Land Use Changes (DP IB Geography)

Contested Land Use Changes - Slum Clearance

• Contested land use refers to areas of land where many stakeholders have views about how the land should be used

• This may lead to conflict between different groups, as they want the land for different purposes

• The main issues around contested land use are: 

  • The clearance of 'slums'

  • Urban redevelopment

  • Depletion of green space

'Slum' clearance

• The term 'slum' is used to describe:

  • Illegal settlements or inadequate housing in LICs

  • Older 19th-century housing in industrial areas in HICs

• The UN's definition of 'slum' is

• Clearance of these areas can be controversial 

Illegal settlements in LICs

• The settlements are built illegally often on wasteland at the edge of cities in LICs

• Local authorities or local government may order them to be cleared:

  • For new infrastructure developments, such as roads or train lines

  • To improve the area

• This issue is contested because local governments or businesses typically decide whether to clear these areas

• These organisations have more power than the people living in the settlements

• 'Slum' clearance often involves forced evictions

• Any new housing is often too expensive for the original residents to afford

Dharavi, Mumbai

• Over 1.2 million people live in the illegal settlement of Dharavi, which covers an area of 1 square mile

• It has developed on low-lying land which used to be a waste tip and mangrove swamp

• Conditions in the informal settlement are often poor:

  • Many houses are made from scrap materials 

  • Only 24% of people have access to clean water

  • The level of toxic waste is three times the recommendation

  • Over 4000 cases of disease a day are reported

• There is a strong community spirit 

• Many people are employed in the informal sector and the annual business turnover is over $650 million a year

  • The settlement has over 5000 businesses and 15 000 single-room factories

• The settlement is located next to Mumbai's financial district, which means the land is valuable

Contested land use in Dharavi

• Vision Mumbai in 2004 aimed to:

  • Replace inadequate housing with high-rise tower blocks

  • Improve water, sanitation and healthcare

  • Improve transport

  • Increase businesses

• By 2007, 45 000 homes were demolished and 200 000 people were moved

• The new apartment buildings were not popular

  • They split communities apart

  • People had to pay rent

  • The apartments were very small

  • Many people were made homeless because they could not prove they were Dharavi residents

Contested Land Use Changes - Urban Redevelopment

• As well as slum clearance, urban land use change may also include:

  • Gentrification

  • Urban redevelopment

• Both gentrification and redevelopment are controversial because they may not provide affordable homes for local people

Gentrification

• Development of a city neighbourhood from low to high-value

• A poor area experiences an influx of educated or wealthy individuals who gradually renovate and push up property values

• This often forces out poorer families as the area becomes too expensive to live in

  •  Portland Road in Notting Hill, was one of London’s most run-down and deprived areas; now houses sell for £2 million

• Ultimately, the character and demographic make-up of the neighbourhood are changed completely through new services and functions of the area

Urban redevelopment

• Urban redevelopment attempts to reverse inner city decline by improving an urban area through:

  • Demolition of buildings

  • Reconstruction

  • Renovating existing buildings and infrastructure

Redevelopment in Hackney Wick, East London

• The renovation of buildings such as the Bagel Factory in gentrified Hackney Wick, east London  

  • The building is full of residential apartments now but in the early twentieth century, it was the site of a bagel factory.

Contested Land Use Change - Depletion of Green Spaces

• As urban areas grow, the green spaces within them are at increased risk of development

• The value of the land for economic use outweighs the value for social use, such as parks

• Green spaces are at risk of development into illegal settlements in areas where there are high levels of rural-urban migration

• The loss of green spaces leads to a reduction in:

  • Air quality

  • Biodiversity and habitats

  • Areas for physical activity and community events

  • The urban heat island effect

• In the UK, 9.6 million people live in areas which lack green spaces

Auckland, New Zealand

• In 2011, green space made up 47% of the urban area

  • Approximately, 50% of this was residential gardens and 33% were public parks

• Green space per person in Auckland decreased by 30% between 1980 and 2016

• The causes of the decrease include:

  • Infill development, where open spaces between buildings are built on

    • This includes building on gardens

  • Higher-density buildings in new developments

    • In new developments, the average amount of green space has decreased from 55% (pre-2016) to 28% (post 2016)

• It is estimated that the loss of green space will:

  • Increase average temperatures; every 10% decrease in green space could increase temperatures by 0.3^oC

  • Increase surface runoff; a 10% increase in impermeable surfaces could increase runoff by 18%