Environmental Science: Toward a Sustainable Future Richard T. Wright

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Environmental Science Toward a Sustainable
Future Richard T. Wright
Chapter 24

• Sustainable Communities and Lifestyles PPT
  by Clark E. Adams

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Trenton Brownfield Site
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Sustainable Communities and Lifestyles

• Urban sprawl
• Urban blight
• Moving toward sustainable communities
• Toward the common good

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Urban Sprawl

• Sprawl extension of city perimeters outward in
  the countryside, one development after the next,
  with little plan as to where the expansion is
  going and no notion as to where it will stop.

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The Origins of Urban Sprawl

• PostWorld War II demand for consumer goods
  cheap cars and gas
• Housing boom with low mortgage rates
• Highway Trust Fund

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Impact of Highway Trust Fund
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The Flight Continued

• The results of a car-dependent lifestyle

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Measuring Sprawl

• Residential density
• Neighborhood mix of homes, stores, and workplaces
• Accessibility of the street networks
• Strength of activity centers and downtowns

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Sprawl Scores Low Scores Mean High Sprawl (see
Table 23-2)
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Conversion of Land to Developed Uses
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Impacts of Urban Sprawl Environmental
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Environmental Impacts of Urban Sprawl Simplify
and Destabilize!
Photos by C. E. Adams
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Impacts of Urban Sprawl Quality of Life

• Higher vehicle ownership and driving mileage
• Greater risk of fatal accidents
• Lower rates of walking and lessened use of
  mass-transit facilities

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Impacts of Urban Sprawl Quality of Life

• No change in congestion delays
• Higher costs for municipal services
• Higher incidence of obesity and high blood
  pressure

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Benefits of Urban Sprawl

• Lower-density residential living
• Larger lot sizes
• Larger single-family homes

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Benefits of Urban Sprawl

• Better quality public schools
• Lower crime rates
• Better social services
• Greater opportunity to participate in local
  governments

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Reining in Urban Sprawl Smart Growth

• Smart Growth forces communities to purposely
  choose to develop in more environmentally
  sustainable ways.
• Sets boundaries on urban sprawl
• Saves open space
• Develops existing urban space
• Creates new towns

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Urban Blight

• Economic and ethnic segregation
• The vicious cycle of urban blight
• Economic exclusion of the inner city
• Urban blight in developing countries
• What makes cities livable?

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Indicators of Urban Decay

• Economic and ethnic segregation
• Eroding tax base
• Loss of social services
• Lowered property values
• Higher property taxes
• Deterioration of central city infrastructure

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Segregation by Exurban Migration White Flight
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The Vicious Cycle of Urban Blight
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Economic Exclusion of the Inner City
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Urban Blight in Developing Countries

• Slum communities
• No utility services
• No land ownership
• Crime and disease are endemic
• Expected to continue growing into middle of
  century
• Continually overwhelmed by influx of rural
  immigrants

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Slum Community Needs

• Home security
• More jobs
• Cheap transportation
• Government representation
• (Slum Dwellers International SDI at
• http//www.sdinet.org)

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What Makes Cities Livable?

• Integrated living, working, and recreational
  spaces
• Affordable housing
• Provisions for pedestrian and bicycle traffic
• Protection of sensitive habitats

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What Makes Cities Livable?
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What Makes Cities Livable?

• Reduced outward sprawl
• Reduced automobile traffic
• Improved access by foot or bicycle
• Mass transit

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What Makes Cities Livable?

• High population density
• Heterogeneity of residences and business
• People meet people, not cars

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Moving toward Sustainable Communities

• Sustainable cities
• Proximity of people to residences, shops, and
  workplaces
• Use of solar energy
• Self-sufficiency in provision of food
• Stable population

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Sustainable Communities

• Renovation and recycling
• Greenways development
• Reclaimed waterways
• New industries

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Toward the Common Good

• Intergenerational equity
• Set national goals for sustainable development
• Reduce conflict between business and
  environmental groups
• Individual responsibility

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The Common Good

• Compassion
• Concern for justice
• Honesty
• Frugality
• Humility
• Neighborliness

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Lifestyle Changes

• Individual lifestyle changes
• Political involvement
• Membership and participation in NGO environmental
  organizations
• Volunteer work
• Career choices

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End of Chapter 23