What are the causes of Urban Growth? Flashcards
Define Urban Growth
Increase in the number of urban dwellers
Define Brandt Line
.Line showing how the world is geographically split into richer and poorer countries
. Countries North of the line are more developed and richer
. Countries South of the line are less developed and poorer
Define Push Factors
Factors that drive or push people away from their place
E.g. War, flooding, high crime, low employment, poverty
Define Pull Factors
Factors that attract or pull people to a new place
E.g. Higher employment, more services, fertile land, low crime, low risk of natural hazards
Name two reasons why some cities have increased in population, whilst others have fallen
1.) Rural to urban Migration
. Push factors from rural areas e.g. drought, conflict, disease, natural diseases due to low quality of life
. Pull factors to urban areas e.g. higher employment, better services, better education to get higher quality of life
. Rural to urban migration has already taken place in HIC (UK is 80% urbanised). But is taking place at a rapid rate in NEEs and LICs (India is only 31% urbanised)
2.) Natural Population Growth
. Urban populations tend to be younger as there is more opportunity in urban areas in terms of employment. For example, London has a high number of high tech and financial jobs. This means young individuals will meet more people and start families and raise kids. This will result in an even larger population
. Birth Rate often exceeds Death rate in HICs due to better healthcare causing natural increases (NEEs and LICs have this)
.
.Additionally, high commuting costs means many families stay in urban areas
. The name ‘ Nappy Valley was given to the SW area of London due to the high birth rate
.
Why is Urban Growth higher in LICs?
Urban Growth is lower in LICs and NEEs as they already have a low population in urban areas. This means that the rate of urban growth is relatively higher in comparison to other nations
. Pull factors to urban areas
