Rural and Urban population change

Question 1

What is rural and urban population change?

Answer 1

The population changes that are taking place in countries at different stages of development also occur in smaller communities within those countries. Most rural and urban areas show the effects of population growth or loss, and of immigration or emigration.

Question 2

What are the characteristics of an inner city?

Answer 2

Housing- High density terraced housing built in the 19th century and high rise blocks of flats built in the 1960’s. Thirdly some old warehouses have been redeveloped into luxury apartments.
Ethnicity- High Proportion of ethnic minorities.
Age structure- High proportion of younger people such as students and young professionals.
Wealth- The poorest sections of the urban population tend to live here. You may also get more wealthy people living in redeveloped areas.
Employment- High proportion of students, unemployed and unskilled/semi-skilled workers. Some young professionals living in redeveloped areas.
Provision of services- Derelict warehouses, industrial sites but lots of shops and services.

Question 3

What are the characteristics of the suburbs?

Answer 3

Housing- Mix of 20th century detached and semi attached houses with gardens. Closer to the inner city a higher proportion of properties will be council owned. Further out, properties will be privately owned- larger, with garages and driveways.
Ethnicity- Proportion of ethnic minorities decreases as you move out of the city.
Age structure- Most families with children.
Wealth- Wealth increases as you move out of the city.
Employment- More employment in tertiary sector and skilled manual workers.
Provision of services- Some local shopping parades. Good transport routes to city centre and good availability of public transport.

Question 4

What are the characteristics of rural/urban fringe?

Answer 4

Housing- Low density, high quality private housing.
Ethnicity- Proportion of ethnic minorities decreases as you move out of the city.
Age structure- Mostly families with children and elderly.
Wealth- Wealth increases as you move out of the city. Employment- Higher proportion of employed in tertiary sector tends to increase.
Provision of serves- The location for out of town shopping complexes, airports and recreational facilities such as golf courses.

Question 5

What are the characteristics of rural areas?

Answer 5

Housing- Larger, privately owned housing and new estates with privately owned houses.
Ethnicity- Majority white.
Age structure- Higher proportion of elderly people.
Wealth- Wealthiest residents who’ve move out of the city. Also, some less wealthy original rural residents.
Employment- High proportion of workers in professional and managerial sectors (e.g. doctors, lawyers and bankers) Also some agricultural workers.
Provision of serves- Village shops may have closed as more residents shop in urban areas on their commute to work. Lack of public transport facilities.

Question 6

What are the environmental impacts in the inner city?

Answer 6

1. Old, poor quality housing often in a state disrepair, creates poor living environment.
2. Graffiti and vandalism levels are the highest in the inner city where there may be empty and derelict buildings.
3. Air pollution is highest here due to industrial sites and high volume of traffic.

Question 7

What are the social impacts in the inner city?

Answer 7

1. There can be tension between different ethnicities in the inner city because of the higher proportion of ethnic minorities.
2. High crime rate- due to high levels unemployment and poverty.
3. Poor relationships between the police and community.

Question 8

What are the economic impacts in the inner city?

Answer 8

1. High levels of unemployment

2. High levels of poverty

Question 9

What are the environmental impacts of the suburbs?

Answer 9

1. High levels of vandalism where they is a large proportion of children and teenagers.

Question 10

What are the social impacts of rural areas?

Answer 10

1. Tension between different ethnicities if large numbers of immigrants have moved there.
2. Social problems such as lack of public transport can cause isolation e.g. for the elderly. Out migration can cause closure of shops and post offices.

Question 11

What are the economic impacts in rural areas?

Answer 11

1. Rise in unemployment because of agricultural decline.

Question 12

What do environmental, social and economic impacts affect?

Answer 12

Social welfare.

Question 13

What has affected urban and rural areas?

Answer 13

Population change and migration.

Question 14

How has population change and migration affected housing?

Answer 14

1. In developed countries, most migrants occupy the cheaper run down areas of housing in the inner city.
2. In developing countries, rural-urban migration has resulted in the growth of shanty towns- unplanned and often illegal settlements usually on the outskirts of an urban area where people can build their own homes from whatever they can find. These areas have limited services such as clean water and power.

Question 15

How has population change and migration affected ethnicity?

Answer 15

1. High numbers of immigrants can change the character of areas by bringing their existing culture and customs with them. If they fail to integrate into the existing community, ‘ghettos’ may form. (areas of cities where members of an ethnic group live, segregated from the rest of the city)
2. Although most immigrants move to urban areas, some move to rural areas seeking agricultural work. This can have a greater impact on the character of small rural villages than it does in a large city- especially when all the migrants are from one country e.g. Polish may open polish shops and cafes in small villages, which may have few shops for the original residents already.

Question 16

How has population change and migration affected age structure?

Answer 16

1. In developed countries, rural areas have increasingly ageing populations due to the out-migration of younger people and the inward migration of retired people.
2. The provision of services will be affected by this changing age structure e.g. in rural areas schools may close due to reduced demand, whilst there may be increased demand of services for the elderly e.g. nursing homes.

Question 17

How has population change and migration affected Wealth?

Answer 17

1. In developed countries, increasing numbers of second-home owners and commuters increases the wealth of rural areas. This leads to rising house prices, which can force younger residents to leave as they can’t afford housing.
2. As young, wealthy professionals move to redeveloped urban areas, they increase the wealth there. this can improve inner city areas, but can also mean younger original residents can’t afford to buy houses there.

Question 18

How has population change and migration affected Employment?

Answer 18

1. Unemployment will increase if many people move to urban areas without there being enough jobs available.
2. This is a big problem in developing countries as there’s often a very high rate of rural-urban migration for work.
3. In rural areas, the large number of people moving away for work could eventually lead to a lack of available workers.

Question 19

How has population change and migration affected services?

Answer 19

1. Shops and services in rural areas suffer because residents who commute may use shops closer to their work. Services like bus routes can also close as the newer residents tend to use cars instead. This could be a problem for the original residents of the rural areas if they rely on public transport to get about.
2. As people of reproductive age move to an area, there’ll be increased need for childcare services and schools. When elderly residents move to an area it increases the need for carers, home help and health care.