Urban Environments Flashcards
In what year did 50% of the world’s population live in urban environments for the first time
2007
What percentage of people will live in cities in 2050
66%
What is the combined GDP of the top 20 global metropolises
$14.6 trillion
What are some problems with rapid urbanisation (4)
- Finding adequate housing
- Providing enough energy
- Keeping everyone safe
- Providing good transportation links
What are 3 cities popular with the youth and why
Barcelona, Lisbon, Berlin. Vibrant atmosphere, affordable housing and a highly globalised workforce
What is an expat
A high earning, highly educated person who temporarily stays in another country for work
What is urbanisation
The increasing proportion of people living in towns and cities, compared to rural areas.
What is urban growth
The increase in size and population in an urban area over time, expressed as a number
Where do old people typically move
Out of cities, because they do not want/need the higher pace of life, especially because they do not require the high paying jobs if they are retired
What is a push factor for urbanisation (7)
Mechanisation - farming jobs replaced by machinery
Poor quality healthcare
Poor education
Lack of industrialisation
Food shortages
Natural hazards
Conflict and war
What are some pull factors for urbanisation (2)
Higher paying jobs
More access to services
What age are most of the people who move into cities and why
Young - they are looking for the higher paying jobs
What happens when you move into a city (2)
- Higher quality of life
- Better economic opportunities
Now, where do more people live in rural areas than developed
Africa and South Asia
What are the 4 steps of the urbanisation pathway
- Early urbanisation
- Accelerating urbanisation
- Mature urbanisation
- Counter urbanisation
What is counterurbanisation
People moving out of cities, commonly in search of more affordable housing, a cleaner environment or a quieter and slower life
What is the bid-rent model
A model that shows us the reason cities look like they do. Y axis is price of land and x axis is distance from CBD. It tells us that shops and offices ,are up much of the area in and around the CBD, then industry is a bit further route and then housing is the furthest
Why would shops and offices want to be in the centre of the city (2)
- Convenient location to get to
- High footfall (many people going past) - especially important for shops
Where is the most expensive land in a city and why (6)
Almost always in the middle of the city, because
1. Limited supply of land
2. Highest GDP area
3. Demand for that area is high
4. Convenient location
5. Close to business
6. Prestigious location
Explain 2 reasons why urban land use patterns vary
- The price increases as you go closer to the CBD, housing is too expensive in CBD and so is industry so most of that area is shops and offices, because it is worth their money to be there bc higher footfall and convenience of location
- Transport routes and hubs can influence the land-use patterns because they offer better access, so industry and housing can better develop near to points of accessibility e.g. train stations
What are the 4 rings of a city and are they static
- Core
- Inner-city ring
- Suburban ring
- Urban fringe
The rings are not always perfect rings and are always moving as the city evolves.
What are some general trends as we move outwards from a city (4)
- The general age of the buildings in the area decreases (like tree rings)
- The style of architecture and built environment changes
- The overall density of development decreases
- There is more green space
What are some characteristics of the CBD
- Oldest part of the city
- Contains most of the business and finance
What are some characteristics of the inner city ring
Early suburbs - old housing, often terraced
Old industrial land (deindustrialisation)q
What are the suburbs
An area on the edge of the city where housing is the main land use
What is the rural urban fringe
Transition form urban to countryside - pressure on green space for alternative use
What is a greenfield site
The land has not been previously used for urban development
What is a brown field site
Land that has been previously used, abandoned and now awaits a new use
How many people are added to the urban population per week
1.5m
What percentage of greenhouse gas emissions globally come from cities
80%
What are some urban challenges in the developing and emerging world (4)
Squatter settlements
The informal economy
Urban population
Low quality of life
What are the benefits of greenery in cities (7)
- Health benefits
- Social benefits
- Heat reduction
- Reduced flooding risk
- Environmental benefits
- Economic growth
- Less pollution
How does greenery help to reduce heat
Areas of vegetation are 1ºC cooler during the day, because green areas reduce air temperatures through evapotranspiraton, reflecting solar radiation, having lower heat storage capacity and providing shade
How does greenery help to reduce flood risk
Roots uptake water from the ground, but without trees then none of this is uptaken; urban flooding costs the economy £270m a year in England and wales
How does green infrastructure benefit economic growth and investment
The general appeal of an area is improved, attracting businesses, customers and encourages people to spend more time in an area.
What are some ways to get greenery into cities (3)
- Living walls
- Living roofs
- Building parks
What is an urban sprawl
Unregulated suburban expansion expands a city into a vast area
What is a green belt
A thin ribbon of countryside that surrounds most larger towns and cities, to stop the city or town from expanding too much. The green belt is protected land, where unnecessary development is prohibited
What is a green belt
A thin ribbon of countryside that surrounds most larger towns and cities, to stop the city or town from expanding too much. The green belt is protected land, where unnecessary development is prohibited
Why is there a lot of pressure on the government to build more housing in the UK (4)
- Lifestyle changes e.g. Higher divorce rates - split households require 2 homes
- Out-migration from the inner cities is becoming popular
- Migration from poorer parts of the UK and poorer countries abroad to the south east of the UK
- Locations like Devon receiving an influx of retirees
What are the government doing to build more housing but not destroy rural areas (3)
- Build at least 60% of homes on brownfield sites
- Build new homes at higher densities e.g. with no car parking space
- People that choose to live on redeveloped brownfield sites are offered tax incentives
How much of Kent was woodland in the 1500s compared to now
1500s - 95%
1995 - 5%
What does increased urban sprawl do to transport when people buy their own cars (6)
- More traffic jams
- Traffic pollution increases
- Travel times increase
- More road accidents
- More street noise
- Bus and train services decline
What are the five purposes of green belts
- To check the unrestricted sprawl of large built-up areas
- To prevent neighbouring towns from merging into one and other
- To assist in safeguarding the countryside from encroachment
- To preserve the setting and special character of historic towns
- To assist in urban regeneration, encouraging the recycling of derelict and other urban land
What does green belt land provide (6)
- Opportunities for the urban population to access the open countryside
- To provide opportunities for outdoor sport and outdoor recreation near urban areas
- To retain attractive landscapes and enhance landscapes near to where people live
- Secures the interest of nature conservationists
- Retains land for agriculture, forestry etc
What percentage of the land within London is green Belt
22%
What is decentralisation
People and businesses, particularly the tertiary sector, have been moving out of the CBD and inner city, into the suburban ring and into the urban fringe.
What are some signs of decentralisation in the urban fringe (4)
- Superstores and retail parks
- Industrial estates
- Business parks
- Science parks
What is the definition of a mega city
Population over 10 million
Which countries see the most urbanisation
Developing and emerging countries
What percentage of people in North America live in urban areas
80%
How many mega cities are there in the world right now
28
How many mega cities were there in 1990
10
How many megacities are there expected to be in 2050
40+
Do “urbanisation and economic development go hand in hand”
Yes
When do countries experience urbanisation
When they industrialise
What will be the most populated city in 2100
Lagos
What are world cities
Cities that have global reach, for example due to leading business centres for Trans National Cooperations (TNCs), leading service centres e.g. finance and banking in London and NYC, or transportation and communication hubs
What is agglomeration
People (and therefore economic activity) concentrating at favourable location e.g. river crossings, or a resource like oil, coal etc.
What is suburbanisation
When urban settlements grow outwards because more people move to the suburbs, leading to better transport links to the suburbs and a decline in the residential quality near the CBD
What are dormitory settlements
Towns that residents just sleep in - they commute into the urban area for things like work, shopping etc. They usually have very good transport links e.g. a train station that takes you straight into the urban area
What is urban regeneration
Due to suburbanisation and counter urbanisation, central parts of urban areas often end up abandoned and run down, which means the area needing regenerating, rebranding and re-imagining
What is counter urbanisation with respect to suburbs and dormitory settlements
People moving straight from the city to rural areas, skipping suburbs and dormitory settlements
Why can lots of Dharavi residents not move out
The rest of Mumbai is far too expensive
What is the area of dharavi
2.1 square kilometres
What is the population of dharavi
Over 1 million people
What are some problems with dharavi (6)
- It is very crowded and very noisy
- It is smelly
- Many people live in tiny rooms
- The water supply is not always on
- Not everyone has electricity
- Pollution levels are high
How many hours per day is water available in dharavi
2
What percentage of houses in dharavi have electricity access
70%
What is the value of the land dharavi is on and why
$10b - because it is in the centre of Mumbai
What is vision Mumbai
A plan to demolish dharavi, sell the land to developers and rehome the slumdwellers in better accommodation somewhere else
What are the pros of vision Mumbai (2)
- It gets people out of the slums
- The area can be developed
What are the problems with vision Mumbai (2)
- Dharavi provides jobs as well as housing, so this would be lost.
- The size of the project is massive and would take a huge sum of money
What are the reasons for water pollution in Mumbai (3)
- Big industries dump untreated waste into the river
- The airport dumps untreated oil in the river
- 800 million litres of untreated sewage are dumped in the river every day
- Toxic substances like metals, batteries and cattle slurry (cow manure and water) are dumped in
What are the reasons for water pollution in Mumbai (3)
- Big industries dump untreated waste into the river
- The airport dumps untreated oil in the river
- 800 million litres of untreated sewage are dumped in the river every day
- Toxic substances like metals, batteries and cattle slurry (cow manure and water) are dumped in
How is Mumbai cleaning the air (3)
- Building a new meteor system
- Banning diesel as fuel in taxis
- Main roads have been upgraded to reduce traffic jams
How is Mumbai trying to reduce waste
Educating people on why not to dump rubbish straight into the river and why to instead recycle
What is SPARC
A bottom-up NGO focused on giving the urban poor a say in the development of a city.
What percent of people in Mumbai live in informal housing or slums
62%
What is Smile on Wheels
An NGO in Mumbai helping children and their family get education and healthcare
Why is air pollution an issue in London
Air pollution from motor vehicles (mostly cars) producing NO and CO2
What percentage of vehicles in London are hybrid or electric
0.5%
How is London trying to tackle air pollution (
- Discouraging vehicles from driving in central areas London where air pollution is the worst, by making people pay £15 per day to drive there.
- The creation of the LEZ (low emissions zone) which covers all of Greater London and applies to vans, lorries and coaches.
- The ULEZ (ultra) was created, charging heavily polluting vehicles even more to drive in central London
- Encouraging more people to cycle and take public transport by providing more cycle lanes and more bus and building the Elizabeth Line
Where does the London cycle superhighway go to and from
Tower Hill to Lancaster gate
What are the good and bad things about the east-west cycle superhighway (2+ 2-)
+ many more people began cycling instead of taking motor vehicles, therefore reducing air pollution.
+ in 2022, there were more bikes than motor cars on the road for the first time ever
- removal of traffic lanes has created traffic jams
- it costed £58.7 million
How to answer an 8 marker
AO3 - figure 6a shows that (4 marks so do it 4 times) make sure first sentence of each paragraph uses this
AO4 - explain - answer the question itself. Use PEEL structure
What are the 5 challenges facing big cities in the future and explain them
- Environmental threats - floods, heat waves etc
- Resources - agricultural and water catchment areas decreased as cities get bigger, so demand goes up
- Inequality - widening gap in the provision of basic resources and resilience against environmental threats
- Technology - some urban people will not be able to afford technology that becomes vital
- Governance - governing ever increasing cities will become even harder
How do cities face food challenges
Urban people desire more diverse diets so these must be imported. In Southeast Asia in the last 25 years, food imported to cities has gone up 1000%
How can cities solve food issues
Vertical farming
How do cities face waste problems
- fatburgs in the sewers
- there is a lot of waste due to overconsumption
- the linear economy is popular
What is the linear economy
Creating a product, using it, then throwing it away. Creates waste
What is the circular economy
Recycling and reusing used products
What is bad about landfall (2)
- It takes up space
- When rainwater gets in, toxic liquids are made but then it seeps into the ground
