Changing Urban Environments Flashcards
What was the London Docklands Development Corporation (LDDC)?
A UDC that was set up in 1981 to try and improve the social, economic and environmental conditions of the London Docklands inner city area. It ran for 17 years ending in 1998
Why did the London docklands go into decline and why was it in need of regeneration?
In the 1970s, ships grew in size and needed deeper water so could not navigate the Thames through its meanders
Container ships and computerisation replaced the need for many dockworkers
By 1980s, the docks had closed, over half the land was derelict, there were very few jobs, transport was poorly developed, housing was in need of urgent repair, lack of basic services and leisure amenities
What is the FUNCTION of a settlement?
The ‘work’ or purpose of a settlement. It relates to its economic and social development and its main activities.
Every settlement has a function and functions change over time
Causes of urbanisation in LEDCs
Overpopulation puts pressure on the land - food shortages, famine.
Lack of services for example difficult to access healthcare.
High rates of natural increase among youthful population has fuelled this urban growth.
Wider range of jobs, from drug dealing and prostitution to selling items.
People can always access food in the city, where as in rural areas if you can’t grow it you can’t.
Government schemes encouraging urbanisation.
Examples of settlement functions
Market town (eg. Guildford) Cultural+religious (eg. York) Academic (eg. Oxford) Ports (eg. Plymouth) Tourist resorts (eg. Brighton) (don't bother learning the towns I just added it)
Environmental ways of maintaining a sustainable city
Designated areas of accessible open space e.g. parks
Building nature conservations - conserves nature for future generations
Building on brownfield sites - makes city look nicer and stops the green space from being used up so it can be used in the future
Recycling schemes - less resources used up or wasted in landfill sites
Safe disposal of toxic waste - helps reduce water pollution and contamination
Boris bike advantages:
Cheap, easy, efficient and healthy mode of transport. Reduces travel and there are a lot of them.
What strategies are there to try and reduce housing shortages in MEDCs?
Urban renewal schemes
New towns
Relocation incetives
What are the causes of waste disposal problems?
Expanding cities - a large city can create 1000s of tonnes of waste per day
Electronic waste of computers
Money issues - poorer countries often can’t afford to dispose of waste safely e.g. toxic waste has to be treated and this can be expensive, often more urgent problems like healthcare
Infrastructure - poorer countries don’t have the infrastructure needed e.g. poor roads in squatter settlements mean waste disposal lorries can’t get in to collect rubbish
Describe the burgess model for MEDCs.
The middle is the CBD (large shops and office blocks).
Then a zone of manufacturing (inner city).
Then old poor quality housing mixed with industry.
Then medium cost housing.
Then new and expensive housing.
Where do most people live in MEDCs?
Most of the population in richer countries already live in urban areas e.g. more than 80% of the UK’s population live in urban areas
Strategies to manage air pollution
Companies should use a cleaner, more renewable source of energy
Carbon tax
Use of low sulphur coal
Attempts to reduce traffic in the city
Setting air quality standards for industries
Monitoring levels of pollutants to check their safe
How can CBDs be improved?
1) Pedestrianising areas - safer and nicer for shoppers, attracting more people to the CBD
2) Improving access with better transport links and better car parking - more accessible, easier to get there, people will be more attracted to visit
3) Improving public areas e.g. parks and squares - making them more attractive for people to visit
4) Introducing security cameras - help reduce rates of crime, making CBD safer and if people living there feel safer, this improves their quality of life
What is City Challenge?
A big initiative of the 1990s, where local authorities, private companies and the local community worked together to improve housing, environment and services.
Describe the Hoyt model in LEDCs
In the middle large shops and offices.
The line Vertically through it is new and expensive housing.
On the left of this is suburban luxury housing.
The line horizontally on the right is modern factories.
The small circle around this is improve shanties.
The bigger circles are shanty towns.
Problems with the suburbs.
High land and housing price, services are far away.
Strategies to manage water pollution
Water treatment plans e.g. Ganges river and Shanghai
Building sewage treatment plants
Passing laws which force factories to remove pollutants from waste water
Public transport advantages:
Children go free on bus. 20 hours a day. Air conditioned. Rather frequent. New buses and bus lanes.
Name some causes of urbanisation in MEDCs
Mechanisation of agriculture in the 19th century lead to unemployment amongst workers.
Movement of young people to attend tertiary education.
Access to better health care.
Redevelopment.
Bright light syndrome.
Lack of services for example living far away from a local high school.
New transport links in the docklands
DLR, Jubilee Line
The land use of a CBD.
Shops, banks, offices, entertainments.
What are the issues facing many urban areas?
1) Shortage of good quality housing
2) Run down CBDs
3) Traffic congestion and pollution from cars
4) Ethnic segregation
Solutions to problems in Kibera (individuals)
Use of kerosene lamps
Attaching cables to top of houses for power
People with basic first aid knowledge help people and can sometimes access vaccines
Adults teach families skills to make money
Rubbish is put in piles in bags at the side of a road
Why is there housing crisis in the UK?
Population has increased by 7% since 1971 and is expected to increase.
More people living alone - higher divorce rates, young people moving out.
There are over 1 million empty properties because people cannot afford to modernise them.
Rising demand for second homes.
Reasons for segregation
1) If they have arrived recently from overseas and don’t speak the same language, they are with people who speak the same language as them
2) People will want to live near to services that are important to their culture e.g. places of worship
3) People can feel a sense of similarity, safety and security when living with people of the same ethnicity
4) People are less susceptible to racism from others living around them as they are of the same ethnicity
Characteristics of squatter settlements
Stacked, overcrowded housing - unplanned and unsafe, lots of people living together, can cause spread of disease
Glassless windows - cold, bad living conditions
Marginal land - steep, dangerous, undesirable.
Stealing from power lines - unsafe
Open sewage - disease and bad living conditions
Corrugated iron, cardboard - bad materials, poorer people
No clean water supply - high risk of disease
OR Water containers - improved water supply, lower risk of contamination
Rubbish left on the street - no proper rubbish collection in the narrow streets
No proper streets - people do not have the money or space to build them, can cause safety issues
How does Curitiba have plenty of open space and conserved natural environments?
Green space has increased significantly (0.5m2 pp 1970-52m2 pp in 1990)
Over 1000 parks- many in flood-prone areas so that land is useful but no serious damage if floods
1.5 million trees along streets
Builders are given tax breaks if projects include green space
Where is urbanisation happening the fastest?
LEDCs, at a fast pace
Schemes to improve squatter settlements
Self-help Schemes - local authorities help those living in squatter settlements to improve their homes by offering loans and often installing clean water supply, sanitation and safe waste disposal
Site and Service Schemes - land is divided into individual plots and water, sanitation, electricity and basic road layouts are supplied, before any building begins
Local Authority Schemes - these are funded by the local government and are about improving the temporary accommodation built by residents
Map evidence for the RUF.
Open space, golf courses, parks, fields, detached houses.
Map evidence for a CBD.
COL (schools), main roads, churches, hotels, museums.
Cause of air pollution
Expanding cities
Industry responsible for CO2 emissions
What were Urban Development Corporations?
A major strategy introduced in the 1980s by the Government to improve conditions in inner cities
The aim was to regenerate inner city areas with large amounts of derelict and unused land by taking over planning responsibility from local councils
How successful was the London Docklands regeneration?
Yes - improved housing, improved accessibility, more trade and thousands of new jobs for locals
No - original residents couldn’t afford new expensive housing, reduction in community spirit
Disadvantages of congestion charge:
Buses give off nitrous oxide emissions, it’s quite expensive.
Impacts of air pollution
Pollution in cities - can cause health problems like headaches and bronchitis
Coal-fired power stations cause deaths
High levels of CO2 cause global warming
Some pollutants destroy the ozone layer which protect us from the sun’s harmful rayas
Transport ways of maintaining a sustainable city
Good, efficient public transport system
Less car use, so less pollution
Systems to link city centres with outskirts
What were the impacts of the LDDC on the London Docklands inner city?
Social - a total of 24,046 new homes were built, a national indoor sports centre and a marina for watersports was built
Environmental - 762 hectares of derelict land reclaimed, 17 conservation areas set up
Economic - 85,000 people now work in the London Docklands area, Canary Wharf regeneration - major banks
How is Curitiba reducing car use?
Very efficient bus system (BRT) -reduce boarding time, bus only lanes
Cheap fare for everyone-benefits poorer people living on the outskirts
200km of bike paths
Car use is 25% lower than national average and one of the lowest levels of air pollution in Brazil
How do the inhabitants help to improve their squatter settlements over time?
Neighbours help each other with building and some have even built small schools
Inhabitants slowly try to improve their housing with better quality materials
What did UDCs do?
They had to power to buy and reclaim land, convert old buildings and improve infrastructure through the investment of government money
They also attracted private sector investment through offering companies reduced taxes and other benefits and in doing so, they promoted industrial, residential and community developments
