Chinese Urban Development
As China continues to grow and prosper, development of proper planning techniques are often neglected and put off to the side for more urgent needs of the population. Growing cities such as Beijing are always under fire for their growing use of resources and massive amounts of pollution among its citizenry. Problems stemming from untreated sewage, a population that’s soaring, and the environmental damage currently underway presents itself into a unique challenge for urban planners. With birthrates as high as it is now, urban planners need to take into consideration the future of their country and how development needs to be catered to plan for a more sustainable urban landscape.
Under the new plan, designers have created a concept where they put the pressure of infrastructure not on the outside of the community but utilize a containment type of planning where everything needed is generated within the neighborhood without needing to use resources (i.e. land, power, etc) outside of the city. This type of planning not only promotes energy conservation and water efficiency; it also creates an energy efficient layout where pedestrian walkways, cycling, and the use of public transportation are widely used. Waste is also handled within the community where wetlands and swales are going to be created within this huge 56 acre development project.
This is a huge undertaking from China where their “superblock” model relies heavily on outside infrastructure to handle its waste and energy production. These “superblocks” are very typical around China and as many as 11 of these supersized “superblocks” are built yearly to account for over 11 million units per year. The impact of these “superblocks” is stacking against Chinese officials, where they estimate that their environmental damage and sustainability efforts are often close to impossible to achieve in these designs.
The United States and urban planners across the country should note this grand experiment in China. To develop for the masses, energy, pollution, and consumption needs to be planned meticulously and scientifically to reduce the impact on the environment.