Explain the causes and consequences of urban sprawl

New York, USA-Causes and consequences of Urban Sprawl in MEDCs

Causes:

• ·         Population increasing, so more houses must be built; from 2000-2009, the population increased by 383195
• ·         Middle class people moving out of inner city to a quieter, safer life in the outer suburbs
• ·         Worried people leaving due to fear of another terrorist attack

Consequences:

• ·         Urbanisation in rural areas, removing the character of the areas
• ·         2 million people commute into Manhattan every day, creating a lot of pollution
• ·         Staten Island grew by 24000 new housing units on Greenfield land from 1990-2000

Mumbai, India-Causes and consequences of Urban Sprawl in LEDCs

Causes:

• ·         While Dharavi is located in the centre of Mumbai, there are still squatter settlements on the outskirts
• ·         Housing in the city is poor quality and not maintained, so people move to the edge of the city for newer housing
• ·         There are problems with overcrowding, traffic, and noise pollution in the city centre, so people move away
• ·         Housing can be very expensive in the city centre

Consequences:

• ·         Informal housing (squatter settlements)
• ·         Loss of green areas, like the Sanjay Gandhi national park
• ·         Environmental issues with water pollution in the River Mithi
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For a named city explain how the living conditions have been improved

MEDC

• ·         Crime-Improved police service, improved CCTV, improve areas to make them less run down, Target hardening
• ·         Congestion and pollution-Congestion charge introduced in 2003, Electronic ticketing making public transport easier to use and making it cheaper, London Cycle Hire Scheme and Cycle Superhighways-cycle around London more easily and safely. Public Transport more accessible.
• ·         Urban Decay-Kings Cross Station was run down, and was associated with drug use and prostitution. The entire area was refurbished, and is now a hub for most train lines.
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LEDC

• ·         Demolishing slums and redeveloping the area:  Vision Mumbai is a scheme to demolish the all the homes in Dharavi , and redevelop them to build 1.1 million low cost houses in the area.  It would give people new houses, but everyone living there would be displaced while the new houses were built
• ·         Self help schemes to improve living conditions: By creating self help schemes, squatters would be earning their own money, and therefore helping themselves. For example, leather trading is a small scale industry that would provide income for these people.
• ·         Environmental issues to improve sanitation: Dharavi is on the banks of the Mithi River, which is heavily polluting. This could be reduced by educating people to be more environmentally friendly, stopping industrial waste from being dumped in the river, and building public toilets to deal with untreated sewage.

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For a large urban area explain the reasons for its growth

NEW YORK

• Ports: trade links - imports and exports are made a lot easier - accessible for those travelling by sea - New York's Hudson River port provides communication - economic growth in New York
• Nodal Points - natural route ways - transport links - confluence of the Hudson and east rivers - first ever settlement in New York
• Administrative town - capitals and different well known regions of the country - located centrally - NY is home to financial district wall street and worlds economic hub - leads to economic growth

Tsolike Valley

Site and Situation

Altitude - Below 2250m, warm to grow crops. Low land avoided also due to risk of flooding.
Aspect - North facing slope - more light for crops. A4 road - transports

Problems Faced

1. Crop growth - NO hard, flat, fertile land. Short growing season. Soil erosion by water and wind. Hailstorms and locusts.
2. Lack of work opportunities - Land allocation is complex, people only have small plots over a large area. 
3. Isolated - only one bus per day to the capital which takes 9 hours. 

Improvements

• employment (some) in forestry and public services
• main road (A4) has been improved - runs to SA border
• Nearest town Qachas Nek has farmer training center - schools hospitals bank church

Different types of pollutants

• ·         Smog - fog or haze intensified by smoke or other atmospheric pollutants.
• ·         Photochemical smog - haze in the atmosphere accompanied by high levels of ozone and nitrogen oxides, caused by the action of sunlight on pollutants.
• ·         Carbon based compounds - released by cars
• ·         Nitrogen Dioxide - released by cars
• ·         Ground level Ozone
• ·         Particulate Matter - material suspended in the air in the form of minute solid particles or liquid droplets, especially when considered as an atmospheric pollutant.
• ·         Sulfur Dioxide - released by cars
• ·         Hydrocarbons - cows (methane)
• ·         Lead - factories expose of it as it is a waste product.

Problems rapid urbanization could lead to

• ·         Water pollution – factories and other firms release poisonous gases into rivers and lakes polluting the water.
• ·         Air Pollution – more cars and other vehicles being driven and used.
• ·         Visual Pollution – Large factories and other buildings may not be aesthetically pleasing.
• ·         Noise Pollution – Lots of cars and construction work. Heavy traffic due to rapidly growing population.

Problems associated with growth

• ·         Racial Tension – If there are high levels of poverty then there are high levels of crime. Conflicts can arise between immigrant communities and the native population. People want to live near people of their own race.
• ·         Urban decay – Housing shortages in MEDCs. Houses may sometimes be extremely small and the population density will therefore be high. Many replacement properties will be owned by private landlords.
• ·         Squatter Settlements – No legal right to own the property. No utilities, i.e. sanitation, water supply, electrical supply etc. There is a lot of crowding. 

The Burgess and Hoyt Model

There are two models that describe the urban design of settlements, the Burgess Model and the Hoyt Model. The Burgess Model is the generic model designed in Chicago in 1925 and has concentric rings but no longer paints an accurate picture of most places. The Hoyt Model was adapted from the Burgess Model in 1939 and doesn't just have concentric circles but also wedges. 

Different types of land uses

• ·         High Density Housing
• ·         Low Density Housing
• ·         Flats (apartments)
• ·         Shanty Houses
• ·         Open Spaces
• ·         Industrial Areas
• ·         Transport Hubs

Factors influencing the site of settlements

• ·         Agricultural Land Use - is it suitable for farming?
• ·         Altitude - is it on high or low ground? (higher for defence)
• ·         Gradient - it is on a slope or flat? (flat = easy to build on)
• ·         Aspect - what features does it have?
• ·         Soils - are the soils fertile / easy to build on?
• ·         Water Supply - is there a good water supply?
• ·         Drainage and flooding - is the place prone to flooding?
• ·         Accessibility - how easy is it to access other areas and it?
• ·         Defense - is it safe?
• ·         Fuel Supply - is there a good source of fuel?

The Hierarchy of Settlements

Settlement Definitions

• Sphere of influence – This is the area served by the settlement. Its size will depend on the type and the number of services offered by the settlement and the transport links to it.
• Threshold Population – The minimum number of potential customers needed in order for a shop to make profit.
• Low order services – Services with a small threshold population such as a local shop or primary school are called low order services. They are large in number.
• High Order Services – Services with a large threshold population, such as furniture stores or a university, are high order services. There are a smaller number of these.
• Convenience Shops – A shop a person might visit every day. For example to buy bread or milk.
• Comparison Shops – A shop where people may want to shop around before buying things. These are things that are bought less frequently by people such as fridges and TVs.
• Site: It refers to the actual land that a settlement is built upon.
• Settlement: It refers to its location in relation to surrounding features.
• Nucleated: When the settlement is tightly packed together and heavily built up.
• Linear: When the settlement is all in a row usually because of a road.
• Dispersed: When the settlement is spread out with a lot more space usually for farming. 
• Urban Sprawl – The spreading outwards of a city and its suburbs, leading to changes in the surrounding rural area. Where urban and rural land used become mixed it is known as the urban fringe.