The Impacts of

Urbanization
A PRESENTATION BY: VINAYAK, DONIV, SAYRIE,
SAEEDAH, ZAAKIRAH, AND JORDANA
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What is
Urbanization?
T H E P O P U L A T I O N S H I F T F R O M R U R A L T O U R B A N A R E A S , R E S U L T I N G I N A
D E C R E A S E I N T H E P R O P O R T I O N O F P E O P L E L I V I N G I N R U R A L R E G I O N S .
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Areas to be discussed

• The C a uses of Ur b a ni za ti on

• Tra ffi c Cong esti on

• N oi se Pol l uti on

• Wa ter Pol l uti on

• Wa ter Sup pl y

• H ousi ng

• H ea l thca r e
Causes of Urbanization - Jordana

• Industr i a l i za ti on: M o r e p eop l e have been a ttra cted to m ove f r o m r ura l to ur ba n a r ea s o n

a cco unt o f i m pr oved em p l oy m ent o pp or tuni ti es.

• Com m er ci a l i za ti on: Better com m er ci a l op p or tuni ti es a nd r etur ns com p a r ed to r ura l a r ea s.

• Soci a l B enefi ts a nd Ser v i ces: Ur b a n a r ea s p r ov i d e b etter ed uca ti ona l fa ci l i ti es, b etter

l i v i ng sta nd a r d s, b etter sa ni ta ti on a nd housi ng , b etter hea l th ca r e, b etter r ecr ea ti o n
f a ci l i ti es, a nd b etter soci a l l i fe i n g enera l .

• Empl oy m ent Op p or tuni ti es: Ser v i ces a nd i nd ustr i es i n ur ba n a r ea s g enera te a nd i ncr ea se

hi g her va l ue-a dd ed j ob s, a nd thi s l ea d s to m or e em p l oy m ent op p or tuni ti es.
Traffic Congestion - Sayrie

Traffi c congestion is a condition in transpor t that is characterized by slower

speeds, longer trip times, and increased vehicular queueing.

In the Caribbean, traffi c congestion occurs due to these listed reasons:

• Number of cars on the roadways annually

• Ratio of working citizens

• Limited street parking

• Accidents

• Bottleneck (improper roadways)

• Weather
Impacts of Traffic Congestion on the Environment

A I R P OLLU T ION

• A s a r esul t of sta ti o na r y tra ffi c, eng i nes i n the p r esence o f hyd r o ca r b ons fr om ca r
exha usts g a ses wel l a s ozone a nd sunl i g ht f or m a m i xtur e tha t r ea cts to p r od uce
photochem i ca l sm og .

• A s ni tr og en com b i nes w i th oxyg en i n the hi g h tem p er ta ur e of ca r eng i nes i t cr ea tes oxi d es

of ni tr o g en.

• Essenti a l l y, d i m i ni shes the a i r q ua l i ty.

CLI MAT E C H A NG E S

• Incr ea se i n the a b ove m enti oned a uto em i ssi o ns, wi l l cr ea te a dra sti c i ncl i ne i n the
concentra ti on of hea ted m ol ecul es f ound wi thi n the Ea r th’s a i r, The Atm osp her e.

• Cond ucti on, C onvecti on a nd Ra d i a ti on exped i tes.

Noise Pollution - Zaakirah

Environmental noise pollution is a serious problem for urban dwellers because of

population growth.

• H i g h noi se l evel s ca n ca use p er m a nent hea r i ng l o ss a nd a ff ect va r i ous a spects of hea l th

a nd wel l -b ei ng .

• Tr i ni da d a nd Tob a g o f a ces no i se p ol l uti o n f r o m vessel s a nd oi l expl ora ti on, w hi ch ca n

ha r m m a r i ne l i f e.

• Some m ea sur es a r e ta ken to p r otect tur tl es a nd ceta cea ns f r om noi se po l l uti on.
Noise Pollution (Continued)

Environmental noise pollution has various sources

• A i r cond i ti oner s a nd i nd ustr i a l eq ui p m ent

• N oi se fr o m i nd ustr y, constr ucti on, a nd d em ol i ti on

• N oi se g enera ted b y hum a n a cti v i ty

• Tra nsp or ta ti on- r el a ted no i se

Noise p o llu tio n is r e gu late d by d iff e r e n t age n c ie s w h o ar e th e so u r c e o f th e p o llu tio n

in d e v e lo p e d c o u n t r ie s. T h e r e is litt le in c e n tiv e to r e d u c e n o ise p o llu tio n as it m ay
aff e ct th e e co n o my n e gativ e ly
Water Pollution in the Caribbean - Vinayak

Wa te r pol l u t i on i s t h e c on t a m i n a t i on of wa te r b od i e s , to t h e d e t r i m e n t o f s a i d wa te r
bod i e s . In t h e C a r ib b e a n , wa te r p o llu tio n is c a u s e d b y a my r i a d o f h u m a n f a c to r s . T h e y a r e a s
f o llo w s :

• L itt e r in g

• Un s e tt le d Q u a r r y Wa s h

• In d u s tr ia l Pla n t & Fa c t o r y Wa s te

• Ove r u s e o f Fe r t ilize r s a n d Pe s tic id e s

• B u s h F ir e s

• S la s h a n d B u r n D e f o r e s ta t io n

• Un tr e a t e d / Po o r ly Tr e a te d S e wa g e
Water Supply - Doniv

A ppr oxi m a tel y 9 7 % of the ea r th’s wa ter i s stor ed i n the ocea ns, a nd onl y a f ra cti o n o f the
r ema i ni ng p or ti on i s usa b l e f r eshwa ter.

The Ca r i b b ea n countr i es f r equentl y ca nnot m eet thei r r eq ui r em ents f or a cl ea n, suffi ci ent,

a nd co nsi stent sup pl y of wa ter. The Uni ted N a ti ons' M i l l enni um D evel op m ent G oa l ( sl a ted
f or 2 0 1 5 ) r eg a r d i ng a ccess to a p pr op r i a te d r i nk i ng wa ter a nd sa ni ta ti on f a ci l i ti es m ay have
a l r ea dy been m et b eca use Tr i ni d a d a nd To ba g o ha s one o f the m ost exp a nsi ve wa ter a nd
sewa g e netw or k s i n the C a r i b b ea n.

Cur r entl y, 9 2 % of the 1 . 3 m i l l i on r esi dents have a ccess to cl ea n d r i nk i ng wa ter. H owever,

onl y a b out 2 6 % of p eop l e have i nter r upted , r ound - the- cl ock a ccess to thi s supp l y. Som e
v i l l a g es sti l l l a ck a r eg ul a r sup pl y of wa ter, a nd the r est of those supp l i ed r ecei ve i t w eek l y.
Some 3 0 % of the p op ul a ti on ha s a sewera g e connecti on, w hi l e 5 8 % r el y on soa k-away or
septi c ta nk s.
Water Supply (Continued)

T h e Im p ac ts o f U r b an iza tio n in th e d e v e lo p e d w o r ld – Wate r Su p p ly

The need f or f ood , ener g y, a nd wa ter i s r i si ng d ue to ur b a ni za ti on a nd ra p i d p op ul a ti on

i ncr ea se. Wa ste str ea m s a r e a l so bei ng p r od uced, stor mwa ter r unoff i s o ccur r i ng , a nd
pol l uta nts a nd nutr i ents a r e enter i ng wa ter way s.

A n i mp r oved a nd i nteg ra ted ur b a n wa ter m a na g em ent sy stem tha t w oul d ha r ness wa ter,
wa stewa ter, a nd stor mwa ter sour ces i s essenti a l to co nti nue pr ov i d i ng hi g h- q ua l i ty ur b a n
wa ter ser v i ces whi l e p r eser v i ng wa ter ecosy stem s a nd l ower i ng hum a n ca r b on fo otp r i nts.

A s a n i l l ustra ti on, consi d er Austra l i a , wher e m a j or ci ti es a r e cur r entl y sp endi ng over A $ 3 0

bi l l i on on new wa ter supp l i es. M ost of these ci ti es a r e d i ver si fy i ng thei r so ur ces to i ncl ud e
desa l i na ted wa ter, d ecentra l i zed sup p l i es, a nd som e k i nd of wa ter r ecycl i ng i n p l a ce o f
ra i nf a l l - dep end ent sto ra g e.
Housing (from 2.23 in the textbook) - Vinayak

• The ca r r y i ng ca pa ci ti es of m a ny ur b a n a r ea s have been exceeded beca use of i ncr ea sed

econom i c a cti v i ti es, ca used b y i ncr ea sed g r o wth i n p op ul a ti o n i n sa i d ur b a n a r ea s.

• Si mp l y p ut, ther e a r e to o m a ny p eo pl e l i v i ng i n a ny g i ven ur ba n a r ea b eca use of

popul a ti on g r owth f r om unoffi ci a l housi ng so l uti o ns. Gover nm ents a r e l a r g el y unawa r e f or
these una ccounted peop l e, beca use of the unoffi ci a l sta tus o f these so l uti ons.

• Thi s p r ob l em ca n be com p a r ed to squa tti ng i n Tr i ni d a d a nd To ba g o d ue to the si m i l a r i ti es

between the two, si nce they a r e b oth unoffi ci a l a nd una ccounted f or ho usi ng sol uti ons.
Housing (from 2.24 in textbook) - Jordana

Ur b a n iz a t io n w ill in e v it a b ly r e s u lt in a s c a r c ity o f d w e l l i n g u n i t s i n s i d e t h e u r b a n e nv i r o n m e n t
o r c it ie s a s t h e p o p u la tio n g r o w t h in c r e a s e s , d e m a n d i n g m o r e h o u s i n g o r l i v i n g s p a c e f o r th e
g r o w in g p o p u la tio n . T h e r e a r e a w id e ra n g e o f n e g a t i ve i m p a c t s t h a t u r b a n i s a ti o n c a n h ave o n
h o u s in g b u t t h e m o s t c o m m o n a r e :

• Pe o p le w ill n o lo n g e r b e a b le to a ff o r d r e n t . D u e t o th e s h o r t a g e o f va c a n t s p a c e s , th e r e n t
w ill in c r e a s e , a s th e r e is lim it e d s u p p ly o f th e s e r v ic e .

• D e ve lo p m e n t o f s lu m s . S lu m s a r e in s im p le t e r m s u n l aw f u l s e tt l e m e n t s w h e r e p e o p l e g a t h e r
a n d live in a r e a s t h a t f a ll s h o r t o f w h a t is c o n s id e r e d a p p r o p r i a te l i v i n g c o n d i ti o n s a n d m ay n o t
a lway s p r ov id e f u n d a m e n t a l n e c e s s it ie s f o r lif e . S o m e s o l u ti o n s to t h e s e p r o b l e m s m ay i n c l u d e :

• Re d u c in g t h e c o s t o f c o n s t r u c tio n

• A ff o r d a b le h o u s in g
Healthcare - Saeedah

Ra pi d g r o wth of ur b a n a r ea s ha s a sub sta nti a l eff ect on the hea l th of p eop l e l i v i ng i n ci ti es.
The pr essur es a nd l i f esty l e cha ng es a sso ci a ted wi th ci ty l i v i ng l ea d to a cha ng e i n l i f esty l e
pa tter ns such a s;​

AG G R E SSI V E MA R KET I NG ​

In ci ti es, ther e i s of ten a n a b und a nce of a d ver ti si ng a nd m a r keti ng ca m p a i g ns, cr ea ti ng a

consta nt b a r ra g e of m essa g es pr o m oti ng va r i o us p r od ucts a nd l i f esty l es. Thi s ca n i nfl uence
peopl e's per cepti ons, pr ef er ences, a nd p ur cha si ng b ehav i or s, po tenti a l l y l ea d i ng to the
a dopti on o f cer ta i n p r od ucts or ser v i ces tha t m ay i m p a ct hea l th.​
Healthcare (Continued)

A BU NDA NC E OF U NH E A LT H Y FOO D C H OIC E S​

​Ur ba n a r ea s tend to o ff er a wi d e a r ray of f ood op ti o ns, i ncl udi ng f a st f o od , pr o cessed

sna cks, a nd conveni ence m ea l s. The a ccessi b i l i ty a nd conveni ence o f these of ten unhea l thy
choi ces ca n co ntr i b ute to a shi f t i n d i eta r y p a tter ns, w i th p eo pl e consum i ng m or e pr ocessed
a nd ca l or i e- d ense f ood s, w hi ch ca n contr i bute to hea l th i ssues l i ke ob esi ty a nd r el a ted
condi ti ons.​

G R E AT E R D E P E NDA NC E O N AU TOMAT IO N A ND T R A NSP ORT​

​Ur ba n l i v i ng o f ten i nvol ves i ncr ea sed r el i a nce on technol o g y a nd tra nsp or ta ti on. Sedenta r y
l i f esty l es, cha ra cter i zed b y l ess p hy si ca l a cti v i ty a nd m or e ti m e sp ent si tti ng (d ue to
a utoma ti on a nd r el i a nce o n ca r s fo r tra nspo r ta ti on) , ca n contr i bute to a ra ng e of hea l th
pr obl em s, i ncl ud i ng ca r d i ova scul a r i ssues a nd o besi ty.​
Healthcare (Continued)

​T h is s h if t c o n t r ib u t e s to a h ig h e r o c c u r r e n c e o f n o n - c o m m u n i c a b l e d i s e a s e s , e n c o m p a s s i n g
c o n d it io n s like ; ​

• C a r d iova s c u la r d is e a s e​

• C a n c e r s​

• D ia b e t e s​

• C h r o n ic r e s p ira to r y d is e a s e​

​E s s e n tia lly, th e u r b a n e nv ir o n m e n t a n d it s a s s o c ia te d f a c t o r s p l a y a s i g n i fi c a n t r o l e i n s h a p i n g
t h e h e a lt h o u t c o m e s o f c ity r e s id e n ts , o f t e n in way s t h a t i n c r e a s e th e r i s k o f t h e s e s p e c i fi c
h e a lth c o n d it io n s .​

Ra p id , u n p la n n e d u r b a n iz a tio n p o s e s h e a lth t h r e a t s i f h e a l th c a r e i n f ra s t r u c t u r e l a g s b e h i n d
p o p u la t io n g r o w th , p o t e n t ia lly le a d in g to d is e a s e o u tb r e a k s a n d i n a d e q u a te m e d i c a l s e r v i c e s
f o r t h e e x p a n d in g u r b a n p o p u la t io n​
Healthcare (Continued)

• The i nd i v i dua l s m i g ra ti ng f r om r ura l to ur b a n a r ea s a r e of ten eco nom i ca l l y d i sa d va nta g ed ,

a r r i v i ng w i th sub op ti m a l hea l th sta tuses.​

• L i v i ng i n cra m p ed, f r eq uentl y over cr o wd ed, a nd unsa ni ta r y cond i ti ons fo ster s a n

env i r onm ent w her e d i sea ses thr i ve a nd com m uni ca b l e i l l nesses ca n ea si l y sp r ea d ​

• In essence, the ra pi d a nd unr eg ul a ted g r o wth of ur b a n a r ea s, co up l ed wi th i na d eq ua te

hea l thca r e fa ci l i ti es, ca n l ea d to a host of hea l th cha l l eng es, especi a l l y fo r the
econom i ca l l y v ul nera b l e p op ul a ti o ns m a k i ng the tra nsi ti on fr om r ura l to ur b a n l i v i ng .​
Healthcare (Continued)

HEALTH CARE IN THE DEVELOPED WORLD ​

" T h e w o r l d i s r a p i d l y u r b a n i s i n g w i t h s i g n i fi c a n t c h a n g e s i n o u r l i v i n g s t a n d a r d s , l i f e s t y l e s , s o c i a l
b e h a v i o u r a n d h e a l t h ", s a y s D r J a c o b Ku m a r e s a n , d i r e c t o r o f t h e Wo r l d H e a l t h O r g a n i s a t i o n ' s C e n t r e f o r
H e a l t h D e v e l o p m e n t . " W h i l e u r b a n l i v i n g c o n t i n u e s t o o ff e r m a n y o p p o r t u n i t i e s , i n c l u d i n g p o t e n t i a l
access to better health care, today's urban environments can concentrate health risks and introduce new
h a z a r d s . "​

Urban environments of ten hinder physical activity and encourage unhealthy eating habits. Challenges
such as; ​

• o v e r c r o w d i n g​

• h e a v y t ra ffi c ​

• r e l i a n c e o n m o t o r i z e d t r a n s p o r t a t i o n​

• poor air quality ​

inadequate safe public spaces and sports facilities ​

Impede active lifestyles.

Healthcare (Continued)

The rapid urbanization significantly impacts the health of urban residents. Mass marketing, ready
availability of unhealthy foods, and increased automation and transportation contribute to lifestyle
changes, fostering non-communicable diseases like cardiovascular diseases, cancers, diabetes, and
chronic respiratory conditions.​

Urban dwellers encounter heightened risks due to factors like unhealthy diets, sedentary lifestyles,
substance abuse, and the threat of disease outbreaks . These elements can negatively impact their
life expectancy by contributing to various health issues and complications.​
​
Unhealthy diets and lack of physical activity are linked to conditions like obesity and cardiovascular
diseases , while harmful substance use poses additional health risks. Moreover, the close proximity in
urban areas can facilitate the spread of diseases, further jeopardizing the overall well-being and
longevity of urban residents. ​
This hereby concludes our presentation – thank you 