Contemporary Urban Environments Flashcards
1
Q
What are the urban characteristics in terms of economy?
A
- Employment mainly in secondary, tertiary and quaternary industries. - provision of commercial and social services for local residents.- good travel links. - high proportion of unemployed and homelessness
2
Q
What are the urban characteristics in terms of environment?
A
’ Dominance of buildings + transport networks. - high levels of environmental pollution.- congestion, due to high building density, infrastructure and commuting. - fewer green spaces.- UK cities characterised by historical industrial activities.
3
Q
What are the urban characteristics in terms of people?
A
- High population density. - -raised stress levels.- smaller time-budget. - diversity in terms of wealth, age and ethnicity.- homelessness. - cities can be diverse but also divided.
4
Q
What is an urban settlement?
A
No common global definition so critea varies e.g. Minimum population threshold; population density; proportion employed in non-agricultural sectors; the presence of infrastructure such as paved roads, electricity, piped water or severs; and the precense of education or health services.
5
Q
What are some issues with defining, measuring and forecasting urbanisation?
A
-Different countries define urban areas differently. - not all countries collect census data regularly.- previous forecasts on urbaisation have all been exaggerated suggesting that future forecasts de also going to be inflated.
6
Q
What is urbanisation?
A
an increasing proportion of city dwellers in contrast to those in the countryside
7
Q
What are the two main causes of urbanisation?
A
Rural- urban migration, natural increase
8
Q
Definition of gentrification?
A
The renewal of on area leading to an influx of affluent people.
9
Q
What are some push factors of rural-urban migration?
A
War, lack of work, famine, bad services/lack of healthcare/education, population growth, agricultural problems, high level of disease, natural disasters
10
Q
What are some pull factors in rural-urban migrations?
A
Job opportunities, better services, better infrastructure, safer environment, perceived better quality of life, coming money from the informal sector
11
Q
What are the consequences of urbanisation?
A
Transport issues, urban sprawl, shortage of housing in LICs, shortage of affordable housing in HICs, lack of urban services + waste disposal, unemployment + under employment
12
Q
What is suburbanisation?
A
The outward growth of town and cities causing them to engulf surrounding villages and countryside.it has been possible because more and more people have cars or access to public transport like buses, trams and trains.
13
Q
What are some push reasons why families have moved out from the inner city?
A
Housing in the inner city was old and crowded with less garden space, congestion on busy roads, pollution in the air and visually from old, boarded-up factories. Fears for family safety as crime rates are higher. There may be few or restricted job opportunines as many old factories have shut down or moved to the suburbs.
14
Q
What are some pull reasons why families have moved from the inner city?
A
New, modern housing with modern facilities. More open space. Better schools and services. Large, pleasant shopping centres have been built on the edge of cities. Safer neighbourhoods. More job opportunities.
15
Q
What are some push reasons why businesses have moved from the inner city?
A
Old, cramped factories in the inner city. Congestion on the roads and narrow streets makes life difficult for lorries. High rents for land and services. Shortages of skilled workers.
16
Q
What are some of the pull reasons why businesses have moved from the inner City?
A
Cheaper and more plentiful land for future expansion, brand new buildings with enough car parking, space for computers, new cabling and air-conditioning, skilled workers, access to new roads, airports and rail networks
17
Q
What are some push factors why developers of houses, factories and offices like the edge of a city?
A
Land in central areas is more expensive. You have to pay the costs of clearing sites and cleaning up chemical or toxic waste left behind by industry
18
Q
What are some pull reasons why developers of houses, factories and offices like the edge of a city?
A
Cheaper land for larger developments - financial incentives are offered by suburban authorities
19
Q
What are the effects of suburbanisation?
A
Urban sprawl - the countryside is being built over, threatening animals + plants • The risk of flooding is increasing as land is concreted over. Farmland is destroyed. Villages are eaten up by towns + cities. Congestion - suburbanisation causes increased commuting as people live further from work and public transport is often too time consuming to use so people have to use cars. Roads are becoming increasingly congested, journeys are taking longer. Air pollution - increased car use is causing increases in certain types of pollution e. g. Ozone and particulates from exhaust fumes. Increasing numbers of people are suffering from asthma which is attributed to this.
20
Q
What is counter-urbanisation?
A
The process where people migrate from major urban areas to more rural settlements (i.e. From market towns and villages) because they don’t like living in big cities. Happened because of the growth in the internet and communications technology has allowed this movement as well as the building of motorways and the growth in car ownership.
21
Q
What is the evidence of counter-urbanisation?
A
1) increased use of a commuter railway station eg Whalley train station. 2) an increase in house prices in the settlement, 3) The construction of executive housing in the settlement. 4) an increased number of farm buildings being converted into exclusive housing
.
22
Q
Who are the main groups who have counter-urbaised?
A
1) retired people who no longer need to travel to work every day. 2) long distance commutes who con afford the high commuting costs, and are prepped for long journeys to work to gain the benefits of living in a rural area, 3) people working for firms in rural areas. 4) people working from home usingICT.
23
Q
What are the problems of counter-urbanisation?
A
- increased cost of housing means local people cannot afford to buy homes in the area. 2. Some services may be lost/newcomers are more likely to shop in a supermarket in town then use local shops. 3. If too, many houses are built in villages then the character of the village can be destroyed and it becomes more like a town 4. Social tension/a farmer in a village may have different priorities from local people. Their idea of rural Tranquility may not tally with the farmers aims of making a living 5. traffic congestion on rural roads, e.g. the A6 66 near Whaley
,
24
Q
What are the benefits of counterurbanisation?
A
- less skilled workers in the countryside may find it easier to find work as painters and decorators or work in a local petrol station, rather than be forced into traditional rural jobs, such as farm labour and which has long hours and low pay. 2. Land owners and house sellers can sell at higher prices. 3. some rural services, e.g. petrol stations, builders and pubs see an increase in demand and profits. E.g. Whalley Golf Club 4. newcomers often improve the environment by conserving historic buildings and renovating unused barns into houses.
25
What are centripetal forces?
Centralisation of jobs and services; advantages of agglomeration end market location
26
What are centrifugal forces?
Of congestion, high costs and increasing markets in suburbs
27
'What is urban sprawl?
The spread of an urban area. It may be the result of population growth as an LIC s but in HIC s it is often a result of socio economic factors. The desire for low density, housing and also much lower occupancy of housing (divorce, single occupancy housing)
28
What is urban resurgence?
Involves a range of processes which enable people and economic activities to move back to city centres. Gentrification is when middle-class people move back to run down inner urban areas and improve the housing stock. Some re urbanisation /urban resurgence results from planned initiative such as those from urban development corporations were inner central areas are improved in a number of ways with high value, housing, high-tech employment and improved environments
29
What is a mega city?
An urban area with over 10 million people living there
30
What is a world city?
City that has political and financial influence over the whole world
31
What is deindustrialisation?
The fall in the percentage contribution of secondary industry to an economy in terms of value of input to GDP and importance of an employment sector
32
What was the decline of manufacturing attributed to?
- Mechanisation- cheaper to use machines rather than people- competition from abroad, particularly the RICs such as India and China. - reduced demand for traditional products as new materials and technologies have been developed
33
Definition of tertiary sector?
Tertiary activities such as financial services, transport, education, and health
34
Definition of quaternary sector?
Quaternary activities where knowledge or ideas are the main output, such as advertising, computer programming and software design
35
What are some examples of tertiary sector industries?
Entertainment, government, hospitality, mass media, healthcare, IT, financial services, insurance, legal services, gambling, retail services, real estate, education
36
Definition of decentralisation?
A process currently taking place in urban areas, where functions once centred within the central location or local authority are dispersed
37
What does centralised mean and example?
all decisions are made at the top and then apply to everyone e.g, London would make a decision on housing policy + all cities would follow
38
Example of decentralisation?
Local authorities like greater Manchester have more power in making decisions on local issues, such as transport, housing and public services
39
What three waves of decentralisation did Hiller (1986) identify?
- the first involved the development of over 700 food superstores in out of centre locations from the late 1970s to 1994
- the second involved the development if out of centre retail parks aimed primarily at retailers of bulky goods such as DIY, furniture and carpets
- and the third involved the development of out of centre regional shopping centres for comparison good retailers and leisure operators
40
What are some positive impacts of decentralisation of retail?
- They are designed around easy access and parking so are consumer friendly. - they can improve the profile and status of a region of a town. - they are often covered and car free. - they con provide a much needed stimulus for local and CBD retailing areas to improve. - they provide a greater shopping choice, and often low prices because of economies of bulk purchasing.- increased passing-trade for some retailers. - increased employment for people who initially construct and then work in out of town shopping centres. - there is more room for expansion. - Land prices are cheaper
41
What are some negative impacts of decentralisation of retail?
- They increase the reliance on car, leading to greater pollution, increased resource use, congestion and stress- disadvantages less mobile sections of the community who don't have access to this type of transport and therefore miss out on savings. - when retail concentrates into few stores, a monopoly of sorts develops in which shopping choice may be restricted.in the long run, these monopolies con control prices too. - decentralisation loads to decline of traditional town centres. - employment opportunities are mostly for females, and for port-time work. - they offer a sterile and boring shopping experience, that lacks the character and architectural riches of the city centre shopping
42
What is the brief history of Leeds?
- the city developed as a market town in the Middle Ages as part of the local agricultural economy.
- during the Industrial Revolution, Leeds developed into a major mill town; wool was the dominant industry but engineering, iron foundries, printing, and other industries were important.
- by the mid 20th century, Leeds expanded and absorbed the surrounding villages to become a large urban centre
43
Describe deindustrialization in Leeds?
• In 1951, 55.4 per cent of the Leeds workforce was employed in manufacturing; by 1973 this had declined to 34.6 per cent, with a total of 37,000 manufacturing jobs lost.
• However almost the same number of jobs had been created in the city’s service industries—banking, hotels, pubs, shops etc.—and Leeds City Council employed 34,000 people in 1975 compared with 19,000 in 1946.
• More recently areas of Yorkshire have experienced a growth in economic activity. Leeds, for example, has become a very attractive location for national and international companies and government agencies.
44
What is the current situation in Leeds?
• After London, Leeds is the largest legal and financial centre in the UK and there are over
30 national and international banks located in the city.
• Leeds is also the UK's third largest manufacturing centre with around 1,800 firms and 39,000 employees.
• Leeds is the headquarters for First Direct and is home to Yorkshire Bank and large Barclays, HSBC, Santander, Lloyds Banking Group and RBS Group operations.
45
What is urban policy?
Relates to strategies chosen by local or central governments to manage the development of urban areas
46
How have urban policies changed in the UK?
1979 - 1992 (Thatcher)
Market led approach, driven by companies, top-down
1992 - 1997 (Major)
Certain areas targeted, partnerships encouraged
1997 - 2010 (Blair + Brown)
Partnership approach strengthened, ‘new localism’, less top-down, more focused on social issues
2010 - 2015 (Coalition)
Local regeneration decentralised, LEPs
47
How has urban policy for resurgence developed since 1979 in Britain?
Conservatives in power from 1979, UDCs in 1981 to secure ,only and redevelop derelict land. Enterprise zones set up in 1981 to create development in areas of high unemployment, some success but new jobs were limited. 12 UDCs created between 1980 - 1990s, they bought land, built property then sold it, considered very successful. City challenge 1991 local authorities had more power, local communities more involved. Labour policy 1990s, local strategy partnerships developed targeted most deprived areas. Neighbour hood renewal and community dev. Set up forces on end quality of urban areas. Partnership schemes e.g. New East Manchester. Private investment to UDCs reached £6.67 b
48
What are megacities?
- metropolitan area with a total population in excess of 10 million people
- it usually has a population density of over 2000 persons / square km
- it can consist of one metropolitan area or two or more areas that have converged into each other
- megacities have regional or National influence
49
Examples of current megacities
LA, New York, London, Tokyo, Mumbai, Istanbul, Buenos Aires, Mexico City, Moscow, Shanghai, Paris, Cairo
50
What megacities are expected to be the largest by 2050?
-Shenzhen, China
- Karachi, Pakistan
- Lagos
51
Where are megacities?
- mainly in the northern hemisphere
- particularly between tropics
- Generally on the coast or on large rivers
- High density of megacities in SE Asia
- Overtime the pattern has changed from cities being mainly concentrated in HICs to LICs
52
Why are megacities on the rise?
- Globalisation and economic competition between countries and cities has led to the rise of the mega city
- Mass rural - urban migration has fuelled their growth
- natural increase
- government places such as special enterprise zones in Chinese cities encourage greater financial investment
53
What are immature megacities?
- immature cities are growing rapidly in an uncontrolled way
- many are in Africa
- growth is usually fed by rural - urban migration
- growth is so rapid that housing, transport, education, skewers, and water services cannot be built to keep pace with growth
- this leads to major health, housing and pollution problems
54
What are consolidating megacities?
- with slower growth, consolidating megacities can begin to provide basic services
- self - help schemes are important in these cities - improving housing, water and sewage disposal
- many people still work in the informal sector
55
What are mature megacities?
- maturing cities have a more developed formal economy, with large service industries
- the majority live in legal, well - built homes and work in the formal economy
- advanced transport, education and waste systems in place
- such cities are managed efficiently
56
What are established megacities?
-stable cities have advanced and effective governance
- they are often engaged in regeneration and urban sustainability projects
- many people work in high -end, professional service sector jobs
- quality of life is very high for most
57
Why are megacities forces for good?
• On average they produce 2-3 times more GDP than other cities.
• Offer opportunities to expand services in an economically efficient manner for large numbers e.g. health service.
• Less environmentally damaging to provide transport, housing, electricity to a dense urban area than a dispersed rural population.
• Urban dwellers have access to larger and more diverse employment markets.
• Better levels of education and healthcare improve the lives of the poor and empower women in countries where they do not have equal status.
• Centres of innovation- technological change/sustainability
• Fuel political pressure for change – common where there are large numbers of young people
58
What are world cities?
• World cities are those that exert a dominant influence over continental and global economies and processes.
• This is INDEPENDENT of population size, as world cities do not have to have huge populations (but usually do) to exert such a huge influence.
• Indeed, a world city (also called global city or world centre) is a city generally considered to be an important node in the global economic system such as London, New York and Tokyo.
59
Where is Mumbai located?
Mumbai is on the western coast of India in the Maharashtra state. To its left is the Arabian Sea. Mumbai is in the region of Southern East Asia.
60
What are the historical factors that have led to the growth of Mumbai?
1. City grew during British rule as variety of services grew up around the port
2. Continued to grow after British left in 1947
3. Area around the port became industrialised - processing good for export and handling imports
4. Closest port of entry to subcontinent for travellers from Europe
5. Early growth concentrated end of peninsula -access to sea on two sides
6. Originally a series of fishing villages - became a port, site favoured development
7. Today site restricts development - poses massive challenge to urban planners
8. Port and surroundings - “gateway to India”
9. British colonial administration in India developed the sheltered inlet into a port
61
What are the main functions of Mumbai?
Manufacturing, finance, media, government, transport, science + research
62
How is manufacturing a function in Mumbai?
Used to be known as the ‘Manchester of the east’ - for textiles, precious metals but now it is being reestablished. E.g. The former mafatal mill is now being redeveloped as Marathon futurex- It+ finance. Start up companies in aerospace, optical engineering, medical research, information technology, renewable energy + power are developing there. There is also a increasing large recycling industry in Mumbai.
63
How is finance a function in Mumbai?
The reserve bank of India, The Bombay stock exchange, the national stock exchange are in the city which attracts multinational cooperations e.g. Tata group, Essar group. Mumbai witnessed an economic boom since the liberalisation of 1991, the finance boom in the mid - nineties and the IT, export, services and outsourcing boom in 2000s
64
How is media a function in Mumbai?
Most of India’s main television and satellite networks, as well as its major publishing houses are headquartered in Mumbai e.g Bollywood which if the largest film producer in India.
65
How is government a function in Mumbai?
Mumbai is administered by the BritainMumbai municipal cooperation. The city is also the seat of the Bombay high court. The city is also the centre of government for Maharashtra state?
66
How is science + research a function in Mumbai?
The city can be considered a technophobe. India’s scientific + nuclear institutes are based there e.g. the Department of Nuclear energy
67
How is transport a function in Mumbai?
Mumbai accounts for 40% of India’s foreign trade. The Chhatrapati Shivaji international airport is the main aviation hub in the city, it handled 30.74 million passengers and 656,369 tonnes of cargo during 2011-12. The jawahoral netru airport, which currently handles 55-60% of India’s containerised cargo, was commissioned in 1989. Mumbai’s port is one of the world best natural harbours. Mumbai is also the headquarters of central railway + the western railway
68
What are the push causes for urbanisation in Mumbai?
1. Rural - urban migration, fast population growth in rural areas results in depressed wages and scarcity of goods
2. Loss or degradation of farmland and pastureland due to development, pollution, land grabs or conflict
3. The growth of mass transportation and improved communication within developing countries decrease the intertwining obstacles to movement
4. under - employment
69
what are the pull causes for urbanisation in Mumbai?
1. Clusters of similar businesses which act as a magnet for employees e.g. leather goods in Dharavi, Mumbai
2. Cities have better health and education outcomes which tend to increase productivity and incomes
3. Cities fund art and culture, have an openness to science and education and display the toleration required to benefit from ethnic diversity
4.Higher productivity in cities leads to higher wages and an improving quality of life in urban areas
5. Public services are easier to fund in densely populated areas
70
What are the positive economic consequences of urbanisation in Dharavi slum?
1. Small high street with little independent shops
2. 85% of people have a job in the slum and work locally
3. Some people have managed to become millionaires
71
What are the negative economic consequences of urbanisation in Dharavi slum?
1. People have no legal rights to the land + have not planned this settlement
2. Houses have no windows, asbestos roofs + no planning fits fire regulations
72
What are the positive social consequences of urbanisation in Dharavi slum?
1. Dual/ effective use of space. High street+ religious area. Changes for the needs of people
2. Community centre pottery area - 10000 people
3. Village feel and a central social square
4. Family life dominates - rooms within houses have multiple functions
73
What are the negative social consequences of urbanisation in Dharavi slum?
1. Lack of sanitation so 4000 cases of illness a day. Children playing in raw sewage
74
What are the positive environmental consequences of urbanisation in Dharavi slum?
1. Has a recycling zone, 80% of plastic waste gets recycled
2. More recycled than in the UK
75
What are the negative environmental consequences of Urbanisation in Dharavi slum?
1. Rubbish + rats everywhere. As it is built on an old rubbish tip
2. Air + land pollution
3. Toxic waste + substances in rubbish tip, even dangerous hospital waste
76
What does the term urban form relate to?
1. shape 2. Size 3. Density of population 4. Organisation of the settlement
77
What does urban model mean?
A simplified view of a city
78
What does urban function mean?
What happens in this zone-building use (eg residential/commercial)
79
What does urban zone mean?
A part of a city with similar land use and buildings
80
What does urban landuse mean?
What the land is used for eg housing, retail, farming
81
What does urban morphology mean?
The spatial structure and organisation of an urban area
82
What is the land-use of the residential general function?
Housing types (morphology) housing types (tenancy)
83
What is the land use of the commercial general function?
Retailing, warehousing, offices, hotels
84
What is the land use of the administrative general function?
Offices: central / local government, public utilities
85
What is the land use of the other public services general function?
Schools, hospitals, swimming pools, sewage works, landfill sites
86
What is the land use of the transport general function?
Roads, railway, airports, canals
87
What is the land use of the Industry general functional?
Manufacturing, energy supply, mining, quarrying
88
What is the land use of the recreational general function?
Parks, playing fields, allotments, woodland
89
What is the land use of the non-functional general function?
Derelict land, wasteland
90
Which function is the major land use of all urban areas?
Commercial, administrative, residential
91
What land use was previously the core function of most HICs cities?
Industry
92
Why is it no longer the case that Industry is the main function?
Outsourcing of manufacturing, globalisation, global shift in manufacturing
93
Which sectors now dominate economic activities in urban areas?
Tertiary and quaternary
94
How do physical factors affect land use?
• Coastline: - urban areas can only develop inland, series of concentric zones develop as half circles
• rivers: - floodplains vs industrial locations
• steep slopes :- repel development, although some attract higher land values as they have good views
• wind: - westerly prevailing winds blow the pollution west to east- locations to the west more expensive than the east
95
How do social factors affect land use?
• Life cycle: - mobility of population (aging population in rural creas)
• Social groups: - where people live is often seen in terms of the location of different social groups e.g. Income, ethnicity, religion - This result in a residential mosaic- different groups segregate themselves. - ghettos can develop if ethnic groups are highly segregated
96
How do political factors affect land use?
• Planning control: - greenfield sites - brownfield sites - Local authority housing: local authority housing generally on the outskirts of UK urban areas.
97
How do economic factors affect land use?
• Land values: -land value is traditionally higher in the centre where accessibility is greatest. - The peak ' land value intersection (PLVI) is the point with the highest land value and from here, Land prices decline in line with the theory of distance decay.
• The bid-rent theory: - where there is a free market for land, whoever is prepared to offer or bid the most money will usually acquire the land. -Residential. land use can't compete with commercial use in central locations so bids for land further away
98
What does the bid-rent theory state?
1. Shops and offices can afford high land values of the CBD
2. Industry can't afford the highest land values so is found away from the CBD
3. Housing can only afford low land values
4. As distance from the CBD increases there is less competition for land, so values fall (distance decay)
99
What are some examples of land use models?
The Burgess model, Hoyt sector model, Harris and Ullman's multiple nuclei model, the urban realms model
100
What are some changes in the city centre?
• Some city centres in the UK have experienced decline in the last 30 years
• In the 1980s and 1990s this was largely due to the development of out of town retail parks and the de centralisation of business and residential areas, which served to pull people away from the CBD
• more recent competition has come from the growth of internet shopping
101
What are fortress cities?
This is the idea that urban developments can be constructed with people’s safety in mind. Developments are deliberately landscaped and designed around security, protection, surveillance and exclusion. This planned and physical use of space creates very strong boundaries around our urban spaces and can lead to the POLARISATION of society between different groups of people. e.g. Gated communities, CCTV, mosquito alarms
102
What are edge cities?
An area becomes an edge city when there is a concentration of firms, and entertainment and shopping centres in a previously known rural or residential area.
Examples: mainly US = Atlanta, UK = Croydon
WHAT HAPPENS?
• Original CBD declines in importance
• All life moves to the edge
• Live, work, play
• Shopping malls
• Multiplex cinemas
• Business parks
• US trend now happening here in UK
103
What are the post-modern western cities?
• The term post modernism describes the changes that took place in Western society and culture in the late 20th century.
• It is characterised by the mixing of different artistic styles and architecture.
• Fortress landscapes and edge cities have been viewed as features of the postmodern western city.
• Elements of postmodernism can be seen in cities all over the world but the notion was based on the experiences of a small number of cities, mainly American.
• Los Angeles is often referred to as the archetypal postmodern city.
104
What are the features of a postmodern western city?
1. A disjointed urban area comprising of independent settlements, economics, societies and cultures.
2. Eclectic and varied architecture as seen in the London cityscape
3. Greater ethnic diversity but heightened economic, social and cultural inequalities and polarisation.
4. A greater emphasis on services and knowledge based industries rather than industrial mass.
5. Spectacular flagship developments such as the Guggenheim Museum in Bilbao, Spain.
105
What is walkable urbanism?
An urban design movement which encourages planners to design urban spaces that encourage walking and exploring.
106
What is gentrification?
Gentrification is the buying and renovating of properties often in more run-down areas by wealthier individuals
WHAT HAPPENS?
Initial LOWER PROPERTY PRICES
HIGHER INCOMES MOVE IN
IMPROVE PROPERTY
ATTRACT FOOD/DRINK BUSINESS
HIGHER STATUS EMERGES
Property prices increase
107
Positives of gentrification?
• Increases tax income for local councils and brings wealth into an area.
• Creates greater employment opportunities in new areas such as design.
• Exposure to poverty in those gentrified neighbourhoods declines
• Creates new housing opportunities
• The environment improves
• It can reduce suburban sprawl
within a community.
108
Negatives of gentrification?
• Traditional businesses face increased competition from incoming newer businesses.
• Original locals can be priced out of the area as rent and house prices increase. This is called community displacement
• It changes the cultural standards of the neighbourhood.
• It can cause low-income households to move to a poorer neighbourhood.
109
Definition of inequality?
Differences in the levels of wealth, social opportunity or environmental quality
110
Definition of urban inequality?
Differences in the levels of wealth, social opportunity or environmental quality in urban areas
111
Definition of social segregation?
When populations are not equal throughout a defined space
112
Definition of cultural diversity?
The quality of different cultures and the extent to which they respect each others differences
113
Definition of deprivation?
A standard of living below that of the majority in a particular society that involves hardships and lack of access to resources
114
What does economic inequality include differences in and how can we measure it?
Includes: income, economic assets (e.g. house, pension, inheritance) measure it: average income, average house price, proportion of people on benefits, car ownership
115
What does social inequality include differences in and how can we measure it?
Includes: type of employment, education, amenities, access to services, health, incidence of crime, community life measure it: unemployment level, proportion of GCSE passes, number of people per doctor, burglary rate
116
What does environmental inequality include differences in and how do we measure it?
Includes: pollution, green spaces/ gardens, housing quality measure it: air quality, area of green space/ number of parks, proportion of buildings with graffiti, brownfield vs greenfield
117
What is the index of multiple deprivation?
A UK government qualitative study of deprived areas in English local councils
118
How is the index of multiple deprivation worked out?
Based on 37 separate indicators, organised across 7 domains. It is calculated for every lower supper output area (LSOA) or neighbourhood in England
119
What are the advantages of Chlorpeths maps?
- fairly easy to construct
- visually effective as they give the reader a chance to see general patterns
120
What are the disadvantages of chlorpeth maps?
- it assumes that the whole area under one form of shading has the same density, with no variations
- the method implies abrupt changes at the drawn boundaries which will not be present in reality
121
What is socio - economic segregation?
- as the industry changes, people access or fail to access work. These people then live in different parts of the city
- over time high and low income zones emerge
- ethnic groups link to this pattern too as immigrants tend to cluster together in cheaper areas
122
Why does housing cause wealthy and poor to concentrate spatially?
• Developers, builders and planners then to build housing on blocks of land with a particular
market in mind.
• The requirement to include a proportion of ‘affordable housing’ may affect housing value
in some areas, but wealthier groups can choose where they live, paying premium prices
for houses well aware from poor areas.
• Poorer groups have less choice.
123
Why does changing environments cause the wealthy and poor to concentrate spatially?
• Housing neighbourhoods change overtime. Houses that were built for large families in
Georgian and Victorian times are now too big for the average UK family. Many have been
converted.
• On the other hand, former poor areas are being gentrified. The ‘right to buy’ legislation of
the 1980s transformed many council estates, as houses were bought by their occupants
and improved.
124
Why does the ethnic dimension cause the wealthy and poor to concentrate spatially?
• When migrants first arrive they may suffer discrimination in the job market and may
be either unemployed or employed in low paid jobs.
• This means they can only afford to buy cheap housing or rent privately.
• Newly arriving migrants often concentrate in poor areas in the city, often cluster into
multicultural areas.
125
What is urban social exclusion?
Term refers to the problems faced by residents in areas of multiple deprivation.
• People are excluded from full participation in society by their social and physical circumstances (e.g. they
cannot access a good job because of poor education or obtain quality housing due to poverty).
• In a city, inequality can cause lack of social cohesion and in extreme cases lead to civil unrest.
• Inner city areas have traditionally been the most deprived.
• Today, there is no clear geographical pattern to urban poverty.
• It clearly exists but the image of a troubled inner core surrounded by affluent suburbs is out-dated.
• Some of the highest levels of urban poverty are now found in peripheral estates while many inner city
areas have been regenerated.
126
What can help tackle poverty and inequality in cities?
Enforcing a living wage or providing an urban subsidy
Increase provision of schools
Support low skilled workers who want to develop their abilities
Increase access to affordable housing
Greater provision of public transport, ensuring this is affordable.
Enforce minimum environmental standards. Poor health is strongly linked to poor conditions
127
What is urban decline?
is the deterioration of the inner city often caused
by lack of investment and maintenance. It is often but not
exclusively accompanied by a decline in population numbers,
decreasing economic performance and unemployment.
128
Economic causes of urban decline?
• Economic decline since the 1950s led to movement of employment away to smaller
urban and rural areas.
• Traditional manufacturing industries declined
• Between 1960-81 1.6 million manufacturing jobs were lost in urban areas
• 75% of national job losses.
• Service industry grew, jobs relocated due to technological changes, space
requirements - globalisation.
• Inner city area became de-industrialised
• Work places closed, unemployment rose in inner city areas of Liverpool,
Manchester, Sheffield, Glasgow. 50% higher than the rest of the country in
1994.
129
Social causes of decline?
• Out migration
• Between 1951 and 81 the UK’s largest conurbations lost 35% of
their population e.g. Liverpool
• Looking for job opportunities –why?
• During the 60s and 70s led to the growth of small towns around
the conurbations - decentralisation
• 1980s led to growth in rural areas – counter-urbanisation
• People leaving tend to be more affluent, skilled and young.
Leaves behind old, less skilled and poor.
130
Physical environment causes of decline?
• Poor environment
• vandalism, graffiti, few amenities, urban motorways, flyovers,
empty/derelict buildings, overgrown wasteland, dominated by
concrete.
• Terraced houses poor quality, those that were cleared during
the 60s and 70s left unsightly estates.
• High-rise flats built in the 60s and 70s mostly poorly built.
• Damp, poor ventilation, expensive to heat, poor design, hidden
place- criminal activity.
• Lack of community leads to no sense of ownership and
vandalism/crime
131
Why do immigrants often settle in cities?
- cities are the first point of entry for many immigrants
- cities offer a bigger range of employment opportunities
- Cities tend to house earlier immigrant groups with the same ethnicity.
- Urban populations tend to be more tolerant of immigrants
- Established cultural diversity in cities e.g. specialist shops/religious centers
132
What are the benefits of cultural diversity?
• Exposure to different foods, music, language,
religion. E.g. Notting Hill Carnival / Leeds
Carnival illustrate acceptance and interest
in different cultures.
• It gives people the chance to experience
different things outside of what they are
normally accustomed to.
• Exposure to diverse cultures improves
understanding of different points of view
which helps to engender greater tolerance
of others.
133
What are the problems with cultural diversity?
• Extra pressure on stretched urban services e.g.
language difference – local authorities may need
to provide English lessons, bilingual literature or
translators.
• Hospitals may need to cater for specific illnesses.
• School holiday patterns and school timetables to
cater for different ethnic groups.
• Multicultural policies can encourage distinct
communities which lead parallel lives within the
same urban area – this is known as segregation
134
Causes of ethnic segregation. Self - segregation?
Migrants seek the support and security of living
near friends and relatives within their ethnic
community.
Specialist facilities such as places of worship and
food shops
Maintenance of culture and traditions made
possible by living in close proximity to one
another.
Protection against racial abuse and attacks from
the majority population
135
Causes of ethnic segregation. External factors?
Traditionally migrants were forced to live in areas of
cheap housing as they were a source of cheap labour
Hostility from the majority population.
‘White flight’ where majority population move out of an
area into which the minority population has moved.
Unsuccessful in securing a mortgage loan
Discrimination in access to local authority housing
136
What is interculturalism?
• This emphasises interaction and the exchange of ideas between different
cultural groups.
• Areas of mutual interest are found and community engagement is conducted in
‘intercultural’ spaces such as libraries, schools, sports clubs and community
centres.
137
What is legislation?
• In the UK there is legislation on anti-racism, employment rights and
opportunities to combat discrimination, prejudice and racism.
• Encouraging greater political involvement of different cultural groups can also
encourage greater integration and provide a voice for those who may feel under-
represented.
138
What is a microclimate?
The small scale variations in temperature, percipitation, humidity, wind speed and evaporation that occur in an environment
139
What is an urban heat island?
A city or metropolitan area that is significantly warmer than its surrounding rural areas due to human activities
The average mean air temperature of a city with 1 million or more people can be 1-3’C warmer than its surroundings. On a clear calm night this can be 12’C.
140
What is the urban climate dome?
- cities create their own climate and weather sometimes called the climatic dome
- this is where the surrounding weather is different from the surrounding rural area, in terms of temperature, relative humidity, percipitation, visibility, air quality and wind speed
- in large cities the dome may extend upwards to 250-300m and its influence may continue for several km downwind
- there are 2 layers within the urban climate dome: below roof level there is an urban canopy where processes act in the space between buildings (sometimes known as canyons), above this is the urban boundary layer. The dome extends downwind and at height as a plume, into the surrounding rural areas.
141
What is the rural urban transect and why?
The urban temperatures are at their highest in the mid-afternoon
over the CBD.
• Secondary peaks of high temperature appear over significantly built
up areas such as that seen over the suburban residential areas.
• Night temperatures are significantly lower than day time
temperatures. Although the temperature range from rural to city
centre is often greatest at night due to the high heat storage
capacity of building materials compared to vegetation.
142
What is a cliff spatial change?
• The edge of the heat island is usually well defined and
therefore temperatures change abruptly at the rural-urban
boundary (sometimes called a “cliff” in temperatures)
• From this point, temperatures rise steadily to a peak in the
city centre, where building densities are highest.
• The rise tends to be gentle (average 2-4oC per Km)
143
What is a plateaus spatial change?
• The steady rise in temperatures is often called a plateau
• Within the plateau, there are variations which reflect the
distribution of industries, power stations, water areas and
open spaces (due to albedo)
• Highly reflective surfaces absorb very little insolation (reflect
it back to the atmosphere and keep cool OR reflect it so that
it focuses into a small area which heats up
• Darker surfaces tend to absorb insolation much better and
then re-radiate it as long wave energy that heats up the urban area
144
How do building materials cause the urban heat island effect?
• Such as concrete, bricks and tarmac, act as bare rock
surfaces, absorbing large quantities of heat during the day (more than natural surfaces)
• Have a higher thermal capacity than natural surfaces
• Much of this heat is stored and released slowly at night
• Some urban surfaces, especially buildings with large windows, have a high reflective capacity.
• Multistorey buildings tend to concentrate the heating effect in the surrounding streets by reflecting
energy downwards (this can also lead to localised variations in
145
How does burning of fuel cause the urban heat island effect?
• From industries, buildings and vehicles
which all burn fuels
• Air conditioning units (regulate
temperatures indoors) release hot air
into the atmosphere
• People release heat, so cities with large
populations will have heat generated in
this manner
146
How does the urban pollution dome cause the urban heat island effect?
• From industries, buildings and vehicles
which all burn fuels
• Air conditioning units (regulate
temperatures indoors) release hot air
into the atmosphere
• People release heat, so cities with large
populations will have heat generated in
this manner
147
How does water management cause the urban heat island effect?
• In urban areas, water falling on the
surface is removed quickly (through
drains)
• This changes the urban moisture and
heat budget- there will be less
evaporation, so more energy is available
to heat the atmosphere(latent heat)
148
What is albedo?
The reflectivity of a surface. The ratio between the amount of incoming solar radiation and the amount of energy reflected back into the atmosphere by surfaces or the atmosphere
• Lighter surfaces have a greater albedo e.g. north/south pole – snow and ice = very reflective so less heat is absorbed. Dark
buildings = absorbs lots of heat.
149
Rural vs urban albedo effect?
• Surfaces in urban areas tend to be
much less reflective than those in rural
areas (lots of tarmac and not much
grass)
• In winter, rural areas tend to keep snow
for a longer period (and therefore have
a greater albedo)
150
What are isoline maps?
• Isolines are lines drawn to link places
that share the same value.
• The different areas can be coloured,
to clearly show the different areas
more clearly.
• An isoline drawn between places that
are the same height above sea level is
a contour line, which you see on maps
all the time, and is the one that you
would have to use the most
• Isotherm: Joins points with the same
temperature.
151
What are the advantages and disadvantages of isoline maps?
Advantages
• Shows gradual change and patterns over a large spatial
area
• Lines join places of equal values along their length
• Uses fixed intervals so changes can be easily identified
• Can add colour/density shading to enhance
patterns/trend
Disadvantages
• The shading implies equal values between the isolines
• Requires data for a large number of locations
152
What is relief rainfall?
Relief rainfall is the dominant method of precipitation formation in the UK and relates to the precipitation that is created as air masses are pushed up and over mountainous or upland areas. Relief rainfall occurs where moist air is forced to rise over a physical barrier such as a mountain range.
153
What is conventional rainfall?
This type of rainfall occurs in summer months for the UK and beings heavy rainfall and violent thunderstorms to our country. These events occur mainly in summer and in the south east of the country try.
Short wave radiation arrives at the earths surface and is converted to long wave Heat energy. This heat energy heats the air above it. = the now warmed air has more energy and rises. = as the air cools water vapour condenses to form cumulonimbus clouds and eventually it rains over the UK.
154
What is frontal rainfall?
The warm air is less dense and since it has more energy it is forced to rise above the colder denser air. As the warm air rises a it cools, water droplets within it condense and clouds form. A front is the beginning of a warm or cold sector of air which often creates rain.
155
Why is precipitation higher?
• Precipitation is on average 5-15% greater than rural areas in large urban areas (mean annual totals).
• Urban heat island generates convection
• High rise buildings and a mixture of building heights, induces air turbulence and encourages vertical motion of air
• Cities produce large amounts of water vapour from
156
Manchester as an example of precipitation in urban area?
• Some evidence that cities
increase precipitation downwind
• The building of tower blocks in
Manchester in the 1970s
brought more rain to other
parts of Greater Manchester
• Prevailing winds tend to be
Westerly in Manchester.
Rainfall in areas downwind of
Salford (e.g. Stockport) have
seen rainfall increase by over 7% in the past few decades
• Monthly rainfall in general is 28% higher 30-60km downwind
of cities (compared to upwind)
157
What is different with other types of precipitation in urban areas?
1. Snow is less common in cities and any which falls, melts faster
2. There is a 25% greater chance of thunderstorms
3. Up to 400% greater incidence of hailstorms. This is due to strong heating (especially in summer), giving rise to very strong convection
158
Why are there more thunderstorms in urban areas?
The chance of thunderstorms
is increased during late
afternoon and early evening
in the summer months.
Convectional uplift of warm
moist air causes
condensation, produces latent
heat and further fuels
convectional uplift.
159
What is fog?
A thick cloud of tiny water droplets suspended in
the atmosphere at or near the earth's surface which
obscures or restricts visibility (to a greater extent
than mist; strictly, reducing visibility to below 1 km).
160
Why has fog increased a why does it form?
• The occurrence of fog has increased with industrialisation
• London weather records show in
the 1700s there were about 20
days of fog a year but by the end of the 1800s this was over 50 days
• 1950s- discovered the average number of particles in urban air was greater than rural
Pollution acts as condensation nuclei and encourage fog formation at night,
usually under high pressure conditions
161
Why do urban areas have more fog?
• Wind speeds are lower (where there are no high rise buildings)
so fogs are not so easily dispersed
• Presence of pollution provides hygroscopic nuclei for water
droplets to form (and also adds
to reduced visibility)
• Presence of pollution prevents sun’s rays penetrating to the
ground and warming up the fog →
so fog not dispersed.
162
What is smog and photochemical smog?
Increased amount of dust and smoke
particles causes ‘smog’.
A recent phenomenon has been
photochemical smog – smog that is
created by sunlight and dust/smoke
particles reacting together to produce
low level ozone which is very dangerous
to health.
163
What is particulate matter?
Minute airborne liquid or solid
particles (such as dust, fumes, mist,
smog, smoke) that cause air pollution.
Used to measure pollution.
Measured in PM10
164
Why is there more smog in LA?
LA has a temperature inversion where the air is in the atmosphere is warmer than below. This means
that all the pollution is trapped.
• The prevailing wind blows in of the Cold Pacific Ocean.
• The air is trapped by the mountains which reach 10,000 feet in elevation, and combined with the
inversion layer, the smog that gets created in Los Angeles gets bottled in.
165
What is photochemical smog and how does it affect people and the atmosphere?
• Photochemical smog forms when volatile organic compounds and nitrogen oxides
react with sunlight to form smog containing ozone, liquid particulates and other
pollutants (e.g. the brown haze of nitrogen dioxide).
• PM10s are very small particles both naturally occurring (pollen) and man-made (e.g.
from car exhaust fumes). They greatly contribute towards smog formation.
• Smog can cause great discomfort (especially for those suffering from asthma or
bronchial disorders) and even death.
• Cities such as LA with high car usage (5 million cars burning 40 million litres of
petrol a day) are very susceptible to photochemical smog.
• The clear, calm, high pressure conditions frequently experienced in LA are also ideal
for smog formation
166
Why is the air quality worse in urban areas?
• Quality of air in urban areas in poorer than in surrounding
countryside.
• Urban areas experience 7 times more dust particles in their local atmosphere than rural areas.
• 200 times more sulphur dioxide
• 10 times more nitrogen dioxide
• 10 times more hydrocarbons
• Twice as much CO2
• Can be a huge problem for governments as has a huge impact
on health and wellbeing of urban dwellers.
167
How dangerous is ozone, affects of it?
• Irritation of the respiratory system, causing coughing, throat
irritation, and/or an uncomfortable sensation in the chest.
• Reduced lung function, making it more difficult to engage in
vigorous activities.
• Aggravation of asthma.
• Increased susceptibility to respiratory infections.
• Inflammation and damage the lining of the lungs. Within a few
days, the damaged cells are shed and replaced much like the
skin peels after a sunburn.
• Animal studies suggest that if this type of inflammation
happens repeatedly over a long time period (months, years, a
lifetime), lung tissue may become permanently scarred,
resulting in permanent loss of lung function and a lower
quality of life.
168
What is legislation e.g clean air acts?
Tackling production of smoke + particulates. The British government decided legislation was needed to prevent much smoke entering the atmosphere. The act of 1956 introduced smoke - free zones into urban areas. In 1990s tough regulations were imposed on levels of airborne pollution, particularly on PM10s. Local councils in the UK are now required to monitor pollution in their areas + to establish Air quality management areas where levels are likely to exceeded. Some areas have planted more vegetation to capture particulates on leaves.
169
An example of legislation e.g. clean air acts?
London (killer fog) of 1952. In London, air quality standards have improved in recent years but in 2015 NOx emissions were still higher than UK + European law recommended. measures to clean up construction sites have been introduced since these are responsible for around 12% of London NOx emissions.
170
Evaluation of legislation e.g. clean air acts?
Effective but there are still areas which have a higher level of air pollution than recommended e.g. in London
171
What is zoning of industry?
Industry placed downwind in cities to prevent air pollution being released directly in the centre of a city
172
Example of zoning of industry?
- planning legislation has forced companies to build higher factory chimneys to emit pollutants above the inversion layer
- building designs to emit pollutants above inversion layer
173
Evaluation of zoning of industry?
Partially effective as pollutants released by industry aren’t concentrated within the centre of cities however they are still released into the atmosphere somewhere.
Political barrier = could slow economic growth of industries
Companies may just pay the fine and continue to release pollutants
174
What is vehicle control and public transport?
Strategies adapted by difference cities to reduce the number of vehicles in urban areas
175
Examples of vehicle control + public transport?
- park + ride
- Manchester’s development of a tram system
- bus or car pooling lanes
- congestion charges
- car banning
- car sharing schemes
- cycle rides and facilities such as snake bridge in Copenhagen
176
Evaluation of vehicle control + public transport?
Effective as schemes can encourage a lower/ reduced use of cars which therefore reduced pollution/ car exhaust emissions. People may just pay fines - won’t abide by it. Electric vehicles are expensive. Not everyone has access to public transport. Local councils may not invest enough in public transport.
177
What is the effect of a single building on wind?
When there is a single building, air is displaced upwards and around the sides of the building. Air is pushed downward on the leeward side of the building. Powerful frictional drag creates air turbulence. Pollution and litter and be trapped in the gap after the building until the wind changes.
178
How do different buildings act? How does wind differ?
Widely spaced buildings act like single buildings
Narrower- spaced buildings - the flows interfere
Very closed spacing causes winds to skim over the top
179
What is the Venturi effect? How do urban canyons affect wind?
Our urban canyons create constricted spaces where the wind becomes funnelled between buildings, dramatically increasing wind speeds and pressures.
As the wind passes a building, it creates a negative pressure on the leeward side that can be even more powerful than the positive pressures on the windward side. It is the same negative pressure that lifts airplanes and propels sailboats.
180
Why does it rain more in urban areas?
- the urban heat island effect causes warmer temperatures in cities which creates unstable air in area of low pressure which leads to precipitation
- when the ground is heated it can lead to conventional rainfall
- pollution increases cloud formation and therefore rainfall
181
Why is there more flooding in urban areas?
Trees intercept the rain, water is taken through the roots and so less enters the river, evapotranspiration reduces the amount of water that reaches the river. No vegetation in urban areas
182
How are urban areas designed to remove water quickly?
Cambered roads, sloping roofs, water is gathers in smooth storm sewer systems, gather speed and erosional power, water is emptied into streams which fill rapidly and increase the risk of flooding, smooth rounded guttering
183
Why do urban areas have a shorter basin lag time?
= impermeable
surfaces e.g. tarmac lead to rapid
overland flow resulting in quick transfer
of water to the rive
184
Why do urban areas have a steeper rising limb?
Water
management systems such as gutters
and drains allows water to flow into
river quicker leading to high peak
discharge.
185
Why do urban areas have a steeper falling limb?
There is less
underground storage of water so the
vast majority of the water will have
entered the river and the base level will
return quicker because there is not any
more water to add to it.
186
Why is there a longer basin lag time in rural areas?
Precipitation falls onto leaves (interception) and then drops to the ground (stem flow). Some
will infiltrate and therefore take longer
to return to the river.
187
Why is there a gentler rising limb in rural areas?
Moisture can also be absorbed and transpired by trees so less water reaches the river.
188
Why is there a gentler falling limb in rural areas?
Water will return to the river after many hours as it
flows through soil and rocks as groundwater flow This further results in the river taking longer to return to base level.
189
What is the Los Angeles fail safe flood: river restoration?
The restoration project aims to restore 11 miles of the LA River, from Griffith Park to downtown LA
Much of the 51-mile-long Los Angeles River functions as a storm channel
The plan would accommodate recreational and natural uses of the river while maintaining the city's
existing flood risk management levels
The project was proposed by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and adopted by the city in 2016
190
What are sustainable urban drainage systems (SUDS)?
A relatively new approach to managing rainfall by using natural processes in the landscape to reduce flooding, control flooding and provide an amenity for the community.
191
What do SUDS aim to do?
• store runoff and release it slowly (attenuation)
• harvest and use the rain close to where it falls
• allow water to soak into the ground (infiltration)
• slowly transport (convey) water on the surface
• filter out pollutants
• allow sediments to settle out by controlling the flow of the water
192
What are some examples of SUDS?
• Swales (grass channels)
• Roof water collected in water butts
• Permeable pavements (can be stored
below)
• Rain gardens
• Wetlands
• Filter trench
193
What are swales?
Swales are shallow, broad and
vegetated channels designed to
store and/or convey runoff
and remove pollutants.
Used to pass the runoff to the
next stage of the treatment
train and can be designed to
promote infiltration.
Dams and berms also can be
installed across the flow path
of a swale in order to promote
settling and infiltration.
194
What are wetlands?
Wetlands provide both
storm water
attenuation and
treatment.
• They are shallow ponds
and marshy areas,
covered almost entirely
in aquatic vegetation.
• Wetlands slow flows for
an extended period to
allow sediments to
settle, and to remove
contaminates by
enabling adhesion to
vegetation and aerobic
decomposition.
• They also provide
significant ecological
benefits
195
Water quality, pollutants + harms?
-harm fish/wildlife
-kill native vegetation
- foul drinking supplies
-make recreational areas unsafe and unpleasant
- sediment from building sites
-road salt
-oil,grease and toxic chemicals from cars
- contamination from industry (LiCs)
- viruses from pet waste, human waste an issue in LICs - Mumbai
- heavy metals from car exhausts
-pesticides and nutrients from parks and gardens
196
Why do we need more sustainable water management in London?
• Low standard of protection against surface water flooding
(evident in storms of 2015)
• Quality of London’s tributary rivers is poor to moderate
(in 2009; 14 were poor and 26 were moderate).
• London is classified as seriously water stressed (55% of
all rain that falls in the Thames Valley is abstracted and
used. In 2012 London suffered significant drought)
• London has a high proportion of impermeable surfaces and
clay soils; this reduces infiltration.
• London’s drainage system is old
• People are paving front gardens
• London’s population is growing. This leads to further
development.
197
What is river restoration?
• River restoration refers to a large variety of ecological,
physical, spatial and management measures and practices.
• These are aimed at restoring the natural state and
functioning of the river system in support of biodiversity,
recreation, flood management and landscape development.
198
Overview of the Cheonggyecheon river: Seoul, South Korea?
1. The river was seen as a sanitation and flood risk. The stream was fully covered between 1958 and 1961 and a six-lane highway was built over
it during the 1970s
2. This continued until 2003 when a $281 million scheme was launched to restore the river.
3. The river restoration promoted more sustainable
forms of transport and the concrete was dismantled to create a 5.8km ecologically sensitive green pedestrian corridor.
199
What are some general facts about waste?
• The average person in the UK produces 517kg of household
waste each year
• Waste is estimated to account for 5% of global greenhouse
gas emission.
• Globally, waste increases by about 7%, year on year.
• This amount is increasing in:
• Amount
• Toxicity
• How long it is toxic for
200
What is Municipal solid waste (MSW), examples of each?
Municipal solid waste = refuse/rubbish!
• Biodegradable waste
• Recyclable waste
• Inert waste
• Electrical waste
• Composite waste
• Hazardous waste
• Toxic waste
• Biomedical waste
Food waste/green waste
Paper/cardboard/glass/tins/clothes
Construction and demolition waste, dirt, rocks
Electrical appliances
Clothing/drinks cartons/toys
Paints/tyres/batteries/aerosol spray cans
Pesticides/herbicides
Expired prescription drugs
201
What is the waste stream?
The complete flow of waste from its source through to final disposal.
202
Why does the waste stream need to be monitored?
• Loss of recyclable resources
• Loss of potential resources e.g. energy from controlled
incineration
• Contamination of water and land (leachates)
• Air pollution (methane)
• Risks to human health (respiratory problems)
• Cost – collecting and treating waste comes with a high cost.
• Cities are running out of landfill space.
203
Where is waste production highest and why?
• Currently waste production is generally higher in HIC. This is because waste generation tends to be greater where disposable
incomes and living standards are higher.
• In the future it is cities in low and middle income countries
which are set to see the biggest increase in waster generation.
• This is due to rapid urbanisation and continued industrialisation.
• The amount of MSW is growing fastest in China; it overtook
the USA as the largest waste generator in 2004.
204
What are the 3Rs?
Reduce:
• The best approach is to prevent waste and businesses are encouraged to reduce
the amount of packaging used.
• Consumers can help by refusing plastic bags, buying products which do not use
excessive packaging.
• 5p plastic bag charge
Re-Use:
• There has been attempts to reuse jam jars, milk containers, soft drinks/water
bottles
• The most successful example is the ‘Bag for Life’
Recycle:
• Paper, glass, metal cans, plastic and clothes can all be recycled if they can be
collected economically.
• Problems – start up costs for recycling are high; households are often unwilling
to sort recyclables from normal waste
205
What are some approaches to waste management?
• Unregulated waste management - Illegal waste disposal or sites operating
without a licence
• Recycling - Converting waste to new products
• Recovery - Using waste for energy or direct reuse
• Incineration - burning collected waste
• Burial - Landfill disposal of waste
• Waste submergence - Dumping wastes under water
• Trade in waste - Selling waste with potential recycling, recovery value
206
What is landfill, benefits and problems?
• Waste is disposed of in old quarries or hollows
Benefits:
• Convenient and cheap
Problems:
• Unsightly, threat to groundwater supplies and river quality
• Contamination of water supplies
• Methane – greenhouse gas
• Disposable nappies (15% household waste after glass and plastic).
Nappies = 500 years to break down
• Running out of space – EU legislation binding the UK to reducing the
amount of waste sent to landfill
207
What is energy recovery (incineration)?
• Waste material converted into energy
• Main method is incineration
• Modern incinerators generate electricity or power neighbourhoods
• 7 licensed municipal incinerators in the UK
• There is one in Leeds
208
What are some facts about the energy from waste (efW) Leeds?
• With 346,000 households in Leeds, it
collects a massive 306,000 tonnes of
waste each year from homes, household
waste sorting sites and other recycling
sites across the city.
• It currently recycle around 40% of
this waste. From households alone, in
2015/16 the amount was equal to the
weight of 3,200 double decker buses.
• It has a visitor centre used as a
educational resource.
209
What does the term dereliction refer to?
: Dereliction refers to the state of having been
abandoned and become dilapidated.
210
What are the causes of urban dereliction?
In urban areas derelict buildings are often associated with
former industrial sites or run-down housing estates.
In the UK, DE-INDUSTRIALISATION left to many people
leaving the inner city and industrial buildings being
abandoned.
Alongside this services such as pubs and shops will have
become vacant as areas became subject to decline.
211
What are the impacts of urban dereliction?
• Crime and vandalism rates tend to be higher
• House prices fall
• Out migration of residents takes place
• Land can pose a risk to human health - Contamination from
industrial processes has been linked to health problems such as
low birth weight infants, heart disease, cancer and respiratory
disease.
• High costs in urban renewal often discourage authorities and
individuals from renovation or rebuilding.
• The presence of listed buildings can increase the investment
needed
212
How can urban dereliction be managed?
• Regeneration Schemes – UDCs, City Challenge, New Deal for Communities.
• Government focus on using brownfield sites rather than greenfield sites.
• Between 1997-2009 the proportion of dwellings build on previously developed land increased from 56% to 80%, while the proportion of
previously developed land changing to residential use increased from 47% to 69%.
• London had the greatest proportion of dwellings built on previously - 98%
213
Information about the Brownfield site - Leeds South Bank?
A 4.2 acre brownfield site
-Formerly occupied by Yorkshire
Chemicals
-In the centre of Leeds
-The site of the new school is
strategically important as it forms
part of the city's growing education
quarter with the new Leeds City
College and the Leeds College of
Building facilities nearby.
-Easy transport access
-Busy roads
-Close to open water
-Utilities already in place
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Information about the greenfield site - Silsden?
-Untouched land, previously
used for farming
-Low grade farmland, only
suitable for growing crops to
feed to animals
-The new complex, due to be
open by 2018, will solve
existing overcrowding
problems and help meet
future demand from families
moving into the 1,200 new
homes planned for Silsden
over the next few years.
-Local concern over
destruction of animal
habitats and rural areas
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What is land remediation?
the removal
of pollution or contaminants from the
ground, which allows large areas of derelict
former industrial land to be brought back
into commercial use.
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Land remediation in London Olympic park?
• In preparation for the 2012 Olympic
games, a 350 hectare area of east
London was ‘cleaned up’ and has now
become the largest new urban park in
Europe, with 100 hectares of open land
and 45 hectares of new habitat.
• 2.2 million square metres of soil was
excavated, of which nearly half was
treated by soil washing, chemical
stabilisation, bioremediation or sorting.
• 80% of the excavated material was
reused on site.
• A total of 235,000 metres cubed of
contaminated groundwater was
successfully treated.
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Definition of an ecological footprint?
The total area of productive land an water required to produce the resources a population consumes and absorb the waste produced.
Ecological footprint.= inputs + outputs
Ecological footprint is measured in terms of the amount of productive land area necessary to: - produce the resources a population consumes - assimilate the waste it produces
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Facts about ecological footprint?
1. In the first analysis of a major worlds cities ecological footprint; London ecological footprint turned out to be 120 times the area of the conurbation itself.
2. Urban areas in HICs often have an ecological footprint more than 10x higher than a similar size urban area in an LIC
3. The ecological footprint of the Tokyo metropolitan area has been calculated to be almost 3x the land area of Japan as a whole
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What is sustainable development defined as?
Development which aims to meet the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs.
A sustainable city has certain characteristics that relate to its long term future, which is ideally problem free:
- the environment is not damaged
- the economic base is sound with resources allocated fairly and jobs secure
- there is a strong sense of community with local people involved in decisions made
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What are some area to consider when trying to achieve sustainable urban areas?
- conserving the historic and natural environment
- reducing and safely disposing of waste
- providing adequate open spaces
- involving local people
- providing an efficient public transport system
- housing development
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Why is conserving the historic and natural environment important for achieving sustainable urban areas?
• It is important to conserve areas of previous industrial
use and historic commercial and cultural areas. This is
often done by keeping the architecture of many of the
buildings but altering their function.
• An example of the is Liverpool – the waterfront and
areas associated with its development were
designated a World Heritage Site in 2004.
• The natural environment can be conserved by reducing,
or stopping development on the edge of the existing
built up area (green field sites) and by encouraging
development to take place on brownfield sites.
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Why is reducing and safely disposing of waste important for achieving sustainability in urban areas?
• By 2000, the UK was producing 330 million tonnes of waste
each year; much from mining and quarrying but also from
households.
• Only 18% of waste was recycled in 2004.
• One key area of waste is packaging and plastic bags – the
charge added to plastic bags in the UK in order to reduce
this waste has been successful.
• There will always be waste which needs to be disposed of
and there are two options for this: incineration and
landfill.
• The UK has favoured landfill, however, we are now running
out of appropriate sites for landfill.
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Why is providing adequate open spaces important for achieving sustainable urban areas?
• The presence of official
green belts or areas where
local authorities choose to
restrict buildings around
cities offers open space for
recreation purposes.
• In addition, many areas
within cities have
designated areas of open
space in the form of parks,
playing fields and individual
gardens.
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Why is involving local people important for achieving sustainable urban areas?
• If people have ownership of ideas
and feel involved and in control of
their own destiny, they are much more likely to respond
positively and care for the building and environment in which
they live.
• Consulting people at planning stages, before decisions are
made, is essential.
• Planners increasingly survey opinions before putting forward
plans and consult after they have been produced.
• Residents form associations to give them a stronger
collective voice.
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Why is providing an efficient public transport system important for achieving sustained urban areas?
• The volume of cars as a means of private
transport is a problem and a barrier to a
city being sustainable.
• Public transport systems need to be in place
which are efficient, reliable and
comfortable.
• This could be in numerous forms: buses,
trains, trams, underground services.
• In preparation for the 2012 Olympics
London improved its public transport
systems: extensively upgrading the
Underground, extending London over ground
links, improving buses by making them more
frequent in order to reduce overcrowding.
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Why is providing housing developments important for achieving sustainable areas?
• Houses have to be built to be energy efficient;
this can be done through insulation and the use
of renewable energy sources e.g. solar panels.
• Houses have to be water efficient , reusing rain
water.
• Communities have to be built with adequate open
spaces, access to necessary facilities and
services and efficient public transport systems.
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What are the main challenges for creating sustainable urban environments?
MAIN OBSTACLE = MONEY
• In LICs/NEEs where populations are growing rapidly and budgets
are limited, city authorities often choose short term ‘cheaper’
solutions over long term planning.
• Also if large numbers of people still lack access to basic
infrastructure e.g. water, electricity this takes precedent over
investments in environmental projects and sustainable development.
228
What are the challenges of building sustainable cities?
HICs
-Social Cohesion
-Providing adequate housing;
particularly in poorer areas
-Encouraging people to change
their lifestyle (away from over
consumption/throw away
cultures/recycling etc)
-Reduce food waste
LICs
- Money - Improving access to
housing, water, sanitation etc
- Improving water and recycling
management
- Rapid urbanisation - Reducing
the number of urban poor and
disease risk.
- Improve access to food
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Was Bedzed sustainable development project successful?
• In social terms BedZED is successful – the car-free, greener and quieter
central area where children play has contributed to more connection
between neighbours.
• Residents on average know 20 of their neighbours by name, compared with
surrounding areas where the corresponding figure is 8.
• According to 84% of residents their quality of life has increased since
they moved in.
• Car journeys have been reduced by 65%.
• Water consumption is 58% lower than the local average, and waste
separation has approximately doubled.
• The solar panels contribute to 19% of electricity consumption, which on
average is 45% lower in BedZED than in the surrounding area.
• Heat use is 81% lower than the Sutton average, which means a 72%
reduction in carbon dioxide emissions from energy compared with similar
homes from that period.
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What were some failures and lessons learnt from Bedzed?
Failures:
• Bedzed’s district-heating power plant was unsuccessful – the scale was too
small to run, in technical and financial terms.
Lessons Learnt:
• Overall BedZED did not quite achieve requirements to be called a One
Planet Community. But the project has had many ramifications.
• The car-pooling service was London's first and led to others being
started.
• BedZED contributed to Britain's policy that from 2016 onwards all new
homes will have zero carbon emissions.
• And above all, as a prototype, BedZED contributed a lot of knowledge
when BioRegional and WWF launched the global One Planet Living campaign
in 2004 and its framework of 10 principles of sustainability: zero carbon,
zero waste, sustainable transport, local and sustainable materials, local
and sustainable food, sustainable water, natural habitats and wildlife,
culture and heritage, equity and fair trade, health and happiness.
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What makes the greenhouse: Leeds a sustainable development project?
A ‘green’ community
•Carbon-zero homes: produce more energy
than they use
•Community facilities around Greenhouse
to encourage people to make fewer
journeys elsewhere e.g. Playgrounds,
sports centre, offices, shops, medical
centre
•‘greening’ of area: allotments, trees,
grassland planted
•High levels of recycling encouraged
Green energy and energy efficiency
•Ground source heat pumps to provide hot
water/heating
•Large wind turbine to provide
homes/business with electricity
•Solar panels provide hot water
•Homes well insulated with latest double
glazing
•Homes have low energy washing machines
Green transportation
•Car sharing club with cars using
bio fuel
•Green buses run from area to
city centre
•Cycle tracks into city and good
cycle storage areas.
All aimed at reducing car use
