cities

Open spaces
Ecological and social open spaces are important aspects of a sustainable city. Traditionally, open spaces
are seen as the green spaces and parks within a city, yet open spaces can range from sports fields, highly
landscaped and altered spaces, and public parks. Within a city’s land-use planning, streets (walkways),
urban squares and institutional areas are not always defined as urban open space, but are a critical part
of the open space network (along with social and ecological spaces). The open space network is often
poorly planned and not adequately maintained. Informal settlement areas, in particular, often do not
have any shared public spaces. Yet, the link between open space planning, urban densities and land-use
planning is important in creating a sustainable city. Public spaces and land create a sense of community,
and facilitate social and economic development and community revitalisation.
While large public green spaces are often highly valued, and most cities have a Metropolitan Open
Space System (MOSS) that includes a spatial plan for prioritising and planning for public spaces. For
example, eThekwini uses its MOSS (the Durban MOSS or D’MOSS) to connect the public, private and
tribal open spaces (including natural and transformed spaces) within the metropolitan area. The
D’MOSS is integrated into the local planning schemes, and environmental areas covered by the
D’MOSS may not be developed unless approval is given by the Environmental Management
Department. In cases where development is approved, significant controls are imposed, such as the
use of environmental or conservation servitudes. The aim is to ensure that the site’s ecosystem is
protected and not adversely affected by development activities.
Coasts
The National Environmental Management: Integrated Coastal Management Act (No. 24 of 2008) was
a major paradigm shift for coastal management in South Africa, particularly for local government
(Celliers et al., 2009). The Act recognises that cities are responsible for various spatial aspects of
coasts and must develop coastal management plans, which are integrated into land-use planning
schemes. All coastal cities have an Integrated Coastal Management Plan in place, and eThekwini and
Cape Town have coastal setback lines (on average 10 metre contour above mean sea level), which also
support the city responses to climate change adaptation.
5
Urban growth and expansion have a significant impact on coastal zones and their resources, which are
valuable for many different sectors, including mining, fisheries, forestry and tourism. The demand is
increasing for non-consumptive tourism, such as use of beaches (sun-bathing, swimming and
picnicking), recreational fishing, boat-based whale watching, shark-cage diving and filming.
Climate change is likely to affect coasts, particularly in ecological sensitive areas and where the built
environment has encroached into coastal surge areas. The coastal zone itself will be subject to sea level
rise (Breetzke et al., 2011), and the consequent flooding and coastal erosion can result in loss or damage
to coastal infrastructure (including breakwaters, roads and buildings) and ecosystem services.
SUSTAINABLE CITIES 191