The Environmental Impacts of Sprawl: Emergent Themes from the Past Decade of Planning Research

Abstract

Abstract:This article reviews studies published in English language planning journals since 2001 that focus on the environmental impacts of sprawl. We organise our analysis of the reviewed literature around: (1) the conceptualisation or measurement of sprawl; (2) a comparison of research methods employed and findings with respect to four categories of environmental impacts-air, energy, land, and water; and (3) an exploration of emergent and cross-cutting themes. We hypothesise that the trend towards breaking down silos observable in other areas of planning scholarship is also reflected in the recent sprawl literature and structure our review to test this proposition. International in scope, our work demonstrates how focusing on outcomes can facilitate balanced comparisons across geographic contexts with varying rates of urbanisation and affluence. We find that the sprawl research published in planning journals over the past decade frequently engages with broader themes of resilience and justice, increasingly considers multiple environmental outcomes, and suggests a convergence in the way sprawl is studied that transcends national boundaries as well as the developing-developed country dichotomy.

Grassroots Innovation for Urban Sustainability: Comparing the Diffusion Pathways of Three Ecovillage Projects

“…The deleterious environmental consequences o f sprawl are well documented (Wilson and Chakraborty, 2013), and permanently reversing global climate trends will require (amongst other changes) that future urban development facilitate modes o f transportation other than the personal automobile (Ewing et al, 2007).…”

Effects of Urban Sprawl on Riparian Vegetation: Is Compact or Dispersed Urbanization Better for Biodiversity?

“…The growth of cities may assume different spatial patterns, which results from a joint consequence of topography, zoning law, and the geography of highways, railway lines and mass transit (McDonald, ). However, in many cases, it has assumed the form of the so‐called ‘urban sprawl’ (European Environment Agency, ; Galster et al , ; Jaeger et al , ; Wilson & Chakraborty, ). Although this pattern has been a topic of scientific research for more than 20 years, there is considerable debate about its definition and how it can be measured (Jaeger et al , ).…”

“…Urban sprawl is often criticized because of its environmental, social and economic impacts (Johnson, ; Wilson & Chakraborty, ). The main consequences of urban sprawl include greater air pollution related to the larger numbers of commuters owing to the functional and spatial separation of places for living and working (Travisi et al , ); lower water quality resulting from the increase in impervious surface (Tu et al , ); reduced diversity of species coupled with loss of habitats and ecosystem fragmentation (Miller, ); and loss of different types of land, such as arable soil, recreation areas and open spaces (Tan et al , ).…”

General Motor Holden's closure in Playford, South Australia: Analysis of the policy response and its implications for health

“…However, there were no explicit mentions of measures to mediate potential community health or social inequity caused by the economic shock of the plant closure in the policy response. Our analysis showed a distinct economic focus in both policies, reflecting prevailing norms of encouraging continued economic growth and development that, while uncontested here, are questioned elsewhere, for example in urban sustainability literature with reference to climate change, equity and health (Wilson & Chakraborty, 2013;McAllister, McCrea, & Lubell, 2014;Coffey, 2016).…”