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Overcoming the Challenges of Secondary Cities Development 115Green-City DevelopmentMany cities are moving towards the introduction of sustainable development policiesthat focus on the use of cleaner energy, cleaner production, industrial ecology, recycling,increasing the density of cities and city tree-planting schemes. This is a significantchallenge for secondary cities in developing economies, which have no funds or capacityto support green-city development. If cities are to become even more sustainable thenthey must become greener in the way they approach the use of resources, urban design,the amount of energy, water and other non-renewable resources. Urban governmentswould need to commit to these policy changes and practices and provide private-sectorincentives to move away from less-sustainable forms of urban development. Siemensproduces a useful green cities index (EIU, 2011), which is a useful guide to green-cityperformance, with several good examples of best practice.Rehabilitation of Urban EcosystemsMany secondary cities have come to realize the importance of cleaning up the urbanecosystems to make them more liveable places. Studies of best-practice environmental-improvementmanagement projects, such as the Liaodong Peninsula revitalizingrustbelt industries, in north-east China and Curitiba, Brazil, demonstrate the valueof environmental restoration works leading to substantial reduction in pollution andimprovements to water quality and public health. Integrated decision-making, sharinginformation between agencies and engaging communities together with strong politicalcommitment to environmental management were key factors in the improvements tothe Pra Sae River for the secondary city of Muang Klaeng, Thailand (Chamniern, 2006).Provision of Basic Infrastructure and Services to Urban PoorCommunitiesBy far the most vulnerable urban residents to negative environmental impacts, naturaldisasters and climate change are the urban poor who live in communities withoutaccess to clean water, basic sanitation, storm-water drainage and solid-waste management.Many of these communities are on the urban periphery and are more likely tobe in areas of higher risk to flooding or landslides. Areas suffering most from negativeenvironmental impacts should be targeted by governments as well as their donorpartners for the provision of the most basic infrastructure and services, but sadly this isnot the case. While cities across all developing regions are replete with multiple, mostlydonor-driven, projects focused on climate change and carbon emissions – many givinglip service to the urban poor being the most vulnerable – almost none actually addressthe simple remedies to this vulnerability, which is to provide these communities withbasic infrastructure and services. This is an opportunity for CA as a priority in itsprogrammes to create cities without slums.