(University Poznan, Poland): Urban environmental problems and ...

URBAN ENVIRONMENTAL 

PROBLEMS AND 

ENVIRONMENTAL POLICY 

ANDRZEJ MIZGAJSKI 

Shanghai 14.08.2011 

Department of Integrated Geography 

Adam Mickiewicz University in Poznań 

www.geokompleks.amu.edu.pl

Lecture purpose 

Recommendations 

for an integrated approach to 

environmental problems recognition 

and 

environmental management planning 

in urban areas of different 

development stages and culture areas 




Contents 

• Environmental problems of urban system 

in lights of input – output approach; 

• Attitudes and challenges to environmental 

management in urban areas; 

• „Drivers – Pressure – State – Impact – 

Response” as a usefull approach in 

environmental management and planning. 




Key features of urban 

environment 

• High density of human population and 

synanthropic taxons as well 

• Men-made concentration of matter and 

energy 

• Pollution of environmental elements as a side 

effect of anthropogenic metabolism 




Urban ecosystem: input-output 

approach 




Urban ecosystem metabolism – 

• INPUTS 

– Immigrants 

– Food 

– Water 

input-output approach 

– Energy supplay 

(Electric energy & Fuels) 

– Products for users 

– materials for construction 

– Industry supplay 

– Agriculture supplay 

– Others? 

• OUTPUTS 

– Emigrants 

– Manufactural products 

– Agriculture products 

– Materials for recycling 

– Waste 

– Sewage 

– Air pollutants 

– Energy emissions 

– Others? 




Environmental problems = 

troubles with urban metabolism 

control 

• Metabolism related to: 

– housing, transportation, construction, 

secondary production, primary production, 

• Challenges: 

– closing the set of fluxes into cycles; 

– recirculative economy development. 




Diverse attitudes to urban 

environment 

• BASIC APPROACH, Environment seen as 

the source of energy and natural goods; 

• REACTIVE APPROACH, Increased 

consideration about stand of environmental 

elements; 

• STRATEGIC APPROACH, Environment is 

seen on integrated way from life quality 

perspective. 




Main challenges for 

environmental management in 

urban areas 

• How to cover inhabitants demand for water, 

food, energy and other core goods - basic 

approach. 

• How to improve the quality of environmental 

elements (how to reduce air, water, soil 

pollution, noise and to improve waste 

management) - reactive approach 

• How to rich sustainable high life quality for 

inhabitants - strategic approach. 




Features of life quality 

• ENVIRONMENTAL: quality of environmental 

elements, hygienic standards of communal 

services, recreational value of environment 

• Environmental related SOCIAL issues: level of 

social sensitivity on environment, 

nature&landscape quality 

• Environmental related ECONOMIC issues: 

extension of use following policy instruments: 

respect on “polluter/user pays principle”, 

consideration on external costs and benefits, 

valuing of ecosystem services. 




DRIVERS – PRESSURE – STATE 

– IMPACT – RESPONSE: 

Usefull framework for 

comprehensive environmental 

planning/management in 

urban areas 




Elements of DPSIR interaction 

system 

• Driving forces – recognition of environment related 

social & economic development aspects; 

• Pressure – sectoral analyse of emissions from 

housing, transportation, manufacturing, agriculture 

• State – pollution - systematic monitoring of air, 

water, soil, incl. noise, radiation, waste, as well biotic 

elements of ecosystems 

• Impact – identification of direct & indirect 

consequences for nature, health, economy, social. 

• Response – stimulation of stakeholders reaction on 

the identified problems. 




DPSIR framework used by 

European Environmental Agency 

RESPONSE 

Risk assessment, cost 

benefits of action/inaction 

DRIVERS 

IMPACT 

Eco-efficiency of the 

technology and 

related systems in use 

Dose response 

indicators and 

relationships 

PRESSURES 

http://root-devel.ew.eea.europa.eu 



Risk assessment, cost 

benefits of action/inaction 

STATE 


Driving forces 

• socioeconomic status; 

• rules, low enforcement; 

• demography, social structure, social 

capital; 

• kinds of primary production, kinds of 

secondary production, transportation; 

• spatial structure; 

• Others? 




Pressure 

• Emmisions of matter into air, water and 

soil (air pollutants, sewage, waste); 

• Emissions of energy (heat, noise, 

electromagnetic fields, radiation); 

• Others? 




State 

Concentration of pollutants in environmental 

elements; 

Intensity of anthropogenic energy forms in 

environment; 

Condition of ecosystems; 

Others? 




Impact 

• direct&indirect consequences for nature, 

economy and social sphere of 

environment state and pressure on it; 

• Other? 




Response 

• Stakeholders reactions on the other 

elements of D-P-S-I-R system 




The end! 

andrzej.mizgajski@amu.edu.pl 






















Das Vorindustrielle 

Zeitalter 




Das Fruehindustrielle 

Zeitalter 




Das jetztige 

Industriezeitalter

(University Poznan, Poland): Urban environmental problems and ...

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