Has the development of a New Urbanist community affected the physical activity levels of residents in surrounding neighborhoods?

Study Aims. The neighborhood environment has been shown to influence physical activity levels, but little is known about how far-reaching these effects are. This study sought to determine whether or not the development of a New Urbanist community in Austin, Texas affected the physical activity levels of residents in surrounding neighborhoods. The results were stratified by demographic characteristics, residential distance from the New Urbanist community, and type of physical activity to determine if any observed changes varied by these factors.^ Methods. Self-report questionnaires were mailed to a random sample of households located within one mile of the New Urbanist development. The questionnaire included questions about physical activity behaviors before and after the community was constructed in 2006. Changes in reported levels of physical activity between the two time points were examined.^ Results. The prevalence and average minutes per week of total physical activity did not change. Significant increases in the frequency and quantity of moderate-intensity leisure-time physical activity were observed. The amount of time spent walking and biking for recreation outside of the neighborhood increased significantly among those living close to Mueller. The weekly time spent in vigorous-intensity activity increased significantly, especially among those living closer to Mueller. There were significant decreases in the prevalence of and time spent walking for transport. The use of Mueller parks and trails was highest among participants living close to Mueller.^ Conclusions. The nearby Mueller development does not appear to have encouraged sedentary members of the surrounding population to become physically active, but might be associated with increased weekly physical activity among those who were already active. The increase in vigorous-intensity physical activity and recreational walking/biking outside of the neighborhood among those subjects living closer to Mueller may be attributed to the use of Mueller parks and trails, which was also considerably higher among this group. People may be substituting the time they spent walking for transport before the Mueller development with moderate-intensity leisure-time physical activity. Future research should seek to identify barriers that may be preventing more nearby residents from using Mueller facilities for physical activity. ^

El territorio en el sistema agroalimentario: el tramo medio del valle del Duero 1900-2015

La lectura histórica del territorio en relación con el sistema agroalimentario aporta elementos claves para reconstruir el sistema territorial, aprovechando la oportunidad que ofrece un renovado interés por la alimentación local y sostenible. El análisis histórico transdisciplinar incorpora variables espaciales, económicas, energéticas, urbanísticas, agronómicas y nutricionales y se centra en el tramo medio del valle del Duero (Castilla y León, España). Se trata de un territorio tradicionalmente agrícola, donde un producto de la tierra -el vino- es motor de innovación y ha transformado paisajes y estructuras. Aún así, se enfrenta a un desarrollo desigual e ilustra las contradicciones del mundo rural en un contexto alimentario globalizado. El análisis de la región desde 1900 permite constatar la relación entre la organización del territorio, el sistema agroalimentario, y cada una de las etapas nutricionales: a) la superación de la desnutrición está asociada a una agricultura familiar y al territorio de proximidad, que persiste en la zona hasta 1950; b) el modelo de consumo de masas y sobrealimentación, se basa en una agricultura industrializada y un territorio polarizado ligado al desarrollismo, que se extiende hasta 1985; c) finalmente, el modelo de consumo segmentado se apoya en una agricultura terciarizada y un territorio de enclaves en un contexto de globalización, que dura hasta nuestros días. En la última fase aparecen nuevos modelos alternativos de reconstrucción territorial con sistemas emergentes que reconectan campo y ciudad, consumo y producción desde sistemas de alimentación sostenible. Conviven dos tendencias: una hacia la jerarquización y el productivismo tecnificado y otra hacia la multifuncionalidad y la recampesinización que se reapropia de las innovaciones técnicas. La adaptación a las condiciones locales y aprovechar los recursos endógenos son elementos clave de sostenibilidad ambiental y social. Incorporar la alimentación en la planificación urbana y territorial desde una perspectiva agroecológica reduciría la insostenibilidad del sistema alimentario. Las propuestas de ordenación han de tener en cuenta la tipología de municipios, sus interrelaciones, las características agrológicas y productivas, la relación del muncipcon los núcleos de referencia y con las poblaciones que concentran las necesidades de alimentación. Se debe considerar asimismo la disponiblidad de infraestructuras, de equipamientos y de capital humano y relacional para fijar cadena de valor local. La ordenación urbanística cuenta ya con mecanismos como la clasificación del suelo, la regulación de usos y el diseño de redes de equipamientos que inciden sobre la autonomía de los sistema de alimentación locales y permiten fomentar la biodiversidad y las variedades locales. Son mecanismos insuficientemente aprovechados. Una adecuada utilización de los instrumentos de ordenación existentes, junto con el desarrollo de otros nuevos mejorarían de forma significativa la resiliencia de los sistemas agroalimentarios locales. ABSTRACT The historical review of the relationship between territory and agrifood system provides key lessons to help rebuild the territorial fabric, seizing the opportunity offered by a renewed interest in local and sustainable food. The historical transdisciplinary analysis spans spatial, economic, energy, agronomic and nutritional variables, focuses on the middle reaches of the Douro valley (Castilla y Leon, Spain). This a traditionally agricultural region, which has managed to turn a land product – the wine– into an engine of innovation which has transformed landscapes and structures. Even so, it faces the challenges of uneven development and illustrates the contradictions of the rural world in a globalized context. After the analysis of the evolution of the region since 1900, it can be concluded that the territory has been organized over time according to three models of food system that are in turn linked to different nutritional stages: a) the nutritional stage of overcoming malnutrition is related to family agriculture and a territory of proximity, which persists in the studied area until 1950; b) the model of mass consumption and overeating, was built on an industrialized agriculture and a polarized territory with unhindered development, which runs until 1985; c) and, finally, the model of consumer segmentation associated with terciarized agriculture and enclave territories in the context of globalization, which lasts until present time. During this last stage new alternative models of small-scale territorial reconstruction appear, linked to emerging systems that, based on sustainable food systems, reconnect city and countryside, consumption and production. Actually two trends coexist: one towards hierarchisation and tech-based productivism, and another one towards multifunctionality and peasantization that reappropriates technical innovations. The adaptation to local conditions taking advantage of local resources is a key element of environmental and social sustainability. Integrating food into urban and regional planning from an agroecological perspective would help reduce the current unsustainability of the food system. Planning proposals for municipalities need to consider their typology, agrological characteristics, productive capacity, links to other municipalities, proximity to reference nodes and population concentrations with food demands that need to be met. Availability of infrastructure, facilities, as well as human and relational capital to establish and reinforce local value chains is another aspect to consider in planning proposals. Spatial and urban planning are already equipped with mechanisms, such as land classification and the design of facilities’ networks, that affect the autonomy and stability of local food systems and can support biodiversity and adoption of local varieties. We are, however, missing opportunities. An adequate use of existing planning tools and the development of new ones could significantly improve the resilience of local agrifood systems.

EIA-RIMA insuficiente como avaliação de impactos ambientais enquanto busca de sustentabilidade urbana: o caso de São Sebastião

O presente trabalho comprova que o atual instrumento EIA-RIMA - Estudo de Impacto Ambiental e seu respectivo Relatório de Impacto Ambiental, é insuficiente enquanto busca de sustentabilidade urbana no Litoral Norte do Estado de São Paulo, especificamente no município de São Sebastião. O método de analise dos EIA-RIMA sempre enfatizam os ganhos econômicos e atenuam os impactos negativos, apesar das fragilidades naturais, estruturais e restrições legais incidentes. A tese comprova que os instrumentos utilizados no âmbito do processo de licenciamento ambiental dos empreendimentos, como a ampliação do porto comercial de São Sebastião, estão pouco comprometidos com o real desenvolvimento sustentável da cidade e região. As especificidades geográficas, sobretudo as facilidades de interface do território terrestre com o marítimo, proporcionadas pelas características naturais do Canal de São Sebastião, sempre ofereceram condições privilegiadas para o abrigo de embarcações, característica decisiva na escolha do lugar como cidade portuária, vinculada aos mais importantes ciclos econômicos do país. Agora, em 2015, está prestes a entrar em um novo ciclo, principalmente com a ampliação do porto comercial, duplicação da rodovia dos Tamoios e da SP-055 e a exploração da camada pré-sal na Bacia de Santos. A região já apresenta todos os problemas de uma ocupação acelerada em um território ambientalmente frágil, localizado em estreita faixa litorânea, composta de um lado pela Serra do Mar e do outro pelo Oceano Atlântico. Se não houver um planejamento urbano e regional que considere as características e capacidade de suporte deste território, a zona costeira entrará em colapso. Saber dosar o uso de suas potencialidades sem esgotá-las será o desafio de nossa geração. Os Estudos de Impactos Ambientais precisam ser aperfeiçoados para que ações mitigadoras alcancem muito mais do que o mínimo, alinhadas a investimentos, tecnologias inovadoras, infraestruturas necessárias e obrigatórias que sejam pensadas de maneira conjunta e cumulativa nas diversas esferas do poder, com efetiva participação pública, caso contrário, o crescente interesse econômico e político tenderá à destruição irreversível do patrimônio histórico e natural deste território. O EIA está se transformando em um poderoso instrumento político de ordenamento territorial que acaba por definir critérios e parâmetros de uso e ocupação, desempenhando uma função que não lhe compete, além de aprofundar o desencontro entre uma vida urbana de qualidade e um ambiente equilibrado em nome do desenvolvimento econômico e a serviço dos interesses privados.

Troubled Waters Ahead: An Evaluation of Shoreline Land Use Policies for Water Quality Protection in Renfrew County, Ontario

Increases in the rate and extent of lakeshore development along inland lakes in Ontario are adversely impacting water quality. Despite growing awareness, there is a lack of knowledge about the land use policies and tools in place to protect inland lakes in rural Ontario. This research evaluated official plans for water quality protection policies for inland lakes in the County of Renfrew, Ontario to address this gap. The findings suggest that municipalities implicitly link water quality to land use planning policy and fail to incorporate innovative methods to protect water quality.

The North First Street revitalization project /

"Fall 1993."

Zoning problems; supplementary statistical report for the Illinois Zoning Laws Study Commission,

Includes bibliographical references.

Some policy implications of spatial variations in fuel consumption by manufacturing activities /

Paper presented at the Western Economics Association meetings, June 26, 1976.

Historic preservation is "creating the future": more student comments on historic preservation.

Comments of students following field trips to various places in Illinois as part of a seminar on Planning for historic preservation taught by Prof. Lachlan F. Blair.

Groundwater protection by local government /

Includes index.

Toward the development of a county employment projection system for the State of Illinois : a report to the Illinois Environmental Protection Agency, Division of Air Pollution Control /

Cover title: Towards the development of a county employment projection system for the state of Illinois.

Fragmented coherence: Solid waste management in Colombo

Notwithstanding the increasingly fragmented organizational relationships within Colombo's urban governance system, the cooperative nature of stakeholder relationships lends a high level of coherence to the overall system. Since 1995, Colombo's solid waste management system has been characterized by the increased role of the private sector, community-based organizations and NGOs. Whilst the increasingly fragmented nature of this system exhibits some deeply ingrained problems, there are also a number of positives associated with the increased role of civil society actors and, in particular, the informal sector. Reforming regulatory frameworks so as to integrate some of the social norms that are integral to the lives of the majority of urban residents will contribute to regulatory frameworks being considerably more enforceable than is currently the case. Such reform requires that institutional and regulatory frameworks need to be flexible enough to adapt to the changing social, political and economic context. In the Colombo case, effective cooperation between public sector and civil society stakeholders illustrates that adaptive institutional arrangements grounded in pragmatism are feasible. The challenge that arises is to translate these institutional arrangements into adaptive regulatory frameworks - something that would require a significant mind shift on the part of planners and urban managers.

Collaborative decision-making processes for maintaining biodiversity: Two Australian case studies

There have been many models developed by scientists to assist decision-makers in making socio-economic and environmental decisions. It is now recognised that there is a shift in the dominant paradigm to making decisions with stakeholders, rather than making decisions for stakeholders. Our paper investigates two case studies where group model building has been undertaken for maintaining biodiversity in Australia. The first case study focuses on preservation and management of green spaces and biodiversity in metropolitan Melbourne under the umbrella of the Melbourne 2030 planning strategy. A geographical information system is used to collate a number of spatial datasets encompassing a range of cultural and natural assets data layers including: existing open spaces, waterways, threatened fauna and flora, ecological vegetation covers, registered cultural heritage sites, and existing land parcel zoning. Group model building is incorporated into the study through eliciting weightings and ratings of importance for each datasets from urban planners to formulate different urban green system scenarios. The second case study focuses on modelling ecoregions from spatial datasets for the state of Queensland. The modelling combines collaborative expert knowledge and a vast amount of environmental data to build biogeographical classifications of regions. An information elicitation process is used to capture expert knowledge of ecoregions as geographical descriptions, and to transform this into prior probability distributions that characterise regions in terms of environmental variables. This prior information is combined with measured data on the environmental variables within a Bayesian modelling technique to produce the final classified regions. We describe how linked views between descriptive information, mapping and statistical plots are used to decide upon representative regions that satisfy a number of criteria for biodiversity and conservation. This paper discusses the advantages and problems encountered when undertaking group model building. Future research will extend the group model building approach to include interested individuals and community groups.