The True Cost Of Urbanisation

Tenor

Urbanisation is the key to a nation's growth and that's why urban land increased from 33.2 to 71.3 million hectares (Mha) between 1992 and 2015, per 2019 studies. 

However, all the pride of expansion begins to fade when you realise that in the same time frame, the world may have lost up to 35 Mha of forest to urbanisation. 

Cities Need Food. Growing Food Needs Land

As cities expand by directly consuming forest and farmland, they also trigger massive amounts of indirect deforestation for agriculture because both giant metros and small towns need a lot of food to feed their ever growing populations. 

Interestingly, the agricultural clearing of forests caused by urban expansion is larger than the original area taken over by urbanisation - between 5 to 10 times larger, studies show. 

How Much Is It Truly Costing Us?

Per Global Forest Watch, in 2010, India had 31.3Mha of natural forest, extending over 11% of its land area. Just a decade later in 2020, it had lost 132kha of natural forest, the equivalent to 67.3Mt of CO₂ emissions.

In Germany, construction projects are eating away 52 hectares (129 acres) of land — the equivalent of 73 soccer pitches — every day, according to their Environment Ministry.

🥶 - when we think of deforestation on a global scale after seeing just 2 examples. 

Is There A Solution?

To cut the long story short, yes. You see, in 1960, the average German had just 19 sq. m. (204.5 sq. ft.) of living space. 30 years later that had grown to 34 sq. m., and today, another 30 years on, it's 47 sq. m.

And as more building materials are needed for construction, and more energy is needed for heating and cooling that space, every sq. m. reduced is half a ton of carbon emissions, and a few hundred trees saved over the building's life cycle. 

🍀 Moral of the story: Let's start living tiny if we are serious about saving our urban planet. 

💡 1 hectare (ha) = 2.47 acres.