Geography Reference
In-Depth Information
(rather simplified here in their views) will contest
how the parish or village should evolve (for
reviews see Pacione 1984; Champion 1989;
Robinson 1990).
For larger cities, the pressures may be more
focused on major developments such as airports.
The rapid growth of air travel has encouraged the
building of new airport terminals and runways
and even complete new airports. Since airports
service metropolitan regions and must be
accessible to travellers, employees and suppliers,
they should be as near to the city as possible; but
noise issues will push them deeper into the
countryside. The environmental impact of airports
is intense, and their negative effects on openness
and quietness are overwhelming. The adjacent
residents (probably escapees from the noisy city)
are likely to be against such development. It is little
surprise that airport proposals have attracted some
of the bitterest conflicts at the urban fringe (e.g.
Tokyo, London, Frankfurt, Manchester). The rise
of environmentalism has intensified the
opposition, as environmental groups have formed
alliances with local people against airports.
Opposition similar to that against airports has also
arisen against motorways at the urban fringe and
retail and entertainment complexes.
Whereas these developments tend to be close
to the inner edge of the urban fringe, its outer
edge witnesses conflicts over second and holiday
homes. Beyond the realm of daily commuting,
there may still be urban residential pressures from
retired people and the owners of second homes.
The retired may be unwelcome, since they reduce
the vitality and workforce in the area. On the
other hand, they may have the capital to improve
their houses (so helping the local building trade)
and have the personal interest and free time to
revive social and community organisations.
Second-home owners may be viewed less
favourably. Their sporadic residence in the area
may be characterised as exploitative—putting little
back into the community and denying a house to
a full-time resident. The balance of effects varies
geographically—in some areas they may take over
derelict houses that no one else wants (as in parts
of Spain, Greece and France). In other places, they
may displace people. If the second-home owners
and local people are culturally distinct (different
social groups or nationalities), then the conflict
could expand from resentment to open hostility
(as in parts of Sardinia and Wales) (for reviews see
Champion 1989; Robinson 1990).
So far, this chapter has focused on the fringes
of cities in the developed world. Those in the less
developed world are no less varied and
interesting (Drakakis-Smith 1980; Gilbert and
Gugler 1992). The specific issues are usually
rather different, but the principles are the same.
The city edge is the place where many of the
poorest migrants to the city will arrive from the
countryside. Housing and health conditions on
the fringe will often be very poor, with a severe
lack of infrastructure. Yet the city may offer a
better future than the countryside could. Issues
of houses flooding and the physical safety of
fringe sites are more important than in the
developed world. The special conditions of
apartheid gave South African cities an unusual
structure, with townships at their fringe by law
for ideological reasons. Economic forces keep the
squatters of Nairobi and Lima in a similarly
marginal position. The effects of the lack of a
planning system and the way that political groups
try to gain advantage from the poverty (and the
hope of escaping it) are examined in the Lagos
case study (Box 21.4).
CASE STUDIES: THE KEY ISSUES
This section highlights the key issues that this
discussion and the case studies have revealed.
1
The way the urban fringe works (in the private
and public sectors) reflects the wider
economy and society of the country. If
nationally individuals' rights, planning or
corruption are prominent features of public
life, then they will also be driving forces in
how the urban fringe works.
2
Since these national traits will change over
time and be more dominant in some areas
than others, so the exact characteristics of the
