Urban Challenges in Developed Cities
- Challenges faced by developed world cities fall under 3 categories:
- Social
- Economic
- Environmental
- These challenges are varied and unique to each city
Challenges Faced by Developed World Cities
Social | Economic | Environmental |
Social services and housing | Globalisation | Pollution and waste disposal |
Poverty and deprivation | Food supply | Sustainability |
Ethnic segregation | Transport and traffic | Ecological footprint |
Quality of life | Energy supply | Energy, land, water |
Ageing population | Deindustrialisation | Hazard risk |
Tourism and crime | Service provision | Green space |
General Examples:
Food
- Getting food for the over a million inhabitants is difficult and food is often imported from other countries
- Transportation costs add to the price the consumer has to pay
- This also increases the carbon footprint of the city
Energy
- All cities require energy for their residents and businesses
- The production of energy is mostly through the burning of non-renewable fossil fuels
- With the continued growth of cities, energy security is becoming an issue
- A mix of energy types is needed depending on location - wind power isn't possible for all cities or a continuously reliable source (not windy every day)
- Regardless of how a city generates its energy, large amounts of resources will be used to add to a city's 'footprint'
Transport
- Any large city will face problems with congestion on roads due to the volume of people trying to get about the city
- Cars and lorries will be polluting through exhaust emissions, buses and trains can be electric, reducing their impact
- Despite technology helping more modern cars produce less pollution, the remaining city's transport infrastructure (rail, tube, buses, etc.) will also be under a lot of stress
Water
- The supply of safe, clean water poses a major challenge for developed cities
- A megacity will often have a higher demand for water than it can supply
- This means that water needs to be brought in from other areas or other solutions need to be drawn up, such as a desalination plant
Waste
- Every person and business produces waste, making the combined rubbish of a city, huge
- Much of this waste will end up going to landfill; which is both expensive and wasteful
- Space is running out and new laws restrict the dumping of certain wastes in landfill sites, adding to a city's problems in dealing with its waste
Segregation
- There is a tendency for people to live near others of similar backgrounds and status
- This can be through employment, wealth, ethnicity etc.
- This makes for little interaction between the groups, which isolates and limits social mobility
- Isolation breeds fear and suspicion of 'differences' within the urban area