Book contents
- Frontmatter
- Contents
- List of contributors
- Preface
- 1 Introduction: Scope of the book and need for developing a comparative approach to the ecological study of cities and towns
- Part I Opportunities and challenges of conducting comparative studies
- Part II Ecological studies of cities and towns
- Part III Integrating science with management and planning
- 21 Structural analysis of urban landscapes for landscape management in German cities
- 22 Preservation of original natural vegetation in urban areas: an overview
- 23 Homogeneity of urban biotopes and similarity of landscape design language in former colonial cities
- 24 Tools to assess human impact on biotope resilience and biodiversity in urban planning: examples from Stockholm, Sweden
- 25 Landscape ecological analysis and assessment in an urbanising environment
- 26 Applying landscape ecological principles to a fascinating landscape: the city
- 27 A trans-disciplinary research approach providing a platform for improved urban design, quality of life and biodiverse urban ecosystems
- 28 Pattern: process metaphors for metropolitan landscapes
- 29 Valuing urban wetlands: modification, preservation and restoration
- Part IV Comments and synthesis
- References
- Index
- Plate section
25 - Landscape ecological analysis and assessment in an urbanising environment
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 04 March 2010
- Frontmatter
- Contents
- List of contributors
- Preface
- 1 Introduction: Scope of the book and need for developing a comparative approach to the ecological study of cities and towns
- Part I Opportunities and challenges of conducting comparative studies
- Part II Ecological studies of cities and towns
- Part III Integrating science with management and planning
- 21 Structural analysis of urban landscapes for landscape management in German cities
- 22 Preservation of original natural vegetation in urban areas: an overview
- 23 Homogeneity of urban biotopes and similarity of landscape design language in former colonial cities
- 24 Tools to assess human impact on biotope resilience and biodiversity in urban planning: examples from Stockholm, Sweden
- 25 Landscape ecological analysis and assessment in an urbanising environment
- 26 Applying landscape ecological principles to a fascinating landscape: the city
- 27 A trans-disciplinary research approach providing a platform for improved urban design, quality of life and biodiverse urban ecosystems
- 28 Pattern: process metaphors for metropolitan landscapes
- 29 Valuing urban wetlands: modification, preservation and restoration
- Part IV Comments and synthesis
- References
- Index
- Plate section
Summary
Introduction
Urbanisation is a dominant source of land-use change worldwide, and causes profound alterations of natural habitat as cities and towns expand. To achieve sustainable land-use development in urbanising regions, the impacts on biodiversity of urbanisation, infrastructure and other development must be considered on landscape and regional scales. This requires that important decisions are made on a strategic level in the planning process, with a systematic evaluation of environmental impacts and alternatives. However, there is a lack of knowledge of the effects of urbanisation on the natural and semi-natural habitats that support biodiversity in urbanising regions (McDonnell et al.,1997; Miller and Hobbs, 2002), and remnants of natural habitats have often been considered as reserve land for future exploitation. More recently, though, the value of natural vegetation in urban and urbanising areas has been recognised, since human settlements often are located in highly productive ecosystems, in proximity to rivers and coasts, reliable water sources, well-drained sites and high-fertility soils, which are ecosystems that also support high levels of biodiversity (Falkenmark and Chapman, 1989; Cincotta et al., 2000; Given and Meurk, 2000; Ricketts and Imhoff, 2003).
A number of political decisions have been made in Sweden and throughout Europe that emphasise nature conservation and biodiversity as important issues for sustainable development. According to the Swedish government's environmental objectives, biodiversity is to be preserved in urban areas.
- Type
- Chapter
- Information
- Ecology of Cities and TownsA Comparative Approach, pp. 439 - 455Publisher: Cambridge University PressPrint publication year: 2009
- 3
- Cited by