Stage 5 Changing Places

Major cities in the world should take a deeper look into controlling pollution problems in their cities.  At some point, these places will no longer attract people to live in these areas, thus lowering the impact that these industries may have.  But as long as people are still living here by the millions and there is tourism, and buisness is booming, nothing will be done about the issue.

Summer reading KQ4: pollution, smog, megacity, sustainability

Pollution is a huge issue facing both Hong Kong, and the rest of China in general. So far the government  has done little to actually combat the problem. The Chinese governments response has been to pretend that the problem does not really exist. A fake skyline can just erase the problem. In reality dealing with the pollution issue would actually help the Chinese economy. When people seek to go on a vacation, they are seeking a destination that is clean and safe. Who wants to visit a place were, you have to ware a mask to prevent the breathing in of armful chemicals. A cleaner less polluted china would lead to an expanded tourism industry.

This picture taken by a photographer with the perfect lighting is brilliant....that is, if you're into deceiving people that the pollution from these power plants stays away from the higher class businesses and residences.  Looking at this picture you see the smoke coming from the power plant in China far in the distance creating a yellowish hue that could be thought to be from the sun.  Then closer in the scene we see what appears to be businesses and potentially some peoples homes.  This area is in a totally different color from the yellow we see to be associated with the pollution from the power plant.  Here we see a blue, commonly associated with clean water, covering the entirety of this area.  With the difference in colors these places seem to be as different as possible from each other.  In reality though, smog doesn't just stay in one area of the city where it is produced, but spreads throughout the entirety of a city.  There are no restraints on where the pollution can and can't be, it is free flowing into communities where people work and live.  If you're trying to sell a house here this picture wouldn't be a bad idea to use, although most natives aren't oblivious to what is really going on.

This picture is interesting to say the least, it depicts two different cities, even though it is the same city. the picture does a good job at showing the major problem that pollution is causing to Beijing. While showing a smog surrounded city behind a clean, yet clouded looking city, drives this point of pollution home and raises the question is putting large factories and toxic fumes in the air, more important than the well being of your citizens?

To be a megacity like this, you have to conform to urbanization. There is no possible way to have such a populated and crowed city with farmlands around. This is a place of business yet residential areas, it also is where the marketplaces are and where kids go to school. Megacities need to be a part of an urban society in order for them to stay afloat.

This is a great introduction to the demographic explosion of the slums within megacities.  This is applicable to many themes within geography.   

I can't image or even relate to the experience of living in a place like this. With rivers polluted right outside your house. And those rivers are what people bathe in and wash their clothes. I can't imagine not being able to access clean drinking water or lacking food. The people in Dhaka endure so much their whole lives, a good percentage of them will always live in poverty.

Dhaka is the fastest growing city in the world, as rich and poor people move to the city everyday. So many poor people are moving here due to the fact there is no other place worth living in Bangladesh. The city is facing many problems, such as lack of traffic signals, minimal clean drinking water for residents and horrible housing for many people. However, some feel the city’s slums offer the best chance for an improved life.   

There is a lot of poverty and pollution in Dhaka. The demands for energy and water are high in Dhaka as well. I personally don't see how these people and migrants can live in such a polluted and dirty place and the reason why I can't imagine living in such a place is because I never have. I'm lucky enough to not experience poverty and I greatly appreciate  my life and home. Hopefully things improve in Dhaka and places like Dhaka. Hopefully there will be less pollution and poverty in the future any where in the world.

This seems to be a dangerous circle that potentially has south Asia in a lot of trouble in the foreseeable future.  There is smog in the air from everything that is burned, causing the sun to be blocked and temperatures to drop, which in turn causes people to become cold and burn more wood, hay and cow pies.  This vicious circle needs to be fixed.  However right now is going to be the hardest time to do that.  In the winter it is harder for the smog to go up into the atmosphere leaving the blanket of smog.  It is also colder in the winter months leading to people to burn products to keep themselves warm.  This has however has already created problems especially with the elderly and young children.  With all the smog in the air it has caused respiratory infections leading to the deaths of people.  Not seeing this as a major issue is wrong.  Something needs to be done, it could be the government regulating what people burn to make sure that the smog is not getting to be too out of hand.  People's well being is not the only thing that this smog is hurting.  Cities literally have to shut down because people can't go anywhere, the smog creates a zero or very little visibility stopping traffic, trains, and planes.  Without people being able to get anywhere there is no way of people going to work causing places to have to close down either early or entirely for the day.  The smog is shedding a negative light not only on the environment but the economy and well being of the people around.

South Asia's extremely massive population comes at the expense of heavy energy consumption. In turn it leads to pollution cause by the burning of fossil fuels in the area, and this pollution has been getting worse and worse to a point where its affecting the daily lives of those in South Asia. This pollution has been causing smog to become more prevalent as the days go on. The burning of fossil fuels through motor vehicles and manufacturing plants has taken its toll on the environment in an extremely negative way. A switch to green energy would help fight this issue, although no plans have yet been set in stone to remove the consumption of oil

Very cool!

This picture taken by a photographer with the perfect lighting is brilliant....that is, if you're into deceiving people that the pollution from these power plants stays away from the higher class businesses and residences.  Looking at this picture you see the smoke coming from the power plant in China far in the distance creating a yellowish hue that could be thought to be from the sun.  Then closer in the scene we see what appears to be businesses and potentially some peoples homes.  This area is in a totally different color from the yellow we see to be associated with the pollution from the power plant.  Here we see a blue, commonly associated with clean water, covering the entirety of this area.  With the difference in colors these places seem to be as different as possible from each other.  In reality though, smog doesn't just stay in one area of the city where it is produced, but spreads throughout the entirety of a city.  There are no restraints on where the pollution can and can't be, it is free flowing into communities where people work and live.  If you're trying to sell a house here this picture wouldn't be a bad idea to use, although most natives aren't oblivious to what is really going on.

This picture is interesting to say the least, it depicts two different cities, even though it is the same city. the picture does a good job at showing the major problem that pollution is causing to Beijing. While showing a smog surrounded city behind a clean, yet clouded looking city, drives this point of pollution home and raises the question is putting large factories and toxic fumes in the air, more important than the well being of your citizens?

Some nice graphics on consumption levels of China, compared globally and regionally.

China's pollution problem is astronomical. Im not sure many people really understand how bad it is. China has actually began placing billboards of murals for travelers to take pictures in front of because the smog is so bad you cant see more then 20 feet. They're water ways are also so toxic that whole ecosystems are failing. Much of this is do to China's economy  depending heavily on the massive export industry, and while many of the manufactures are violating environmental protection laws government is afraid to do anything about it because the need these manufactures to run for economic purposes