Geography Reference
In-Depth Information
Chapter 6
Sustainable City Policies
Wayne KD Davies
Sustainability is genuinely revolutionary, striking at all aspects
of our society, our social purpose, and our future life styles.
Sustainability seeks to unite the planet and human family in one
supportive and inextricable embrace.
O'Riordan 2004, p. 118
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Introduction
The rapid growth of interest in the sustainability of society since the late 1980s
described in the previous chapter has led to many new policies designed to reduce
the negative externalities of settlements, especially waste and pollution, and their
over-consumption of fossil energy and other resources, since many of the biggest
problems come from these sources. The major background issues and problems
associated with defining and achieving greater sustainability, and the ways that
some places lag behind on various sustainability measures, have been described in
the previous chapter. Many of the policies discussed involve state policy but since
the 2008 financial and economic crisis, many national governments—although not
all—have been reluctant to pursue comprehensive sustainable policies, while it has
proved difficult to find international agreement to co-ordinate or stimulate new ef-
forts. Increasingly, therefore, it is left to individuals, developers and municipalities
to create and implement policies designed to increase sustainability. Some have
adopted sectoral policies designed to reduce waste and recycle noxious outputs
into useable resources, others have focused on innovative sustainable area develop-
ments, sometimes using New Urbanism concepts, but usually without reference to
this movement. This chapter reviews the various sustainable policies that are being
applied at a local or urban level. First is the issue of reduction and re-cycling. Second
is the way that sustainability is being practiced at several different scales: in build-
ing construction and transport; at a community level in both new and revitalized
