Here, many buildings along the River Mersey were recognised for their importance (as a port) during the growth of the British Empire in the 18th and 19th centuries.

Sustainable CitiesWhat is a sustainable city?A sustainable city is an urban area where residents have a way of life which will last a long time. The environment is not damaged and the city has a sound economic base (jobs) and there is a strong sense of community, with local people involved in decisions made.

CASE STUDY: CURITIBA, BRAZIL (“a city for people, not cars”)

In 1968, the Curitiba Master Plan was adopted to control urban sprawl, reduce traffic in the city centre, develop public transport and to preserve the historic sector.

In a survey, it was found that 99% of Brazil’s inhabitants would like to live in Curitiba.

Characteristics of Curitiba as a sustainable cityCuritiba has the highest recycling rate in the World – 70%.Curitiba has a bus system that is so good that car traffic decreased by 30% even though the population trebled in a 20 year period.

Curitiba has the largest downtown pedestrianised shopping area in the World.

Curitiba has built large numbers of beautiful parks to control floods rather than concrete canals. There are so many that they use sheep to cut the grass as it’s cheaper than lawnmowers!

Curitiba’s average income per person has gone from less than the Brazilian average in the 1970’s to 66% greater than the Brazilian average.

How was this achieved? (what measures were put in place)In the early 70s, the 1st mayor of Curitiba was crucial in putting together

the following measures: Built parks instead of canals to reduce flooding. Also used parks to

make the city more liveable. Pedestrianised the city centre. Invented and built the Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) – a bus system that

works like a light rail system but is 10 times cheaper. Gave people bus tokens in return for waste. Started a massive recycling scheme – all initiated by children. COHAB, the city’s public housing programme introduced a housing

policy which will provide 50,000 homes for the urban poor.