APES - Chapter 25 Study Guide
Sustainable Cities
1. In order to be considered an urban area a town, village, or city would need a population of at least ___________________ people.
2. With respect to the global urban revolution, what was the range of % increase in urban population between 1850 and 2001?
3. The squatter settlement populations of most cities in developing countries
• have lower incomes than do the rural poor.
• are declining in number.
• consist of squatters living in makeshift shelters.
• get the same services as other residents.
• have access to clean water.
4. True/False:
• Children in cities have a better chance for education.
• Politicians avoid giving services to the poor because this is costly to the cities.
• Jobs are difficult to find in cities.
• Parents tend to have more children in urban areas than in rural environments.
• Politicians avoid giving services to the poor because this might attract more people.
5. True/False:
• The shift in poverty is moving rapidly from the city to the country.
• Developing countries are currently urbanizing faster than developed countries.
• Urbanization varies throughout the world but is increasing everywhere.
• The general population growth also contributes to urban growth.
• The shift in poverty is moving rapidly from the country to the city.
6. Why do people migrate to the city?
7. Urban growth that occurs in developing countries is caused by ___________________ and __________________________increases.
8. Individuals who migrate to the cities and seek employment will find
• long hours and low wages.
• dangerous machinery.
• health and retirement benefits.
• noise pollution.
• high crime rate.
9. How would you characterize Mexico City?
10. Why does Mexico City have severe air pollution?
11. Your text described all of the following actions to reduce Mexico City’s pollution except
• banning cars from a central zone.
• tax incentives to improve energy efficiency.
• phasing out unleaded gasoline.
• trucks run only on LPG.
• planting 25 million trees.
12. How many people need to populate a city in order for it to qualify as a metropolitan area?
13. What kinds of improvements have been seen in urban areas since 1920?
14. What has been the most recent shift in U.S. internal human populations?
15. List the three models of urban spatial structure.
16. Why are the cities of today not self-sustaining?
17. Which is not an environmental benefit of urbanization?
• People have better access to environmental information.
• Recycling is more economically feasible.
• Cities are self-sustaining.
• Concentrating people preserves biodiversity.
• Birth rates are lower.
18. Names some ways in which vegetation can improve the quality of life in urban areas.
19. High quality produce in urban areas can be improved by all of the following means except
• composting cafeteria food wastes.
• establishing communal gardens.
• establishing links to nearby farmers’ markets.
• efficient community pesticide spraying programs.
20. From the following list which water problems is least likely to be faced by an urban area?
• water supply
• contaminated runoff
• flooding
• protection of wild streams and rivers
21. True/False:
• Floodplains are inaccessible.
• Floodplains are hard to develop.
• Floodplains are often sites of urbanization.
• Floodplains are considered poor land for development by developers.
22. Why is air pollution control lax in developing countries?
23. What has reduced water pollution in developed countries?
24. Which of the following climate conditions are generally higher in urban areas than in suburbs and rural areas?
• being warmer
• precipitation
• fog
• wind speeds
• cloud cover
25. Climate is altered in urban areas by all of the following except
• reducing tropospheric ozone.
• obstructing wind.
• absorbing heat.
• generating heat.
26. How can heat island effect be counteracted?
27. Name the most widespread occupational hazard in the U.S.
28. Which of the following are considered to be harmful effects of prolonged exposure to excessive noise?
• permanent hearing loss
• high blood pressure
• muscle tension
• migraine headaches
• higher cholesterol
• skin cancer
• gastric ulcers
• psychological disorders and irritability
29. Noise can be controlled by which of the following?
• modify noise activities and devices to produce less noise
• shield noisy devices or processes
• shield workers or other receivers from the noise
• move noisy operations or things away from people
• use anti-noise – a new technology that cancels out one noise with another
30. Urban life can benefit human health by
• an increase in access to education.
• social services.
• medical care.
• safe clean water.
31. Urban life can harm human health by
• exposure to pollution.
• exposure to noise.
• chance of physical injuries.
• exposure to disease.
32. Urban growth (expanding cities) can result in
• loss of rural land.
• loss of fertile soil.
• loss of wildlife habitats.
33. Urban sprawl is least likely to be found in
• NYC.
• Sydney, Australia.
• London, England.
• Toronto, Canada.
• Montreal, Canada.
34. True/False:
• Urban sprawl creates new natural habitats.
• Urban sprawl paves over some of the best farmland.
• Urban sprawl defines a strong sense of community.
35. In the U.S. what % of all urban transportation comes from cars?
36. With 4.6% of the population in the world, the U.S. has what % of the cars?
37. List some advantages of automobiles.
38. True/False:
• About 18 million people have been killed by motor vehicles.
• Motor vehicles are the largest source of air pollution.
• Constructing more roads reduces automobile travel and congestion.
• More American have been killed by automobiles than on battlefields in all U.S. wars.
39. In 1907 horse drawn vehicles in Manhattan rode on the average __________ as fast as motorized vehicles today.
40. True/False:
• A bicycle requires less energy than walking.
• Bike and ride commuting is catching on in the U.S.
• A bicycle is 8% less expensive to buy and operate than a car.
• Annual sales of bicycles exceed sales of cars.
• Bicycles produce no pollution.
41. True/False:
• Bicycles are inexpensive to buy.
• Bicycles are undemanding of massive supplies of natural resources.
• Bicycles are comparatively safe for pedestrians and cyclists.
• Bicycles are the most energy-efficient from of transportation except for walking.
• Bicycles are inexpensive to maintain.
42. Which of the following is true? Electric bikes
• allow cyclists to travel over hilly terrain.
• replace noisier, more highly polluting mopeds and motor scooters.
• help reduce air pollution.
• cost more than mopeds and motor scooters.
• extend the range of bike trips.
43. The development of U.S. mass transit has been discouraged by ______________________________ to build highways.
44. List some ways in which mass transit in the U.S. has been discouraged.
45. When comparing highway and air transport, rail systems
• cause more injuries and deaths.
• are less energy efficient and produce more air pollution.
• take up more land.
• are available to people who are too young, old or disabled to drive or who cannot afford to fly.
46. List some advantages of light rail systems.
47. From this list, which cities have developed successful rapid rail systems?
• Hong Kong
• Mexico City
• Houston
• Pittsburgh
• Tokyo
48. In Western Europe and Japan, new high speed regional trains have been found to be
• more polluting.
• least profitable along heavily used transportation routes.
• less energy efficient per person than cars.
• ideal for trips of 120-620 miles.
• uncomfortable and dangerous.
49. List the concerns over the operation of magnetic-levitation trains.
50. Which of the following could be considered an advantage of using buses for transportation?
• Less capital investment than heavy rail.
• Lower operating costs than heavy rail.
• Rarely get caught in traffic.
• Flexibility of transportation routes.
• A comfortable quiet ride.
51. Which of the following would not be considered a disadvantage of using buses for transportation?
• Buses are unreliable.
• Buses are noisy and uncomfortable to ride.
• Buses pollute the air.
• Buses have high capital investment and operating costs.
• Buses can get caught in traffic.
52. True/False:
• In the U.S. more land is devoted to housing than cars.
• ¾ of the land in a U.S. city is devoted to cars and their services.
• Building more roads would solve traffic congestion.
• With full-cost pricing of automobiles demand for automobiles would go down.
53. Which of the following would not be a hidden cost of automobiles?
• deaths from auto accidents
• air pollution
• strong military presence in Middle East
• the sticker price at the auto dealer’s location
• injuries from auto accidents
54. A corrective negative feedback loop dampening demand for autos would result from all following strategies except
• higher parking fees
• toll charges on roads
• building more roads
• pollution emission fees
55. Which of the following strategies would not help developing countries avoid the “car trap”?
• providing city-wide paths for bicycling and walking
• investing in public transit systems
• subsidizing ecocar development
• instituting full-cost gasoline pricing
56. What % of property taxes are used to support government services (i.e. schools, roads, police/fire, welfare)
57. Which of the following would discourage ecologically sound development?
• requiring environmental impact analysis for public projects
• taxing land on the basis of the economically highest potential use
• land trusts
• conservation easements
• requiring environmental impact analysis for private projects
58. Which of the following tools could be used to smooth uncontrolled growth and move toward more ecologically sound growth?
• offering conservation easements to landowners who use ecologically sound ways
• setting up land trusts to protect ecologically valuable land
• requiring environmental impact analysis for all proposed developments
59. From the following list, circle the potential problems with using geographical information system technology.
• high costs of maintaining the system
• rapid changes in technology
• high developmental costs
• taking precautions to ensure security of the data
60. Which of the following would be an appropriate method of land-use control?
• taxation of land on basis of current use
• subsidy of farmers who use marginal land that is highly susceptible to erosion
• land trusts
• conservation easements
61. True/False: Conservation easements are tax breaks to individuals who use land only for specific purposes.
62. Which of the following would indicate problems with U.S. infrastructure?
• roads needing repair
• statues being marred by acid deposition
• maintaining required public transportation
• substantial water loss in cities due to pipes that leak
63. True/False: In the current U.S. situation it is unusual to pay infrastructure bills in a period of record budget deficits. If false, make true.
64. The reason for the extremely high cost of upgrading existing U.S. roads, bridges, transit systems, water-supply systems and sewers is due to years of neglect or increased population.
65. True/False:
• Urban open space can be created by greenways.
• Urban open space can be created by greenbelts.
• Urban open space can be created by urban growth boundaries.
66. List the three types of new towns.
67. A sustainable city would do all the following except
• compost to improve soil quality.
• encourage biodiversity.
• encourage fast flow-through materials.
• use energy efficiently.
68. Which of the following would not be a strategy to make existing cities and suburbs more sustainable?
• offering alternative forms of transportation to the auto
• zoning for larger lots with more lawns
• cluster-housing
• developing a town center
69. Which of the following does not characterize Tapiola, Finland?
• greenbelts
• shopping areas external to the city
• a social center in each neighborhood
• open space and recreation areas
70. The city of Chattanooga in Tennessee has accomplished which of the following?
• cleaning up superfund sites in South Chattanooga
• attracting zero emissions industries to relocate
• launching a recycling program
• replacing diesel buses with electric buses
71. David Orr believes a good ecological design would not include which of the following?
• efficient use of resources
• right scale
• complexity
• a close fit between means and ends