CHAPTER 2. COMPONENTS OF THE PHYSICAL ENVIRONMENT


CHAPTER 2. COMPONENTS OF THE PHYSICAL ENVIRONMENT

2.1. Land Use, Transportation, Community Infrastructure, Service Infrastructure:

2.1.1.      Land Use:


Land use involves the management and modification of natural environment or wilderness into built environment such as settlements and semi-natural habitats such as arable fields, pastures, and managed woods. It also has been defined as "the total of arrangements, activities, and inputs that people undertake in a certain land cover type." Land use and land management practices have a major impact on natural resources including water, soil, nutrients, plants and animals. Land use information can be used to develop solutions for natural resource management issues such as salinity and water quality.

For instance, water bodies in a region that has been deforested or having erosion will have different water quality than those in areas that are forested. Forest gardening, a plant-based food production system, is believed to be the oldest form of land use in the world. The major effect of land use on land cover since c.1750 AD has been deforestation of temperate regions. More recent significant effects of land use include urban sprawl, soil erosion, soil degradation, salinization, and desertification.

Land-use change, together with use of fossil fuels, are the major anthropogenic sources of carbon dioxide, a dominant greenhouse gas. According to a report by the United Nations' Food and Agriculture Organization, land degradation has been exacerbated where there has been an absence of any land use planning, or of its orderly execution, or the existence of financial or legal incentives that have led to the wrong land use decisions, or one-sided central planning leading to over-utilization of the land resources - for instance for immediate production at all costs. As a consequence the result has often been misery for large segments of the local population and destruction of valuable ecosystems.

Such narrow approaches should be replaced by a technique for the planning and management of land resources that is integrated and holistic and where land users are central. This will ensure the long-term quality of the land for human use, the prevention or resolution of social conflicts related to land use, and the conservation of ecosystems of high biodiversity value.

         2.1.2.      Transportation:


Transportation is the movement of humans, animals and goods from one location to another. Modes of transport include air, land (rail and road), water, cable, pipeline and space. The field can be divided into infrastructure, vehicles and operations. Transport is important because it enables trade between people, which is essential for the development of civilizations. Transport infrastructure consists of the fixed installations, including roads, railways, airways, waterways, canals and pipelines and terminals such as airports, railway stations, bus stations, warehouses, trucking terminals, refueling depots (including fueling docks and fuel stations) and seaports.

Terminals may be used both for interchange of passengers and cargo and for maintenance. Vehicles traveling on these networks may include automobiles, bicycles, buses, trains, trucks, helicopters, watercraft, spacecraft and aircraft. Operations deal with the way the vehicles are operated, and the procedures set for this purpose, including financing, legalities, and policies. In the transport industry, operations and ownership of infrastructure can be either public or private, depending on the country and mode. Passenger transport may be public, where operators provide scheduled services, or private. Freight transport has become focused on containerization, although bulk transport is used for large volumes of durable items. Transport plays an important part in economic growth and globalization, but most types cause air pollution and use large amounts of land. While it is heavily subsidized by governments, good planning of transport is essential to make traffic flow and restrain urban sprawl.

         2.1.3.      Community Infrastructure:

 Community infrastructure is defined as a complex system of facilities, programs, and social networks that aims to improve people's quality of life. These services, networks and physical assets intended to form the foundation of a strong neighbourhood. The community infrastructure of a neighbourhood can be provided within the neighbourhood or provided to the neighbourhood by a source that is located or operates from outside of the neighbourhood.

The types of organizations and institutions that make up this infrastructure range from issue-based organizations which focus broadly on specific issues such as youth rights; neighbourhood membership-based organizations such as residents’ and tenants’ associations; direct service organizations that support human development such as health clinics, child care programs and multi-services centers; faith and spiritual organizations and/or religious congregations that provide community space and may provide services; and public common places that offer opportunities for adults and youth to enjoy social and recreational activities. Also included are local businesses and other local institutions that have an intimate stake in the well-being of the neighbourhood in which they are located.

The quality of neighbourhood life is influenced by three significant factors: the community services offered within the community, the social relations among residents and other participants in the community and the physical environment of the community. Effective community infrastructure organizations help neighbourhoods and individuals build assets for long-term success. Investments in basic needs, education, libraries, employment, affordable housing, recreation and social inclusion are the building blocks of vibrant and strong neighbourhoods that supplement the physical design of buildings and roads.

Community infrastructure needs the active involvement of the people residing in the neighbourhoods. In other words, effective community infrastructure must be in partnership with Neighbourhood residents who seek to transform and improve the areas that they call home. There is some interesting evidence that the existence of community infrastructure makes a difference – that is, community infrastructure matters to neighbourhood well-being and social capital. For example, the number of “pro-social” places (schools, recreation centers, parks and libraries) is positively related to the level of resident participation in organizations.

That is, neighbourhoods with more pro-social places have higher levels of participation in informal networks such as block groups, youth groups, parent-teacher associations, which increase the opportunities to develop shared values about the neighbourhood and its needs. Researchers also found that the number of pro-social places is positively related to residents’ satisfaction with the block on which they live.

       2.1.4.      Service Infrastructure:


Services are the actions that people does for others. Services are actions such as haircuts, medical check-ups, mail delivery, car repair, and teaching which satisfy people's needs and wants. There are various types of services required by everyone. For instance Education and training services such as a school, college, university. Consulting services i.e. offering your knowledge and work output as a service. Transportation services such as an airline or bicycle rental shop. Events services such as industry conferences or weddings.

Entertainment services such as cable, movies, video games and other entertainment services. Media services such as social media, television and newspapers. Infrastructure services such as water, electricity, gas, telephone, mobile, internet access, provisions, maintenance and repairs. Financial Services such as Banking, insurance and investment services. Professional Services such as lawyers, accountants and architects. Logistics services such as delivery of products or goods. 

Hospitality services such as Hotels, restaurants and tourist attractions such as theme parks. Cultural services such as an art museum or performance art. Medical services such as Hospitals, doctors and other medical services. Wellness Services that are relaxing or perceived as healthy such as a gym or spa. Convenience Services i.e. saving customer’s time or making things easier for them. For example, a dog walking service. 

Club services i.e. large assets that can be used for a fee such as a golf club or theme park. Product as a Service Wrapping a product in a service. For example, a home heating and cooling system that is installed for a monthly fee that includes maintenance and repair. Design services by creating designs as a service such as a graphic design or product design, interior design, architectural design and urban design etc. Thus, service infrastructure means availability of all the services to people by formal or informal institutions for the wellbeing of the people and as per their needs and wants.

 References:
  1. From: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Land_use (retrieved November 25, 2018)
  2. From: https://study.com/academy/lesson/types-of-land-uses-recreational-transport-agricultural-residential-commercial.html (retrieved November 25, 2018)
  3. From: https://enviroliteracy.org/land-use/ (retrieved November 25, 2018)
  4. From: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Transport (retrieved November 25, 2018)
  5. From: https://www.britannica.com/technology/transportation-technology (retrieved November 25, 2018)
  6. From: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FaLCQo8NJFA (retrieved November 25, 2018)
  7. From: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Infrastructure_as_a_service (retrieved November 25, 2018)
  8. From: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Service-oriented_infrastructure (retrieved November 25, 2018)
  9. From: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Service (retrieved November 25, 2018)
  10. From: http://www.businessdictionary.com/definition/services.html (retrieved November 25, 2018)

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