Although there is considerable evidence that urban sprawl has adverse affects on public health and the environment, policy frameworks designed to combat sprawl such as smart growthhave proven to be controversial, making implementation difficult. Department of agricultures natural resources conservation service nrcs is a major data source for agricultural land. Somehow researchers have to balance the density of population, if that population is located in the city center or suburbs, and if the city has any sprawl outside its boundaries. The issue of urban sprawl is a contentious and polarizing one, as people seem to either love or hate it. Sprawl is a singleuse, lowdensity, disconnected approach to community design. Here our goal is to give a little more dimension to the explanation by showing some nuances to the definition of urban sprawl. Dictionary grammar blog school scrabble thesaurus translator quiz more resources more from collins. Changes in urban residential density represent an important issue in terms. Defining sprawl and smart growth sprawl the term sprawl, as used by land developers, planners and governmental institutions, critically describes a pattern of lowdensity, often unsightly, automobile dependent development that has been a common form of growth outside of urban. Defining sprawl and smart growth community and regional. Urban sprawl generates a decline in the availability of productive agricultural land around cities, causing versatile conflicts between nature and society and threatening the sustainability of urban agglomerations.
Urban sprawl oxford reference the relentless extension of builtup areas around virtually every city on earth as the combination of rising population and rising prosperity apply increasing economic pressure on agricultural and pastoral land, making it difficult or impossible to preserve it for agricultural use. Towards a simpler characterization of urban sprawl across. Key contributors were john ottensmann of indiana university, who processed census data and. Dynamics of urban sprawl and sustainable development in. Other subtleties about the definition of urban sprawl. Sprawl is the leading edge of urban growth and implies little planning control of land subdivision. And urban sprawl always generates overly long commute, contributing traffic congestion and. Urban sprawl or suburban sprawl is a multifaceted concept centered around the expansion of lowdensity development. This area is where open spaces, farm land and the natural environment are typically found. A landscape suffers from urban sprawl if it is permeated by urban development or solitary buildings and when land uptake per inhabitant or job is high. Times, sunday times 2011 beyond the suburbs, many towns and cities have a green belt to stop urban sprawl.
Urban sprawl definition of urban sprawl by merriamwebster. The attraction of living in a nice neighborhood with better schools and lower crime rates must be. Pdf urban sprawl and the loss of peri urban land in. Problems of urban sprawl negative effects of urban. This report provides a new perspective to the nature of urban sprawl and its causes and environmental, social and economic consequences. The concept of urban sprawl and its causes zuhal karakayaci 1. Urban sprawl article questions northwestern university. However, the continually expanding body of literature provides no consensus on the definition or characteristics of sprawl. In this paper, urban sprawl will be defined as spatial growth of cities that is excessive relative to what is socially desirable. Definitions, data, methods of measurement, and environmental consequences by reza banai and thomas depriest.
Urban sprawl urban sprawl, also called sprawl or suburban sprawl, the rapid expansion of the geographic extent of cities and towns, often characterized by lowdensity residential housing, singleuse zoning, and increased reliance on the private automobile for transportation. On the surface, sprawling subdivisions and commercial zones are economic boons to local businesses and municipalities. Urban sprawl or suburban sprawl mainly refers to the unrestricted growth in many urban areas of housing, commercial development, and roads over large expanses of land, with little concern for urban planning. Urban sprawl definition and meaning collins english. Acknowledging urban sprawl as one of the major threats to the functioning of urban environments, the article focuses on its possible association with urban green spaces ugs. Measuring urban sprawl based on massive street nodes. Slideshare uses cookies to improve functionality and performance, and to provide you with relevant advertising. Like sprawl itself, writing about sprawl is scattered in a vast multidisciplinary literature. The uncontrolled and disproportionate expansion of an urban area into the surrounding countryside, forming lowdensity, poorly planned patterns of development.
Various definitions can made f or urban sprawl from diffe rent perspectives. Thus, urban sprawl is a much more dangerous signal for china. Urban sprawl definition of urban sprawl by the free. Urban sprawl and the loss of peri urban land in kumasi, ghana. Again, a better understanding of the nature of urban sprawl in developing countries would better inform. It does not allow for a straightforward assessment of the different impacts of urban sprawl. Urban sprawl wreaks havoc on the natural land, ecosystem and community. An urban area can be defined by one or more of the following.
Topics range from the outward spreading of a city and its suburbs to its logical limits, to lowdensity and autodependent development on rural land, examination of impact of high segregation between residential and commercial uses, and analysis various design features to. Endangered by sprawl how runaway development threatens americas wildlife viii study, the brunt of future growth will be borne by relatively few component counties. The different dimensions of urban sprawl are measured by the seven indicators described in table 1. The city, which has a population of about 10 million amid an urban sprawl of about 30 million people, also faces major congestion and environmental concerns. Urban sprawl occurs fundamentally when the land price of the hinterlands is lower than that of core areas 24. Urban sprawl is a phenomenon that can be visually perceived in the landscape.
Urban sprawl is a complex phenomenon that requires a. Without such a theory, it is not possible to know why a particular determinant works to explain a particular definition of urban sprawl, nor is it possible to know whether any particular policy to combat. An analysis of the public discourse about urban sprawl in the. The loss of farmland to urban use in peri urban areas is a global phenomenon. The green belt has a valuable role in stopping urban sprawl and providing a green lung around towns and cities.
Urban sprawl is the outward spread of development from urban centers into rural areas. If you continue browsing the site, you agree to the use of cookies on this website. The problematization of urban sprawl in the united states. Environmental implications of peri urban sprawl and. Definitions urban area the definition of urban varies from country to country, and, with periodic reclassification, can also vary within one country over time, making direct comparisons difficult. It is hard to define but you know it when you see it. The authors wish to acknowledge numerous individuals who generated or processed data upon which our sprawl and outcome measures are based. Urban growth, also known as urban sprawl, refers to the expansion of a metropolitan or suburban area into the surrounding environment.
By separating places where people live, work, and play and limiting direct connections between these activities, sprawl most often renders driving as the only rational travel option. The high price of urban sprawl essay 2565 words 11 pages. Sprawl is seen as a negative urban form thus majority of work is on the impacts of sprawl and most of it in the usa major focus is on anti sprawl reform to achieve the compact city four major viewpoints of impacts of sprawl. In general, the definition of urban sprawl is described in two aspects. Urban sprawl is generally characterized to be low density, autodependent land development taking place at the periphery of urban areas, and thus transfers a. Urban sprawl in europe european environment agency. Longer and more frequent commutes are a major concern associated with urban sprawl. At densities of recent development, 18 counties are on a pace to use all of their remaining nonfederal farmland and other natural areas to accommodate projected growth, and. The report defines sprawl as an urban development pattern characterised by low population density that can manifest itself in multiple ways. Advantages and disadvantages of urban sprawl synonym.
The concept of urban sprawl the lands of urban sprawl which are defined as lands that have lost their rural characteristics and yet cannot be defined as urban include specific uncertainties results in various problems such as unplanned urban growth and use of nonagricultural purpose. While gordon and richardson 1997 define urban sprawl as leapfrog development1, dilorenzo 2000 defines it as growth with cancer or virus. Any discussion of the pros and cons of urban sprawl, that is, the expansion of suburban neighborhoods around major cities, pits the benefits to individuals against broader social and environmental concerns. This perspective, which is based on the multidimensionality of urban sprawl, sets the foundations for the construction of new indicators to measure the various facets of urban sprawl. This is the area being gobbled up most by urban sprawl. Urban sprawl or suburban sprawl mainly refers to the unrestricted growth in many urban areas. This puts a heavy responsibility on public bodies to maintain the balance between urban. The fact remains, however, that it remains a permanent fixture, with cities growing exponentially in terms of geographic area. Measuring and predicting longterm land cover changes in. The implications for the education of urban sustainability are noted. Today, there is no generally accepted definition of this term.
Growing like weeds on the edges of cities and along motorways throughout the world, urban sprawl has been increasingly associated with a range of social and environmental prob. Urban sprawl is an increasingly common feature of the built environment in the united states and other industrialized nations. Separately, once defined and measured, sprawl is related to consequences in the areas of transportation, travel, and air quality. Development, urban revitalization, and suburban reforms that create walkable neighborhoods with a diversity of housing and jobs. Common in both highincome and lowincome countries, urban sprawl is. Uncertainty on definitions and explanations of urban sprawl hamper the design of policy measures. The construction of dwellings, stores, and infrastructure creates employment opportunities.
The average american spends 17,600 minutes behind the steering wheel of a car annually. Some cities fit the criteria for sprawl geographically, but not in terms of their population density. It is typically unorganized and poorly planned, making it an unsustainable form of development. Measuring sprawl and its impact is the product of three years of research. Development is patchy, scattered and strung out, with a tendency. This study aimed to uncover the spatial pattern of long term 80 years land cover. The unplanned, uncontrolled spreading of urban development into areas adjoining the edge of a city. These challenges include greenhouse gas emissions, air pollution, road congestion and lack of affordable housing. To complicate matters, the term sprawl is applied in many different ways galster, et al. In the confusion in definition of urban sprawl, wilson et al.
However, some different opinions exist in academic fields on urban sprawl. Negative effects of urban sprawl home guides sf gate. It is often controlled by an urban growth boundary ugb, which is a clearly defined and legally enforced zoning tool. Difficulties with the term urban sprawl as will be discussed in more detail in section 3 of this paper, urban sprawl is notoriously difficult to define.
Home owners and commercial ventures that move into the area often provide additional revenue to local governments in the form of. Cervero 2000 claims that sprawl is like pornography. The report uses new datasets to compute these indicators for more than. Measuring sprawl and its impact smart growth america. In this paper we provide a map of what is increasingly known about. Urban sprawl, definitions, data, methods of measurement, environmental consequences, sustainability education. Volume i page 3 that occurs in urban areas, it must first be reduced to some objective conditions or traits. Urban sprawl over the agricultural land land use pressures are particularly mounting on the edges of the urban areas. While the phenomenon may very well be here to stay, there are distinct advantages and disadvantages to be considered. New urbanists want to create neighborhoods that promote a sense of community and a sense of place. Inefficient distribution of land and failure to reduce. Urban sprawl is a situation where large stores, groups of houses, etc.
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