The Problems With Urban Sprawl Urban sprawl, the uncontrolled expansion of urban areas, has slowed down by nine percent since the 1990’s (Borenstein). Urban sprawl was steadily increasing starting in 1920 due to new street construction and it peaked in 1994. Despite the belief that urban sprawl is the result of a healthy economic and social process, urban sprawl needs to be restricted and eventually stopped. Urban sprawl is rapidly expanding, destroying wildlife, and causing a rise in pollution and disease. Urban sprawl is still expanding. Although sprawl has slowed down by 9% since its peak in the 1990’s urban sprawl is still expanding everywhere, and especially close to home. Sprawl is evident in Farmington, the city’s population of 12,000
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Research has shown that because suburban areas are becoming more crowded traffic is becoming a bigger problem. This traffic in suburban areas leads to more harmful gases being emitted in these suburbs, “Sprawl contributes to more driving and more pollution, especially heat trapping gases” (Borenstein). Air pollution, along with sedentary, car-dominated lifestyles are very harmful to human beings and has been know to increase chances of hypertension, arthritis, headaches, breathing difficulties, and other chronic health problems (Wilson). Because of these numerous health problems that can come along with living in the suburbs, people who live in them are known to not be as health and their city dwelling counterparts, “Findings suggest that an adult who lives in a more sprawling urban area will have a health profile similar to someone four years older who lives in a more compact city” (Wilson). Health problems, along with the loss of farmland and the fact that researchers have observed that urban sprawl is still expanding, should be more than enough reason to stop sprawl.
Despite the belief that urban sprawl is the result of a healthy economic and social process, urban sprawl needs to be restricted and eventually stopped. Urban sprawl is destroying wildlife, rapidly expanding, and causing a rise in pollution and disease. If people keep in mind all these detrimental effects of urban sprawl more people will want to start taking a stand against it and get laws and such passed to help slow, and stop sprawl. We all have to work together and acknowledge this huge problem our country, and the world, is facing and we might be able to stop these effects before it is too
Research has shown that because suburban areas are becoming more crowded traffic is becoming a bigger problem. This traffic in suburban areas leads to more harmful gases being emitted in these suburbs, “Sprawl contributes to more driving and more pollution, especially heat trapping gases” (Borenstein). Air pollution, along with sedentary, car-dominated lifestyles are very harmful to human beings and has been know to increase chances of hypertension, arthritis, headaches, breathing difficulties, and other chronic health problems (Wilson). Because of these numerous health problems that can come along with living in the suburbs, people who live in them are known to not be as health and their city dwelling counterparts, “Findings suggest that an adult who lives in a more sprawling urban area will have a health profile similar to someone four years older who lives in a more compact city” (Wilson). Health problems, along with the loss of farmland and the fact that researchers have observed that urban sprawl is still expanding, should be more than enough reason to stop sprawl.
Despite the belief that urban sprawl is the result of a healthy economic and social process, urban sprawl needs to be restricted and eventually stopped. Urban sprawl is destroying wildlife, rapidly expanding, and causing a rise in pollution and disease. If people keep in mind all these detrimental effects of urban sprawl more people will want to start taking a stand against it and get laws and such passed to help slow, and stop sprawl. We all have to work together and acknowledge this huge problem our country, and the world, is facing and we might be able to stop these effects before it is too