1. Unit 5 Land Management: Urban Areas
Tuesday, November 29th, 2016

2. Resources are vital to us
We need to carefully manage the limited resources we take from the natural world
Resource management = the practice of harvesting potentially renewable resources in ways that do not deplete them
Resource managers are influenced by political, economic, and social factors
A key question is whether to focus on the resource of interest or to look more broadly at the entire environmental system

3. Natural resources are vital to us
We need resources
Soils: agriculture, natural communities
Water: drinking, agriculture, wildlife
Wildlife and fisheries: game, nongame, and marine species
Rangeland: livestock
Minerals: mined nonrenewable resources

4. Maximum sustainable yield
Maximum sustainable yield = aims to achieve the maximum amount of resource extraction
Without depleting the resource from one harvest to the next
Populations grow most rapidly at an intermediate size
Population size is about half its carrying capacity
Managed populations are well below what they would naturally be
Reducing populations so drastically affects other species and can change the entire ecosystem

5. Ecosystem-based management
Ecosystem-based management = managing the harvesting of resources to minimize impact on the ecosystems and ecological processes
Carefully managing ecologically important areas
Considering patterns at the landscape level
Protecting some forested areas
It is challenging for managers to determine how to implement this type of management
Ecosystems are complex, and our understanding of how they operate is limited

6. Adaptive management evolves and improves
Adaptive management = systematically testing different management approaches and aiming to improve methods
Monitoring results and adjusting methods as needed
A fusion of science and management
Time-consuming and complicated
The 1994 Northwest Forest Plan resolved disputes between loggers and preservationists over the remaining old-growth temperate rainforests in the continental U.S.
Allowed limited logging
Protected species and ecosystems
Science-guided management in Oregon, Washington, and California

7. Forest Management Forests cover over 30% of Earth’s land surface
Provide habitat, maintain soil, air, and water quality, and play key roles in biogeochemical cycles
Provide wood for fuel, construction, paper production
Foresters, professionals who manage forests through the practice of forestry, must balance ecosystem services with demand for wood products

8. Ecological value of forests
One of the richest ecosystems for biodiversity
Structural complexity houses great biodiversity
A forest provides many ecosystem services
Stabilizes soil and prevents erosion
Slows runoff, lessens flooding, purifies water
Stores carbon, releases oxygen, moderates climate

9. Key Concepts Distribution of urban and rural populations
Factors determining urban development
Resource and environmental problems in urban areas
Effects of transportation systems on urban growth
Making cities more sustainable and desirable
Planning and controlling urban growth

10. Urbanization and Urban Growth
Urban (metropolitan) area-more than 2,500 (10-50K)
Rural area-less than 2,500
Village-group of rural households, cultural or familial ties
City-large, variety of peoples
Degrees of urbanization-% of pop. Living in urban area
Urban growth: natural increase and immigration

11. Patterns of Urban Growth
Increasing proportion of population-90% urban
Growth in developing
Great increase in large cities (>1,000,000)
Megacities-Tokyo, Mexico City (10 mil or more)
Increasing rapidly in developing counties
Urban growth slower in developed countries
Poverty in urban areas increasing

12. Residential Land
Suburban- areas surrounding metropolitan centers with low population densities.
Exurban- similar to suburban areas, but are not connected to any central city or densely populated area.

14. Urban Sprawl
Urban sprawl- the creation of urbanized areas that spread into rural areas.
The four main concerns of urban sprawl in the U.S. are:
automobiles and highway construction
living costs (people can get more land and a larger house in the suburbs for the same amount of money)
urban blight (city revenue shrinks as people move to the suburbs)
government policies

15. Government Policies
Highway Trust Fund- a federal gasoline tax to pay for construction and maintenance of roads and highways.
Zoning- a planning tool to create quieter and safer communities. For example, prohibiting the development of a factory or strip mall in a residential area.
Multi-use zoning- allows retail and high-density residential development to coexist in the same area.
Subsidized mortgages- low interest rates offered to people to purchase a home that would otherwise not be able to do so.

17. Sustainable Cities: Urban Land Use and Management

18. Urbanization in the US Migration to large central cities
Migration from cities to suburbs-American
Dream –ideal family life. Lower cost of living, Increases urban sprawl.
Migration from north and east to south and west –undeveloped areas, green spaces (less water resources) lower cost of living in some locations*
Urban sprawl
Spatial patterns of development

19. Major Urban Regions in the US

20. Impacts of Urban Sprawl

21. Urban Resource and Environmental Problems
Air and water pollution; waste management
Reduction in vegetation
Importation of food, energy, and materials
Climate impacts: urban heat island
Noise pollution
Impacts on surrounding rural areas

22. Urban Areas: Inputs and Outputs

23. Smart Growth Mixed land uses
create a range of housing opportunities and choices
create walkable neighborhoods
encourage community and stakeholder collaboration in development decisions
take advantage of compact building design
Foster distinctive, attractive communities with a strong sense of place
Preserve open space, farmland, natural beauty and critical environmental areas
Provide a variety of transportation choices
Strengthen and direct development toward existing communities
Make development decisions predictable, fair and cost-effective

24. Solutions: Making Urban Areas More Livable and Sustainable
New cities and towns
Ecocity (green city)
Trees and climate-specific landscaping
People-oriented
People-involved

25. Urban Land-Use Planning and Control
Ecological land-use planning
Property taxes
Zoning-land designated for specific uses –control growth or protect areas
Smart growth-less dependence on cars, discourage urban sprawl
Urban growth boundary
Cluster development
Greenways