Urban Sprawl Essay

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URBAN SPRAWL This is a report for module CIV 122 into a given aspect of sustainable development. This aspect for this report is on urban sprawl. Urban sprawl will be looked at in a number of ways, using a variation of sources to address the issue, looking at what it is, the problems with it, trends through which urban sprawl is going and finally possible solutions to cure the problem. Firstly is the definition of Urban Sprawl. A larger, more complex, definition is given by Gottmann & Harper (1967). First is the word sprawl, it invokes a ‘pattern of movement and use of space”. On a large scale it also suggests a ‘freedom of movement’ as there has to be somewhere to sprawl too. Finally are the ugly connotations associated with the word as it ‘does not agree with the classic tradition of elegant behaviour’. This is then applied to the movement of towns, cities and other populated areas. A shorter definition for urban sprawl is ‘the uncontrolled spread of urban development into neighbouring regions’ Dictionary.com (2013). The main issues with urban sprawl can be seen in the definitions, it is ‘uncontrolled’ and it is ‘not likeable’. Cities spreading out has ‘broken out of bounds’ and they are ‘spreading all over’. The main issue is that the sprawl of cities is ‘taking too much space; and the result of all that free and unusual expansion is not beautiful’ Gottmann & Harper (1967). As cities spread further out, to get to the centre means further to travel to work or social visits. One of the main issues with Urban Sprawl is that it means being further from the city and therefore having to rely more heavily on private transport, ie. Your car. With more cars on the road and this is contributing to the ever growing concern of global warming and climate change, as well as other problems associated with air pollution. “the outward expansion of
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