paper 2, section a, urban issues and challenges Flashcards
where is Bristol found on a local, regional and national scale?
local = Bristol is found on the Bristol Channel and Severn Estuary
regional = it is in Somerset and is north-west of the neighbouring city of Bath
national = Bristol is found in the south-west of England
what makes Bristol a major uk city?
- largest city in SW England
- population: 440,500
- expected to reach 500,000 by 2029
- 1 of uk’s 10 core cities
what are 5 factors that make Bristol significant?
- tourism
- industry
- education
- religion
- culture
why is Bristol’s tourism significant?
- uk’s 8th most popular city for foreign visitors
(Bristol zoo and Brunel’s ship)
why is Bristol’s industry significant?
- largest concentration of silicon chip manufacturers outside California
why is Bristol’s education significant?
- 2 universities
why is Bristol’s religion significant?
- 2 cathedrals (anglican and roman catholic)
what is FDI?
Foreign Direct Industry
- investment in the uk by individuals and firms from abroad
why is Bristol’s culture significant?
- theatre and music venues
(Bristol old vic theatre, home to Wallace and Gromit creators- Aardman)
what factors make Bristol an important international city?
- transport
- industry
- education
how does transport make Bristol an important international city?
- road and rail links (easy access to London)
- bristol airport links to Europe and USA
- ferry services to Europe
- 2 major docks (around 700,000 cars imported each year from Japan, Germany and Korea)
how does industry make Bristol an important international city?
- global industries like aerospace and media
- FDI for high tech and finance businesses e.g. airbus, BMW, Siemens
how does education make Bristol an important international city?
- Bristol University attracts international students, providing graduates for jobs in the professional and quaternary industry
what impact has migration had on Bristol?
in recent years, migration from abroad has accounted for about 1/2 of Bristol’s population growth
what are the opportunities migration poses for Bristol?
- hard working and motivated workforce
- improving skills level where there are shortages
- contribution to local and national economy
- enriching the city’s culture
what are the challenges migration poses for Bristol?
- provision of education for EAL children
- issues with integration into wider community
- pressures on housing and employment
how has migration impacted Bristol’s culture?
- 50 countries represented in Bristol’s population
- migrants contribute to cultural life of city in music, art, literature and food
- Bristol’s large African and Afro-Caribbean population has had a significant impact and created strong community spirit
- St. Paul’s carnival attracts 40,000 people each year
- carnival’s aim to improve relations between European, African, Caribbean and Asian communities
what is the population like in the uk?
- overall, uk’s population has increased massively since 1900
- around 1915, sudden decrease of about 2 or 3 million because of deaths caused by WW1 but increased again after 1920
- estimated that population will continue to steadily increase
where do people live in the uk?
- highland areas of Wales and Scotland sparsely populated due to remoteness and harsh climate conditions
- 82% live in urban areas
- 1 in 4 of 82% live in London and the south-east
what are some key factors affecting the distribution of the uk population?
- general drift to London and south-east; London is one of world’s financial, business and cultural centres
- immigrants tend to settle in larger centres (more job opportunities)
- recently, more movement from urban to rural areas (older people choose to retire to coast/countryside)
what are the changes that are affecting Bristol?
- population becoming more ethnically diverse
- young pop. : more under 16 than pensionable age
- improved transport links; electrified rail means journey to London is 70 mins
- over 2 million people live within 50km of city
- improved accessibility: network of road, rail, air connections
- Bristol’s population growing rapidly
in what areas can urban change create social opportunities?
- entertainment/culture
- sport
- shopping
how is entertainment/culture important for creating social opportunities in Bristol?
- due to youthful population, there is vibrant music scene and variety of nightclubs and bars
- venues that host live performances e.g. jazz, folk, plays, opera etc:
the Colston hall, Bristol old vic, Bristol hippodrome, tobacco factory
what are the cultural opportunities offered by Bristol harbourisde?
- former workshops and warehouses = bars, nightclubs, cultural venues e.g. art gallery, museum, At-Bristol science exhibition centre
- free 3-day festival attracts around 300,000 spectators
how is sport important for creating social opportunities in Bristol?
- sports teams developing stadia to provide range of leisure and conference facilities
e.g. - 2 professional football teams (city and rovers)
- 1 rugby union team
- headquarters of Gloucestershire county cricket
- rovers- plan to move to outskirts of city (idea to create facilities attractive to not just sports enthusiasts)
how is shopping important for creating social opportunities in Bristol?
- Bristol seen major changes in shopping provision and growing leisure activity:
- out of town; Cribbs Causeway retail park
- city centre; Cabot Circus, opened 2008, costing £500m
- shops/leisure facilities take up 2/3 floor space
- the rest includes offices, cinema and 250 apartments
why were some of the shopping/leisure facilities invested in?
- reduce crime
- compete with other cities
- improve environment
- attract employment
what is the CBD?
Central Business District
what developments took place to encourage people back into the CBD?
- pedestrianised area (with CCTV)
- improvement in public transport
- more attractive shopping
- open street markets
- creation of a conservation area
how has Bristol’s industry changed?
in the past:
- wine from Bordeaux imported to be made into sherry wine
- tobacco from West Indies used to make cigarettes
present day employment:
- manufacturing has declined as seen with closure of port industries
- developments come about in tertiary and quaternary sectors
- high employment rates in Bristol… many job opportunities attract many
- Bristol’s unemployment rates below uk average
what was the key to Bristol’s industry in the past?
the port
- when it closed in city centre, so did associated industries and many warehouses left vacant
why have high tech industries developed in Bristol?
- government grant of £100m to become Super Connected City with broadband downloads of at least 80Mbps
- clean, non-polluted environment
- advanced research at university
- educated and skilled workforce available from university
info about Aardman Animations?
- set up in 1972
- known for stop motion animation films
- entered computer animation market and ended up winning Oscar amongst other awards for productions
info about Defence Procurement Agency?
- employs over 10,000
- supplied army, air force and navy with everything from boots to aircraft carriers
- established on greenfield site in 1996
- high demand for housing as result
- contributed to Bristol’s urban sprawl
- Bradley Stoke, pop. of over 21,000, was Europe’s largest private housing development when building commenced in 80s
what is the development of Bradley Stoke an example of?
the link between economic opportunities and urban change
info about Aerospace Industry?
- 14 of 15 main global aircraft companies found there e.g. Rolls Royce
- as result, supply chains developed around them to supply parts
e.g. Filton Enterprise Area, produces parts for aircraft and electronic systems for communications and navigation
what award did Bristol win in 2015?
Europe’s green capital
what aims were set as a result of Bristol being Europe’s green capital 2015?
- improve energy efficiency; reduce energy use by 30% and CO2 emissions by 40% by 2020
- increase use of renewable energy from 2% (2012)
- increase use of brownfield sites for new building and housing
- establish air quality management plan to monitor air pollution
what achievements resulted from Bristol winning Europe’s green capital 2015?
- the first 100 electric car charging points installed in the city
- every primary pupil in Bristol planted a tree to improve city’s green coverage
- 175 businesses created a ‘Green’ action plan
what is the ITS?
Integrated Transport System
- different forms of transport are linked together to make it easy to transfer from one to another
what is urban greening?
- process of increasing and preserving open space in urban areas i.e. public parks and gardens
what strategies within the ITS help improve the environment in Bristol?
- the Bristol-South Wales Railway
- The Park and Ride on the outskirts of Bristol
- electrification of railway
- doubling the amount of cyclists
how does urban greening help to improve the environment in Bristol?
- more than 1/3 of Bristol is open space and over 90% of people live within 350m of parkland and waterways
- Queen Square was once dual carriage way but now transformed into cycle way with open space
- Bristol has over 800 nature reserves and 300 parks
how have green initiatives have helped to improve the environment in Bristol?
- 30% of city covered in trees
- 27% of city to be part of wildlife networks
- new housing development at Portbury Wharf was allowed by local council on condition neighbouring area made into nature reserve
how does the Bristol-South Wales railway help to improve the environment?
- railway lets lots of people travel together and would reduce number of cars on motorway
how does the Park and Ride on the outskirts of Bristol help to improve the environment?
- reduction in traffic congestion in town centre will help improve environment as there are less emissions being released into the atmosphere
how does the electrification of the railway help to improve the environment?
- greener and more reliable journeys
what do areas of open water and meadow provide in Bristol?
invaluable habitat for wildlife; birds and plants
what is a brownfield site?
land that has been built on before and is to be cleared and reused; these sites often in inner city
what is a greenfield site?
land that has not been built on before, usually in countryside on edge of built up area
what is a green belt?
area of open land around a city, on which building is restricted
what is a rural-urban fringe?
zone of transition between built-up area and countryside, where there is often competition for land use
why was the Bristol and Bath green belt set up?
to prevent urban sprawl on rural-urban fringe and merging of cities
what are the advantages of building on a brownfield site?
- roads already exist
- easier to get planning permission as councils want to see these sites used
- cuts commuting
- utilities such as water and electricity already provided
what are the advantages of building on a greenfield site?
- land cheaper on outskirts so plots can be larger
- some shops and business parks on outskirts provide local facilities
- no restrictions of existing road network
- new sites don’t need cleaning so can be cheaper to prepare
what are the disadvantages of Bristol Harbourside?
- not everyone happy about architecture of waterfront properties
- cost of flats too high for most people
what are the advantages of Bristol Harbourside?
- very run down area been redeveloped
- people live in the centre keeping buzz there
what are the disadvantages of Harry Stoke?
- increased congestion, road traffic noise and poor air quality
- effect on local flood risk
what are the advantages of Harry Stoke?
- combatting national housing shortage
- new development of 1200 homes and planning for 2000 more
what are Bristol’s environmental challenges?
- movement of the port downstream from city
- rapidly growing population
how is the movement of the port downstream from Bristol an environmental challenge?
many industrial buildings have become derelict
how is a rapidly growing population in Bristol an environmental challenge?
demand for new homes has led to urban sprawl
what are the two main environmental challenges Bristol faces?
- dereliction
- urban sprawl
what is urban sprawl?
the physical growth of the size of a city
what is the named location of dereliction in Bristol?
Stokes Croft
what is the named location of urban sprawl in Bristol?
Bristol Harbourside/Finzels Reach
what are the problems with dereliction in Bristol?
- inner city area with housing once built for industrial workers
- abandoned and derelict housing left behind, some listed (can’t change it)
- abandoned buildings attract squatters resulting in riots and anti social behaviour
what are the solutions for dereliction in Bristol?
- the city council obtained lottery grants to help improve the area
- activists and artists wanted to revitalise the area through community action and public art (now has independent shops, nightclubs and graffiti art)
how has growth led to sprawl in Bristol?
- rapidly growing population
- demolition of older slum dwellings
- bombing of houses in WW2 = higher demand for new housing leading to developments on the outskirts of the city (Bradley Stoke to The Worth)
what are the solutions for urban sprawl in Bristol?
- developments on the brownfield sites like the Harbourside
- between 2008 and 2013, only 6% of new developments were on greenfield land
- by 2026, over 30,000 new homes are planned on brownfield sites
- e.g. Finzels Reach, brownfield site near the CBD with a redundant sugar refinery and old brewery buildings now has office space, shops and 400 apartments
how is a clean environment created in Bristol?
- waste disposal
- traffic congestion/atmospheric pollution
what strategies are used for waste disposal in Bristol?
- reduce amount of waste sent to landfill sites
- reduce amount of waste generated per household by 15%
- increase amount of waste recycling to 50%
how is waste disposal used to create a clean environment in Bristol?
- contractors who deal with household waste have agreed to higher targets education in school about importance of recycling
- introduced specialised kerbside collections/facilities for recycling different kinds of household waste
- made technological improvements in recycling
what are the results of waste disposal in Bristol?
- income generated when recycled materials sent to reprocessing plants
- Avonmouth waste treatment plant treats 200,000 tonnes of waste/year
- any non-recyclable waste used to generate electricity (supplying nearly 25,000 homes in Bristol area)
what is the problem with traffic congestion/atmospheric pollution in Bristol?
- pollution caused by vehicle emissions
- main bus routes often most polluted
- est. 200 annual deaths in city resulting from air pollution
- SW prevailing winds blow pollutants over city from industrial area around port at Avonmouth
what strategies are used to manage traffic congestion/atmospheric pollution in Bristol?
- reducing speed limits on motorways and in residential areas
- The Frome Gateway, a walking and cycling route to the city centre
- an electric vehicle program with charging points in 40 public car parks
- smartphone app with info about public transport
waste being used for powering buses and combatting traffic congestion/atmospheric pollution in Bristol?
- buses (?) powered by human and food waste
- transports people between Bath and Bristol airport
- runs on biomethane gas produced at a sewage treatment works
- can travel up to 186 miles on 1 tank of gas, taking annual waste of 5 people to produce
“assess the success of Bristol’s attempts to reduce the environmental effect of waste disposal” (6 marks)
how would you answer this question?
- identify city
- identify issues of waste disposal
- what’s being done/strategies
- results of the strategies
- include examples of how its been success/failure
- conclusion (link back to question)
what are two areas used for case studies within Bristol?
- Filwood
- Stoke Bishop
what is life expectancy/health like in Filwood?
- life expectancy 78 (Bristol avg 80)
- cancer death rates above avg
what is education like in Filwood?
- in 2013, 36% students got top grades GCSE enc. eng + maths
what is unemployment like in Filwood?
- 1/3 people aged 16-24 unemployed: over half are long-term unemployed or never worked
what is crime like in Filwood?
- over 1300 crimes per year
- 62% people feel unsafe at night
what is housing like in Filwood?
- homes split equally between owner-occupied and rented from council
- many council houses built in 1930s/40s to replace slums (lots badly insulated)
- designs for new council areas unsuccessful
- plans to replace 1000 homes abandoned
other info about Filwood?
- above avg teen conception rate
- Filwood residents have lowest participation in active sport + creative activities in city
- poor access to shops selling fresh fruit and veg for healthy diet
what is life expectancy/health like in Stoke Bishop?
83
what is education like in Stoke Bishop?
- 50% have degree or equiv
- 94% got highest GCSE grades
what is unemployment like in Stoke Bishop?
3%
what is crime like in Stoke Bishop?
- less than 300 per year
what is housing like in Stoke Bishop?
- 81% is owner occupied, Victorian or Edwardian villas
other info about Stoke Bishop?
- less than 4% of children live in poverty
- highest level of car ownership in city
what is a case study about regeneration in Bristol?
Temple Quarter
what are the advantages of regenerating brownfield sites in Bristol’s Temple Quarter?
- range of uses for existing buildings
- land often derelict
- reduces urban sprawl
- urban environment improved
- reduce use of cars as often in inner city
what are the disadvantages of regenerating brownfield sites in Bristol’s Temple Quarter?
- old buildings may need to be demolished
- more expensive to build on than greenfield sites as need to be cleared
- contaminated from previous industrial use
why did the Temple Quarter need regeneration?
- was very run down
- bad impression to visitors (neg for tourism); due to access along road linking to southern parts of uk and train travellers also only saw worst parts
- old industrial area (18th cent.)
- often flooded until ‘flooding harbour’ (19th cent.) so no more tidal influence resulting in more industry possible
- 1841; 1st train station built (by Brunel)
- slum clearance took place by removing old terraced houses in 20th cent.
what are the four separate areas within the Temple Quarter in Bristol?
- Temple Meads City Gateway
- Avon Riverside
- Silverthorne Lane
- Temple Quay
info about Temple Meads City Gateway?
- dominated by Temple Meads railway station
- cut off from rest of area by Temple Gate dual carriageway built in 70s
info about Avon Riverside?
- old industrial buildings used for range of light industries
- green open spaces created by demolishing former diesel depot
info about Silverthorne Lane?
- remains of Bristol ironworks and city’s gasworks
- access is difficult; railway arches that are part of historic railway layout
info about Temple Quay?
- former industrial area
- main industries were rope works, timber yards, malthouses, glassworks and potteries
what are the key aspects of the regeneration project in Bristol’s Temple Quarter?
- enterprise zone status
- improved access
- new bridge across river Avon
info about enterprise zone status as aspect of regeneration in Bristol’s Temple Quarter?
- enterprise zones encourage economic growth and create jobs
- offer range of incentives to businesses to move to area, inc. business rate relief, low rents and easier planning procedures
info about improved access as aspect of regeneration in Bristol’s Temple Quarter?
- electrification will shorten rail journey time to London
- improvements to Temple Meads station to encourage more people to travel by train
- improved road layout with lines to rapid transit network and Bristol-Bath cycle path
info about new bridge across river Avon as aspect of regeneration in Bristol’s Temple Quarter?
- to site of former diesel depot
- gives access to new Bristol Arena
how has the area of Bristol’s Temple Quarter been regenerated?
- target to create 4000 new jobs by 2020 and 17k by 2037
- 240,000m^2 of new or refurbished buildings e.g. offices, homes, shops and redeveloped railway station
- focus on several key projects
what are the several key projects which have helped to regenerate the area of Bristol’s Temple Quarter?
- Engine Shed; for high-tech + creative businesses
- Glass Wharf; new office development
- electrification of London to Bristol railway line
- ‘Arena Island’; with bridge to new Bristol Arena
- paintworks; new mixed use development
- Temple Meads station; major development to turn station into modern transport hub for city
- Temple Studios; new technical and digital enterprises
how has the Bristol Arena helped the regeneration of Bristol’s Temple Quarter?
- due to open 2018
- route to it to be redeveloped with cafes, offices + flats
- allow for small-capacity theatre events, seats 4000, conventions etc with up to 12000 spectators
- outdoor events e.g. ice rink/outdoor theatre
how has Brunel’s Engine Shed helped the regeneration of Bristol’s Temple Quarter?
- re-use of listed historic building
- £1.7m Innovation Centre being developed in Brunel’s Engine Shed at Temple Meads station(home to high-tech, creative + low-carbon sector companies)
- sector includes: 18 micro-electronics, media + digital production companies, 44 additional companies using facilities, company development next gen wifi + use of super fast broadband (gigabit project)
what is urbanisation?
the proportion of the world’s population who live in cities
what is urban growth?
the increase in the area covered by cities
which 3 countries will account for 37% of the projected growth of the world’s urban population?
- india (+404m)
- china (+292m)
- nigeria (+212m)
why is urbanisation slower in HICs than in LICs?
- most areas that can be urbanised are already urbanised
- birth rate is lower in HiCs than in LICs
why do some HICs show evidence of counter-urbanisation?
- as HICs urbanised earlier, older population; they retire and prefer a rural lifestyle over an urban one
what are some push factors that may cause people to move to cities?
- farming is hard and poorly paid
- there are few doctors or hospitals
- poor harvests can often lead to famine
- drought and other climate hazards affect crops
- rural areas are isolated due to poor road quality
- desertification and soil erosion affect crops
what are some pull factors for cities?
- there are more well paid jobs
- public transport is better
- there are greater education opportunities
- they have friends and family already living there
- there is a greater range of leisure and entertainment
- a higher standard of living is possible
why do cities grow?
- rural to urban migration
- natural increase
how does rural to urban migration cause cities to grow?
- the movement of people from the countryside into towns and cities
- push factors: lack of jobs, poor education, poor healthcare
- pull factors: higher quality of life, job opportunities, better healthcare
how does natural increase cause cities to grow?
- where the birth rate is higher than the death rate
- natural increase occurs where there is: high proportion of 18-35 year olds (meaning more children born and pop. will grow) and decreasing death rate through better healthcare and service improvements for elderly
what is a megacity?
continuous urban area of more than 10 million people
what are 5 megacities?
- Tokyo
- Beijing
- Mumbai
- New York
- Mexico City
what problem can occur in megacities?
greater gap between rich and poor emerges
what are the 3 types of megacity?
- slow-growing
- growing
- rapid growing
info about slow-growing megacities?
- SE Asia, Europe and N America
- no squatter settlements
- HICs e.g. Tokyo, Los Angeles
info about growing megacities?
- S America and SE Asia
- under 20% in squatter settlements
- NEEs e.g. Rio de Janeiro
info about rapid growing megacities?
- S/SE Asia and Africa
- over 30% in squatter settlements
- NEEs or LICs e.g. Mumbai
what is some information about Rio de Janeiro’s location?
- situated on east coast of Brazil
- Brazil surrounded by 10 countries on continent of S America
- Atlantic Ocean to east of rio
- very close to Sao Paulo
- brazilian highland north of rio
- amazon river and rainforest to NW
- sits just above Tropic of Capricorn and beneath equator (which passes through very north of Brazil)
what is the latitude and longitude of rio?
23 degrees S and 43 degrees W
what is Rio de Janeiro like and how has it grown?
rio has become a ‘global city’ because of it’s importance in the global economy as an industrial and financial centre; it is a major regional, national and international centre for many important companies and industries and is an important international hub with 5 ports and 3 airports
what are the four sections of rio?
- North Zone
- Centro
- South Zone
- West Zone
information about North Zone area of rio?
- main industrial and port area
- international airport and Maracana soccer stadium
- squatter settlements (favelas)
information about Centro area of rio?
- historic buildings as it’s the oldest part
- CBD and shopping
- financial centre
information about South Zone area of rio?
- main tourist area with Ipanema and Copacabana beaches
- luxury flats (wealthiest district in all of SA)
- overlooked by Rocinha, largest favela in SA
information about West Zone area of rio?
