“…as our relationship to the environment becomes ever more complex and precarious, so city planning becomes one of the most important disciplines…”

This essay was written for my Planning 100 (Creative Communities) class 2 years ago. Feel free to critique..

“…as our relationship to the environment becomes ever more complex and precarious, so city planning becomes one of the most important disciplines…”. This quote by Richard Rogers is significant because it emphasises the need for city planning to preserve the environment. This essay will discuss how population growth, increasing consumerism, the growth of cities and the spread of suburbia have disastrous impacts on the environment. It will also discuss why the role of planners is significant. Planners over the world have one main goal, to prevent humanity from using resources unsustainably. This is done through imposing different environmental planning policies and raising local awareness in order to maintain the capacity of the earth to sustain society’s present and future needs.

Population growth in association with a changing lifestyle and increasing consumption is placing great damage and stresses on the environment (Benton-Short and Short, 2008, p. 73). According to the Final Report of the Urban Task Force on Urban Renaissance, the population increase in the last century was from one billion to six billion people (p. 28). Current trends put the global population at eight and a half billion by 2025 (Urban Task Force, 1999, p. 28). This rapid increase of global population inflicts serious stresses on the environment as human activity will increase. It is argued that human population is the underlying issue of the environment because the great number of people has direct and indirect effects that cause environmental deterioration (Botkin and Keller, 2005, p. 4). A trend that emerges with the rapid increase of population is the increasing human consumption. As humans, we directly depend on nature to meet the needs and demands ensuring society’s survival. However, we are using natural resources faster than they can be replenished (Botkin and Keller, 2005, p. 9). This increasing consumption due to rapid population growth has negative externalities especially on the environment. A major downside is the creation of pollution and solid wastes that are exceeding the capacity of the planet to absorb and convert them. Another negative impact is the avoidable degradation of renewable resources. As our lifestyle changes, our relationship with the environment becomes more complex and precarious in order to meet society’s ongoing needs and demands. City planning therefore is important in preserving the environment to provide needs for present and future generations.

The rising urbanism and suburban sprawl has modified the environment to a great extent. In 1990, only ten percent of the global population lived in cities, but today, fifty percent of the population lives in urban areas (Urban Task Force, 1999, p. 28). The urban population is increasing at a rate of one quarter of a million per day (Rogers, 1997, p. 4). This rapid increase of people who live in urban settlements has accelerated the rate of the deterioration of the environment. The growth of cities has modified the physical environment in many ways because consumerism is increasing the creation of pollution. It is in the urban centers that there is a concentration of air pollution, greenhouse gases, waste disposal problem, social unrest and other stresses in the environment (Botkin and Keller, 2005, p. vi). For example, Mexico City is seen as one of the largest and most polluted city in the world (Roger, 1997, p. 28). The layer of smog in Mexico City is six times more toxic than the acceptable standard set by the World Health Organisation (Roger, 1997, p. 28). This concentration of urban population in Mexico City is generating threats to the environment and therefore has harmful flow-on effects on the urban community. In other words, humans are the “greatest threat to humankind’s survival on the planet” (Rogers, 1997, p. 4). On the other hand, metropolitan growth especially in the developed world has resulted for the rise of suburban areas. The idea of suburban sprawl has extended jobs and residential housing further away from central cities (Benton-Short and Short, 2008, p. 86). Roger (1997) argues that it is the car that had the critical role of encouraging suburban sprawl (p. 35). It is estimated in 1997 that there are 500 million cars and is now considered the major contributors to air pollution rather than industries (Rogers, 1997, p. 86). However, the loss of open space to accommodate spaces for housing and roads is the most significant environmental impact of suburban sprawl. As more land is being cleared to accommodate the rising population in suburbia, ecosystem fragmentation becomes more complex and the reduction of diversity and species extinction therefore intensifies (Benton-Short and Short, 2008, p. 86). The preservation of the environment is important with the rising urbanisation and suburbanisation, thus city planning is significant in creating sustainable “cities that will offer opportunity today without jeopardising future generations” (Rogers, 1997, p. 28).

The roles of planners are important in providing a sustainable approach towards the environment to accommodate the rising population growth, consumerism, urbanism and suburban sprawl. As the human population grows larger, the capacity of the planet to ensure humanity’s survival is lesser. The job of planners is therefore very important in responding to society’s current demands without compromising those of future generations (Urban Task Force, 1999, p. 28). Rogers (1997) believes that “…city planning could be evolved to provide crucial tools for safeguarding our future, creating cities that provide sustainable and civilising environments” (p. 4). This quote is relevant because it emphasises the role of planners towards a sustainable urban environment. In New Zealand, planners are mainly employed by the local government. This is important because there is a localisation of decisions to meet local needs. The Resource Management Act 1991 is one of the main legislations that planners in New Zealand depend upon when making decisions. The main purpose of the act is “to promote sustainable management of natural and physical resources” (S5 (1) Resource Management Act 1991 (No. 69)). The emphasis on the RMA in urban planning decisions is important because it promotes sustainable development. The ultimate role of planners around the world is to apply holistic urban planning practices in which the environment is within the core of their long term objectives and policies.

Population growth, consumerism, urbanisation and suburbanisation are the main factors that changed our relationship with the environment. Rogers (1997) commented that the planet is perfectly capable of sustaining all humanity’s needs only if we value it. This is why planners have a very important role in promoting sustainability to meet the demands of the current and future generations.