Introduction

As the world’s population increases and more people live in urban areas, there are some real challenges ahead for city
planners and architects. The Director of the United Nations has said that “managing urban areas has become one of
the most important development challenges of the 21st century”. If we fail to build cities that are sustainable, all of our
futures are at risk.

Key facts
● Over 7.3 billion people live on Earth, with the population due to increase to a whopping 9.8 billion by 2050
(worldpopdata.org).
● Land will become increasingly expensive and limited in cities due to the increase in population.
● Many people are working towards trying to make cities more sustainable. A sustainable city uses resources to offer a good
quality of life to the people that currently live there whilst ensuring that there are enough resources available for future
generations.

How can you build a sustainable city?

Your sustainable city must include plans to produce energy, provide inhabitants with food, handle waste efficiently,
transport people and produce around the city, whilst ensuring that nature is welcomed and supported in your city and
existing ecosystems are sustained.

TASK: To research sustainable energy alternatives, ways to grow and consume food, how to handle waste efficiently and
transportation
Energy: Hydroelectric energy
People expect higher standards of living and the latest devices gobble up energy. We still use a lot of fossil fuels, like
oil, coal and gas. In the past 200 years we have used over two thirds of the world’s resources already and need to use
more renewable energy.

● What is your chosen alternative energy resource?

● How economic is your energy source? (money)
● How sustainable is it in comparison to the use of fossil fuels?
● What environmental impacts does it have? (positive or negative)
● What greenhouse gases are associated with different types of energy sources?
● Hydroelectric energy is my chosen alternative energy source, specifically, building dams to control water flow.
Dams are built in a river or any body of water, essentially it’s a barrier that splits the river in two parts; one
part of the water is increased in water level and the other part is decreased. When energy is needed, water is
released from the top of the dam and flows into a turbine, which creates energy as the turbine spins.
● My city will have 3 dams located around 2 lakes; two dams on the bigger lake and one smaller dam on the
smaller lake. The Hoover Dam can produce 4.5 billion kilowatt hours per year, which is enough to fulfil the
electrical needs of around 8 million people. Although my dam will not be this big, the three dams added
together will produce about the same amount of energy as the hoover dam. This is how it will power my city.
● As opposed to other types of energy sources, such as fossil fuels, hydroelectricity is fairly safer for the
environment. The process of burning fossil fuels (coal, oil, etc) for energy sends carbon dioxide, methane, and
nitrous oxide into the air. These are called greenhouse gases and are one of the biggest contributors to global
warming. However, hydroelectric energy does not release any of these greenhouse gases into the
atmosphere, making it safer for the environment.
● However, there are still cons to building dams in rivers. One con is that the water will flood above the dam,
submerging many ecosystems beneath the water and killing many animals in the process. Homes above the
dam will experience flooding and wet soil as well. The good thing is that as long as there are no homes or
forests or anything like that above the dam, the environmental impacts should be minimal. So
 ● Another con is that hydroelectric energy is very expensive to pay for up front, costing a lot of money to build
such high barriers with a working system in it. This money will be made up over time however, as dams rarely
need any maintenance and most can last for over 100 years. This means that less money can be spent on
fixing parts of dams.
● There are good things about building dams as well. For one, the body of water above the dam can be used for
recreational purposes in my city. It can be a boating site in the summer, a beach, or even a tourist attraction
such as Niagara Falls.
● At most, fossil fuels are able to convert 60% of energy available into electricity. However, hydropower is able
to convert 90%, which is 30% more than fossil fuels.

Food
We all need to eat but in a world with more and more people, where will it all come from? Transporting food from
far away is expensive and pollutes the environment. We also waste a lot of food; in Canada alone, about 30 % of all
food gets thrown in the bin!

● What are sustainable ways to grow and harvest food?

● Are there specific diets that may help or hinder sustainability?
● What can be done to reduce food waste?
● One way to reduce waste is by donating. In my city, every restaurant or manufacturer will donate all unfinished food to
their local homeless shelter. This way, less money (or sometimes no money at all) will be used providing food to the
homeless, since this will simply come straight from the restaurants. For example, if Tim Hortons just closed for the day
but has a lot of leftover chilli, instead of throwing it all out like before they can simply donate it and provide dinner to
those that don’t have it.
● In every neighborhood, there will be a 5 acre piece of land used to grow crops (vegetables, fruits, etc). Everyday, there
will be workers that are hired to come take care of and grow these crops organically. This means watering the crops,
fertilizing, and using crop rotation to ensure healthy growth. Crop rotation is basically growing different crops (for
example, carrots then beans) on the same piece of land and is something organic farmers do to have healthier soil and
control pests. Planting the same thing every harvest uses the same nutrients in the soil, draining it slowly and also
attracting pests that like that specific crop. With crop rotation, it improves the health of the soil overall and also scares
away the pests because the crops are constantly changing and the pests do not like this. Crop rotation is how we will
ensure that the crops are healthy and organic without using insane amounts of pesticides and harmful chemicals.
● Fertilizers are carried into the rivers and oceans by water. Once they enter the water, microorganisms begin to grow
because of the nutrients in the fertilizer. This reduces the oxygen in the water, suffocating many fish and other species.
● When someone in the neighborhood wants to buy crops, it will be available and fully packaged on that piece of land. All
they have to do is pay for it and go home. Having smaller pieces of land instead of one big land to grow crops is much
easier to manage and control.
● As for meat, it will be manufactured by farmers across my city. For example, beef farms. Beef farms are farmers that
grow cows and when the time is right, slaughter them to sell. In Ontario, there are 6,800 beef farms which creates jobs
for over 60,000 people and contributes an annual $2.8 billion to the economy. My city will be similar to this, having
different farmers across the land growing different types of meat. It will create thousands of jobs for my people and also
provide the city with meat available at different grocery stores.

Nature
We need to remember that humans are not the only living things on the planet and we need plants and animals to be able to
survive. As you plan your city remember to include green areas in your city, and help wildlife move around your city on ‘wildlife
corridors’. Wildlife Corridors are areas of planting that help the green areas in your city link up for wildlife. It may be some
plants on the edge of a road, or even people’s gardens. Flowering plants help encourage pollinators into your city; these will
help your vegetables grow and increase your crop of food. It has also been proven that if people can see nature every day, and
not just buildings, they are much happier and healthier.

Try and think of why you might need different plants and animals, this will help you make sure you have it in your city. How will
you make sure nature is encouraged in your city?

● In my city, free seeds will be available to the public in the produce section of grocery stores. These seeds include flower
seeds to increase pollination in my city, vegetable seeds to plant and grow your very own crops in your backyard, and
grass seeds so everybody can wake up in the morning, look to their backyard, and see a fresh green layer of grass. These
seeds will help encourage nature in my city, especially for people not willing to spend extra money buying seeds.
Furthermore, if every house has a clean green backyard, my city will be much healthier and the people will be happier
not only because their backyard looks pretty, but because they can enjoy their very own vegetables as well.
● There are so many benefits to growing grass that help the environment. For example, it improves air quality. Grass uses
photosynthesis, like other plants, and this means that it is able to absorb carbon dioxide and turn it into oxygen. This
makes the air in my city cleaner, and if everybody planted grass seeds in their backyards, we would have a very healthy
community. Furthermore, a lot of grass in my city can help with heavy rainfall and runoff. Because grass is able to absorb
water very well, in case of heavy rainfall or if there is a flood, a lot of the water will be absorbed into the grass. This
takes some of the risk away of flooding.
● Another way nature will be encouraged in my city is by growing trees. There will be 4 30 acre forest conservation areas
around my neighborhood, where the people can enjoy walks, hikes, or just being around animals. Every week, workers
will be hired to clean up in these areas, including litter, garbage, or fallen trees. On school properties, there will be a 40
acre piece of land. 20 acres will be a green grass field for students to play soccer, football, or just lie down and relax. The
other 20 acres will be woods for students to walk in (similar to the one beside Thomas Street). Once a year, schools will
host an annual cleanup day where students will clean up these areas.
●

Transportation
The way your population moves around the city is crucial for city living. Movement in a place where so many people live and
work is tricky so this needs to be carefully designed. Cars, buses, trains and trams, boats on rivers as well as walkways for
pedestrians and lanes for cyclists; you need to make sure facilities are in place for the perfect balance of each. Some of the
largest cities in the world have even moved their transport out of the way using underground trains and elevated monorail
systems e.g. Las Vegas has motorways underneath it’s buildings.

Try to think of new ways that you could help with the infrastructure in your city. In many cities around the world the streets can
become as famous as some of the buildings.

● What are the economic impacts of certain vehicles?

● How will you make use of public transport? Bikes and green vehicles?
● Single occupancy vehicles (cars) have a big impact on the environment, releasing great amounts of carbon dioxide when
used. A car releases 2.3 kg of carbon dioxide every litre of gasoline! To put it into perspective, 1.4 million tonnes of
carbon dioxide can be saved per year if every Canadian stopped idling for merely 3 minutes a day. This is the amount of
carbon dioxide that would be saved if over 300,000 cars were taken off the road for an entire year.
● Buses, however, are much cleaner. It produces 33% less greenhouse per passenger than cars, because there is only one
vehicle being shared between many people instead of each person polluting on their own. This is why, in my city, I plan
to make good use of buses. The first step for doing so is to switch all buses over to electric buses to reduce greenhouse
gas emissions as much as possible, starting with public transportation. Since buses are still much bigger than normal
cars, they need more gas and also release more greenhouse gases as compared to one single car. I want to reduce this
to as low as possible. Therefore, all buses will be made into electric buses to further reduce greenhouse gases and the
use of oil to as close to 0 as possible. On the streets, there will be a separate lane for these electric buses so they can get
 to places faster, encouraging more people to ride these buses and use cars as less as possible. Furthermore, paying for
gas for a single car is much more expensive than just buying a monthly bus pass, so this will encourage people to ride
these buses as much as possible.
● Bike Share will also be available all around my city, where anybody can rent a bike on the public bike rack, use it to get
anywhere they want, then return it to another bike rack when their time is up. This is an easy and cheap way to get to
places while also getting some exercise without harming the environment! I will have 600 bike share stations located
around my city for this purpose.
● My city will also provide free charging at electric car charging stations for 3 months if you buy an electric car. This
encourages people to stop using gasoline vehicles and to switch to a cleaner way of transportation. Gas prices are rising
by a lot and if the people in my city are guaranteed 3 months of free charging, this will encourage them to switch to an
electric vehicle, therefore creating a healthier and better city. Since there’s no way to force anyone into buying a more
expensive type of vehicle, the best thing to do is encouragement.

Waste Management
Throughout the world we dump over 2 billion tonnes of waste every year. A lot of this garbage doesn’t rot away and finding
somewhere to put it all is a serious problem. We actually waste more energy by not recycling. For example: pop cans we drink
are made from aluminium, 95% more energy is needed to make a new aluminium compared to one made from recycling other
cans. How will you encourage people from your city to recycle more and reduce their waste?

● What are ways you can limit waste in your city?

● Are there any new technologies available to help with waste reduction or to more efficiently handle the waste that is
produced?
● How can you set up your city to prevent litter?
● What kinds of chemicals are released with garbage getting dumped in a landfill?
● Fewer than 1 in 7 plastic bags are ever recycled, even though plastic is recyclable. These bags end up in the landfill and
take up to 1,000 years to degrade, and even after they do it continues to harm the environment by turning into
microplastics that absorb the toxins on earth. This is just one example of how unnecessary waste can harm the
environment, but in reality there is so much more. Not only does the decomposing organic garbage release methane
into the atmosphere, landfills also take up insane amounts of natural habitat away from wildlife. In the United States,
1.8 million acres of natural habitats have been lost to landfills. In my city, I will be working on multiple things to reduce
unnecessary waste and litter, starting with recycling.
● There is a big problem with waste these days and this is recycling. While recycling bins are located all around the city,
many people still mix up recycling with garbage. This means that many things that are recyclable have ended up in
landfills instead of being reused to help the environment. I propose a pneumatic waste collection system to help with
this problem. There will be bins located all around my city (not organized by garbage or recycling) and any garbage that
is put into these bins will be automatically sorted into recyclable or non recyclable with AI waste sorting. This works by a
scanner inside each bin scanning the garbage put in, deciding if it’s recyclable or non recyclable, then putting the
garbage into the correct tube underground. All smaller tubes lead to three bigger tubes depending on recycling,
garbage, or compost. The tubes do not harm the environment as they work by air pressure, and all recyclable items are
sent to a recycling center directly, making sure that there is no extra waste. This system is much better than manual
recycling, since many people do not care what is recyclable or what is not. Furthermore, this system reduces the need
for garbage trucks which, as gasoline powered vehicles, pollute the environment. This is how waste will be managed in
my city.
● As for compost, there will be separate compost bins around the city that are located beside the main bins for recycling
and garbage. The compost bins will be much smaller than the main bin so that people do not get confused.
1. Energy: How will you power your city?
2. Food

How and where will you grow enough food for your inhabitants? How can you make sure you use as much of the food
as possible without any waste?
3. Nature

Try and think of why you might need different plants and animals, this will help you make sure you have it in your city. How will
you make sure nature is encouraged into your city?
4. Transport

How will you help your inhabitants move around?

5. Waste

How will you encourage people from your city to recycle more and reduce their waste?
APA Citations in Alphabetical Order

5 things you need to know about hydropower Canada’s number one electricity source. (n.d.) Canadian Hydropower Association
https://www.nrcan.gc.ca/sites/www.nrcan.gc.ca/files/energy/energy-resources/5_things_you_need_to_know_about_hydropower.
pdf

5 Reasons Lawns Are Beneficial For the Environment. (n.d.). Green Valley Turf.
https://gvt.net/blog/5-reasons-lawns-are-beneficial-environment

10 Facts About Single-use Plastic Bags. (n.d.). Center for Biological Diversity.
https://www.biologicaldiversity.org/programs/population_and_sustainability/sustainability/plastic_bag_facts.html

Crop Rotations. (n.d.). Rodale Institute. https://rodaleinstitute.org/why-organic/organic-farming-practices/crop-rotations/

Emission impacts resulting from vehicle idling. (2016, September 20). Government of Canada.
https://www.nrcan.gc.ca/energy/efficiency/communities-infrastructure/transportation/cars-light-trucks/idling/4415

Environmental Implications of Excess Fertilizer and Manure on Water Quality. (October, 2017). NDSU Agriculture.
https://www.ag.ndsu.edu/publications/environment-natural-resources/environmental-implications-of-excess-fertilizer-and-manur
e-on-water-quality

Governments Support Beef farmers and Protect Food Supply Chains. (2020, December 18). Ontario Newsroom.
https://news.ontario.ca/en/release/59780/governments-support-beef-farmers-and-protect-food-supply-chains

History of Hoover. (n.d.). Arizona Power Authority. https://powerauthority.org/about-us/history-of-hoover

Hodges, T. (January, 2010). Public Transportation’s Role in Responding to Climate Change. U.S. Department of Transportation.
https://www.transit.dot.gov/sites/fta.dot.gov/files/docs/PublicTransportationsRoleInRespondingToClimateChange2010.pdf

Humphrys, E.W. (July 29, 2013). Hydroelectricity in Canada. The Canadian Encyclopedia.
https://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/hydroelectricity#:~:text=Hydroelectricity%20is%20energy%20produced%20fr
om,stations%20are%20built%20near%20waterfalls.

Hydroelectric Energy. (2019, May 31). National Geographic Society.

https://www.nationalgeographic.org/encyclopedia/hydroelectric-energy/

Jensen, A. (2018, September 18). Examining the Pros and Cons of Hydropower. Manufacturing.net.
https://www.manufacturing.net/chemical-processing/article/13245967/examining-the-pros-and-cons-of-hydropower

Vasarhelyi, K. (April 15, 2021). The Hidden Damage of Landfills. University of Colorado.
https://www.colorado.edu/ecenter/2021/04/15/hidden-damage-landfills#:~:text=As%20the%20organic%20mass%20in%20landfill
s%20decompose%20methane%20gas%20is%20released.&text=Along%20with%20methane%2C%20landfills%20also,create%20sm
og%20if%20left%20uncontrolled.

Why Transit Matters: The Environmental Benefits of Public Transportation. (2013, November 14). Association of Central Oklahoma
Governments. https://www.acogok.org/why-transit-matters-environment/

What is Organic Farming? (n.d.). Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education.

https://www.sare.org/publications/transitioning-to-organic-production/what-is-organic-farming/