Sin in Suburbia
Comparative analysis of the metropolitan area footprints of Sydney and Hong Kong. (Via Google Maps, edited by Chan, 2014).
Sydney is a beautiful city. Of this I have no doubts. Indeed this city has been blessed with an endless expanse of blue skies and golden shorelines running from its northern shores to its southern reaches. But for me, this city also has a dark secret. Within a city of 3.6 million people, is a metropolitan area over twice the size of Hong Kong, a city of 7 million people. The desire for backyards, for individual homes and for large gardens is in my opinion this city’s single largest problem to achieving sustainability. There is great sin in developing suburbia.
As recently as January, it was noted that the New South Wales government had “rezoned land in greenfield areas to accommodate more than 44,000 homes” (McKenny, 2014), mostly along the city’s fringe areas. Exacerbating urban sprawl in a city which, I have highlighted in a previous post (Sense & Sensibility, 6th April 2014), has one of the worst performing and least integrated public transport systems is not a pathway to achieving carbon neutrality. Urban critic Prof. Sharon Beder highlighted as early as in 2001 that Sydney’s urban sprawl “involves additional motor vehicle travel to work and to community facilities” (Beder, 2001), indicating that as our city grows in length and breath, so too do our carbon emissions.
Dense perhaps, but they are expansive houses considering each home is only for one family.
Victoria Street, Kings Cross, Sydney. (Chan, 2012).
Furthermore, as we expand out into the city’s delicate edge between national parklands and urban housing, it is important to note the many impacts on “food basins and environmentally sensitive fringe areas” (Wallace, 2010). There is some irony in the fact that, in our attempts to become closer to and interact more with nature, we are actually increasing the threat to species preservation and damaging the natural environment, encroaching on what was once ecologically balanced wildlife reserves (Beder, 2001). The growth of Sydney therefore cannot be sought through simply rezoning our fringes for new housing and ignoring the fact that our metropolitan areas are severely suburban.
Urbanisation does not mean the end of parklands, carefully designed cities can offer the ideal balance between density and greenery. (Chan, 2014).
While I am not an advocate for simple re-densification via massive displacement and destruction of Sydney’s historic fabrics, I see merit in increasing density within the inner suburban areas and indeed, areas which have good access to public transportation. My sincere hope is that projects such as Green Square and the new Kingsford-Circular Quay Light Rail link will provide these areas with an opportunity for urbanisation, allowing Sydney to reduce its severe oil addiction and dependence on cars. We may strive for individual buildings which are sustainable, but if our urban fabric does not seek to help us in that cause, then our cities will remain as they are now: sprawling, inefficient and unsustainable.
References
Sharon Beder. “Population and Environment in Australia.” (2001). Retrieved 30 April 2014 from:
http://www.uow.edu.au/~sharonb/STS300/limits/studies/urbanprobs.html
Leesha McKenny. “Land releases on Sydney’s fringe spark fears of urban sprawl.” (6 January 2014). Retrieved 30 April 2014 from: http://www.smh.com.au/nsw/land-releases-on-sydneys-fringe-spark-fears-of-urban-sprawl-20140105-30bwd.html
Anthony Wallace. “Development Strategies for Sustainable Growth – Urban Sprawl.” (2010). Retrieved 30 April 2014 from: http://www.gmat.unsw.edu.au/currentstudents/ug/projects/Wallace/urban%20sprawl.html