Urbanization
and Sustainability
Land pollution
Apart from urbanization, some of the main causes are deforestation, soil errosion, agriculture, mining, land & ocean dumping and more
Land pollution is a lot of build up of waste on our land
Oil spills can also be an example of land polution
24 tonnes of soil is lost in our planet each year because of land pollution
For every million tonnes of oil transported, one tonne of oil spills.
Exmaple of land pollution in Vietnam. Even in the cities where land has already been used there is alot of land pollution.
Solution #1: Implement better infastructure in third world countries so that they could take care of the trash and waste.
Solution #2: Buy organic products.
Organic products limit the amount of pesticides and herbicides which inturn leads to healthier surface runoff and overall is much better for the environment.
Solution #3: Plant more trees.
Trees act as natural filters to the environmetn which could help with the pollution and can keep out harmful materials in the environment.
Air pollution
Causes smog and climate change
Takes longer to drive around
Caused by human activities such as burning fossil fuels, gas from vehicles and production from agriculture and industrial processes. Can also be caused by energy that humans use.
Number of vehicles in cities. Plays a big role in air pollution
Solution #1:
Try to walk or bike when possible instead of using a vehicle.
If that is not possible then try arranging a ride with other people so not many vehicles are being used. (Carpooling)
This could also mean using public transportation as less vehicles are being used.
Solution #2: Try not to use gasoline-powered items (e.g. vaccums, lawn mower, etc..)
There are many other gasoline-powered equiptment that can easily be avoided to use so using non gas equiptments should be our priority.
Solution #3: Keep lights off when not being used, this saves energy and can help with air pollution.
Can cause breathing problems and with a lot of exposure to air pollution can cause more serious conditions like heart attacks, strokes and cancer
Can be caused by ash from volcanoes or wildfires
Has a big impact on wildlife, ecosystems and quality of soil and water
Loss of greenspace
Can cause increase in urban heat and flooding
Solution #1:
We can plant more trees and have more variety of trees .
Solution #2:
Protect and conserve the green space that already exists.
We should set saving green space as our priority during urban sprawl and use the green space for something more ethical.
Solution #3:
Not littering, and to clean up litter.
Ruins natural ecosystems and biodiversity within the greenspace
Increases climate change
Can be caused by humans littering the greenspace
Loss of greenspace can be loss of parks, grassy areas, natural areas, pathways, rivers
Deforestation
Forests used for agriculture, urbanization or even mining activities
Aside from urbanilization, a big cause for climate change and global warming
Has a big impact and effect on ecosystems and biodiversity
Solution #1: Use wood from resources that are easily renewable.
We should use wood from forests that are managed and we are able to grow new trees from. We should not be taking wood from primary forests where there are many ecosystems and biodiversity.
Solution #2: Eat less meat (especially beef) and other soy products. All meat contains soy. Soy is a popular activity in the agriculture industry, which is not good for production of meats.
Solution #3: Don't use forests to mine.
The waste from mining is harmful to the environment and ruins the forests.
70% of forests in the world are gone
Many people depend on forests to hunt and gather raw materials and their overall survival, deforestation takes this away
10 million hectares of forest is lost every year
Example of deforestation with urbanization
Land degradation
Farms built on or turned from wetlands, grasslands, and forests
Land that was used for farming then used for urban development
Can cause higher food prices, climate change, loss of biodiversity, and more
Solution #1: Use fertilizers and seeds to regrow or plant more onto lands.
Solution #2: Plant more trees.
More trees should be planted on land that is degraded which could help with soil erosion, prevent land from being degraded and help degraded land
The loss of the soils ability to produce
Caused by human activities such as pollution which degrades the land
Caused by extreme weather conditions mainly drought