SUBURBAN SPRAWL

Sprawl is low-density development beyond key city centers of employment and service. It separates the areas of work from living areas; and in some cases separates shopping areas, schools, and recreation areas from one another. This separation causes people to travel more to accomplish the same tasks (working, going to school, attending church, playing sports) as in years past, but increases travel time, gasoline, air pollution and traffic congestion. The result on our lives is simple: STRESS. The result on the surrounding environment is even worse, as animals and plants give up their habitats so that people can have different zones in which to live, work, and play.

Some of the consequences of suburban sprawl are:
1. Air and water pollution
2. Traffic congestion, resulting in increased commute times
3. Loss of farmland, fields, forests, and wetlands
4. Increased flooding
5. Increased taxes to pay for new schools, new sewage systems, new police and fire departments, etc.
6. Destruction of downtown commerce

Between 1970 and 1990, almost 20 million acres of rural land were developed nationwide. In addition, 70% of prime farmland is now directly in the path of rapid development and in danger of being lost. Texas alone lost nearly a half million acres of farmland from 1982 to 1992. Sprawl has also meant the loss of many historic sites and scenic areas in both cities and countryside. Developers whose main concern is making a profit give little regard to the inherent aesthetic beauty of either a natural or man-made environment.

There are several solutions to the problem of suburban sprawl, but all of them require cooperation among citizens, government agencies, and business people. The solutions listed below are examples of the types of issues currently being discussed across the country as ways to accommodate more people without harming the environment.

• Land purchase by communities and non-profit organizations
• Establishment of urban growth boundaries, which are lines that separate urban areas from the surrounding open land
• Revitalization of existing towns and cities
• Voter approval of open-space revenues to preserve lands
• Mobilization of grassroots efforts to have a greater voice in decision-making
• Agricultural zoning, which allows development on lots of minimum size
• Clustering, which allows the same number of lots on a given parcel of land, but requires that they be clustered in one part of the lot so that sensitive areas are still protected.
• Conservation easements, when land owners donate their development
  rights to environmental organizations
• Tax-base sharing, which reduces the competition for new development.

As land space for new communities dwindles, planners are forced to be creative about land use when considering new developments. It is no longer acceptable for suburbs to be built wherever there is an open piece of land; environmental concerns must take precedence. As more and more people move out to the suburbs, more natural land area is covered by roads, parking lots, and foundations for houses and buildings. This loss of land leads to flooding problems, as snow and rain cannot be absorbed. Another damaging effect of sprawl is that the runoff from streets and farms can carry pollutants into the groundwater and bodies of water, thus contaminating habitats and reducing water quality.