| Urban
Infrastructure and Services Practices
Communication and Media
Community Information Resource Centre (CIRC), Alexandra,
South Africa
Key to the empowerment of marginalised communities is unfettered
access to relevant information within an integrated regional and
national network, coupled with the development of skills and capacity
that would equip these communities to utilise such information for
community building purposes. While hypothesising that the establishment
of community information resource centres can be the most effective
way to ensure the free flow and access to information and empowerment
of disadvantaged communities by providing relevant information in
a user-friendly system, the Human Sciences Research Council (HSRC)
has been involved in three pilot projects in Gauteng Province, South
Africa, aimed at assisting such processes. The communities are Alexandra,
Ivory Park and Atteridgeville-Saulsville. Of the three initiatives,
the community information resource centre in Atteridgeville (Legae
la Kitso - Home of Information) is the most progressive. Building
on lessons learned in the other two projects, the Legae la Kitso
project represents an attempt to implement and study the optimum
way in which to enable a systemically disadvantaged community to
own, manage and use information for community-building and survival
purposes.
CIRC provides access to information at the grassroots level through
the establishment of a system for communicating and sharing information
among and between communities. Atteridgeville-Saulsville is a low-income
community with basic survival concerns and limited access to information
about the community itself, other communities and information held
in government. Within the framework of the Freedom for Information
Act, the CIRC organised a database of community information based
on household surveys, community surveys with community leaders and
local government. Residents can also find information on entitlements,
Government support programmes and employment opportunities without
the time and expense of a trip into the city centre. The role of
the HSRC has been to work in close partnership with the community
representatives (the civic organisation ASRO) and to support the
project by sponsoring the training of information counsellors who
form a user-friendly interface between the community and the electronic
media.
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Telecenters: Changing the Way People Work, Chula Vista,
USA
Cities throughout the world are grappling with the question of
how to resolve the growing influence of the automobile on its urban
environment. Municipal energy consumption, climate change, air pollution
and the rising cost of fuel are forcing cities to look at what local
authorities can do to reduce emissions and to slow down global warming.
Chula Vista, with a population of 150,000, has responded to this
growing problem by taking on the responsibility of a global issue,
and addressing it through municipal policy and implementation; developing
measures and a comprehensive strategy that aim to reduce this city's
contribution to global warming.
Chula Vista the second largest city in San Diego County, USA is
currently dealing with serious traffic, air quality and environmental
concerns. Chula Vista has introduced the concept of "Tele-Commuting"
- as part of its Carbon-dioxide Reduction Plan - to make use of
the "information superhighway" to alleviate the negative
effects of the "concrete superhighway." Instead of commuting
to work, residents can drop in to their "Neighbourhood Telecenter"
where they can use computers, modems, telephones and other office
support services to complete normal work activities. Telecentres
reduce automobile trips, traffic congestion, energy consumption
and air pollution, promote a better quality of life by providing
a workplace closer to home and can improve worker productivity.
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A Nation-wide Geographic Information System to Improve
Planning in Qatar
Qatar, a country of 522,000 people located on the west coast of
the Arabian Gulf, is the first country to implement a comprehensive
and integrated nation-wide geographic information system. With the
discovery of oil three decades ago, government agencies were unable
to keep up-to-date records of the rapid and large-scale development
that followed. The lack of information together with inadequate
inter-agency co-ordination led to inefficient management of resources.
Today, Qatar's state of the art Digital Topographic Database provides
a common base map for 16 Government agencies through a high speed,
fiber optic network. The Government saves money in delivering services
like sewerage, electricity and water through linked, up-to-date
databases. Digital maps and locators allow fire trucks and ambulances
to rapidly respond to emergencies. Using GIS tools, consistency
and uniformity in policies, standards and regulations for the whole
of Qatar has been achieved.
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Infrastructure Provision
Core Area Upgrading in Kathmandu - Nepal
As is typical of so many metropolitan cities in the developing
world, Kathmandu has numerous challenges and a constraint in resources.
Kathmandu Metropolitan City's (core area) upgrading initiative aims
to upgrade the core area by improving roads and pavements, street
lighting, solid waste management, traffic management and surface
drainage. Transportation has improved due to roads and access paths'
improvement works; improvement in traffic management and streetlights.
The Naya Bazar Land Pooling Scheme has enabled easier development
planning of the core area with storm water drainage installation.
Public education campaign and procurement of equipment for waste
management has greatly improved the environmental aspects of the
core area.
Contact person: Keshav Sthapit
E-mail: kmcadv@moscom.np
Fax: 977-1-272110
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Baghdad Neighbourhood Rehabilitation programme, Iraq
Baghdad Neighbourhood Rehabilitation programme is a community based
initiative with the support of international and national NGOs.
The programme was established to counter problems such as poor communication
networks, poor sewage disposal, inadequate water supply (for both
potable water and for irrigation), poor or non-existent garbage
collection, lack of green areas and lack of playgrounds for children.
In addition schools and buildings were in a deplorable state stemming
from the aftermath of the gulf war and effects of the sanctions
imposed on the country. Through a participatory process involving
the municipality water supply, sewage network, roads, public buildings
and utilities have been repaired and restored. Household waste management
has been improved and the Al-Shu'lla region of the town is now green
through drilling an artesian well to irrigate green areas which
were once dumping grounds for solid waste.
Contact person: Ms. Suhair Al-Sinawi
Fax: 1-212-9633081/9633009
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Luanda-Sul Self-financed Urban Infrastructure Program,
Angola
Luanda Sul is a trend-setting model for innovative practice. It
is based on a self-sustaining urban infrastructure program aimed
to valorize public assets through careful land-use management and
planning. In close partnership with Government agencies, the private
sector and community-based organisations, the population living
in temporary settlements and the people displaced by the war are
being resettled. The program was initiated in 1995-1996 through
a self-financing process and included the construction of 70km of
pipes providing drinking water, 23km of drainage, 12 km of power
lines, 2,210 houses and adequate shelter for 16,702 people.
The program operates from an Achievement and Management Fund. The
resources are mobilised through; (i) the sale of concessions (or
land tenure rights) derived from the allocation of public land for
private development; (ii) taxes and tariffs perceived on the exchange
of goods and services; and (iii) investments made by the private
sector. The Government, by issuing guarantees for private investments,
provided the basis for the self-financing of the programme. The
process involved the identification of suitable land for urban development,
the acquisition of the land from landowners by the state, the legislation
of the status of the land according to a land-use plan and the mobilisation
of capital investment of the private sector. The program involved
an initial investment of US$30 million and a subsequent investment
of US$14 million. The infrastructure development includes community
facilities, schools, commercial establishments, an industrial estate
and a hospital. Following the success of the project, there are
plans to replicate the program in Benguela Province.
Contact: Mr. Cláudio Melo Filho
Tel: 2442 398-001 and 399-392/394
Fax: 2442 503-561
Email: cmelof@ao.odebrecht.com
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Transportation and Mobility
Evolving a World Class Land Transport System in Singapore
Singapore has a population of 4,017,733 persons and covers a total
area 402 sq. km. In Singapore, as with many large Asian cities,
transportation issues are a major concern among ordinary citizens
and policy-makers alike. Road congestion is the most common problem.
The Singapore initiative in urban land transport development and
management seeks to solve worsening traffic congestion and its associated
problems by building a world class land transport system. The vision,
implemented by the central government, is a land transport system
that meets the needs and demands of a dynamic and growing city.
First mooted in 1995, the proposal of a world class land transport
system consolidates more than two decades' of ongoing work on managing
traffic congestion and road space. The initiative is premised on
four key principles of: (i) integrating transport and land use planning;
(ii) expanding the road network and maximising its capacity; (iii)
managing demand of road usage; and (iv) providing quality public
transport choices. The Singapore initiative has resulted in relatively
congestion-free roads (3281 km of roads taking up some 11% of the
country's land) in the city-state. The average peak-hour travelling
speed within its city centre is about 30 kilometres an hour which
compares favourably with peak-hour speeds of 10 to 12 kilometres
per hour in London, New York, Manila, Calcutta and Lagos. In addition,
it was the first attempt to use road pricing to limit the growth
of urban traffic. From April 1998, Singapore replaced its system
of central area-access charges based on paper licenses (first introduced
in 1975) by electronic tolls that vary according to time of day.
Singapore's integrated approach in tackling traffic congestion is
premised not only on the traditional means of increasing transport
capacity through road building programme but also on innovative
measures to manage demand for road space by encouraging more efficient
use of existing transport facilities especially within the usually
congested city area. This it does by planning and developing an
alternative urban structure where economic activities become dispersed
and there is better physical integration between employment, amenities
and housing, implementing car ownership and usage restraints and
promoting a public transport system as a viable alternative to the
private car. Many of Singapore's transport policies are universally
applicable especially use of area licensing scheme, control of car
population through various fiscal measures, promotion and establishment
of a more efficient public transportation system, highly integrated
land use and transportation planning.
The area-licensing scheme has been the subject of several World
Bank studies. More recently, Malaysia has announced its intention
to implement an area road-pricing scheme modelled after the Singapore
area-licensing scheme to ease traffic congestion in its capital
city, Kuala Lumpur.
Contact: Prof. Lim Lan Yuan & Dr. Belinda Yuen
Tel: 65-874 3413
Fax: 65-775 5502
email: headbem@nus.edu.sg
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Kunming Modern Demonstration Busline, China
Kunming, the capital and only large city in Yunnan Province, is
approximately at the same location as northern Mexico, only on the
other side of the world covering a total area of 6200 sq. km. The
"Kunming Modern Demonstration Busline" is anchored in
the city partnership between Kunming and Zurich and is an offspring
of the Kunming Urban Development and Public Transportation Master
Plan. The initiative originated in 1997 - a period when Kunming
with a metropolitan population of 3.4 million was experiencing deteriorating
traffic conditions. The streets were congested most of the time
with average travel speed being about 10km/h.
In 1996, the Kunming Urban Development and Public Transportation
Master Plan was developed by the cooperation of Kunming City and
its sister city Zurich City, Switzerland. The urban transportation
policies giving priorities to public transportation were defined,
and the development plan of a modern public transportation system
consisting of buses and suburban express trains was formulated.
An arterial bus line was chosen as a demonstration project to incarnate
modern transportation ideas and to study how big cities in China
to carry out the modernisation improvement of public bus systems.
In April 1999, through the common efforts of social and governmental
organizations, the demonstration busline became operational.
The service level of public transportation has been remarkably
improved. Travel speed of has increased by 68% while passenger flow
volume and capacity of public transport system have increased by
13% and 46% respectively. Air quality has improved while the traffic
volume in equivalent car units has decreased by 19%. The efficient
public transport system has been benefiting a large number of citizens
and attracting more passengers. Former urban transportation policies
have changed with priorities being accorded to public transport
system with future plans for a bus-only lane network to be constructed
in the central area of Kunming City. Kunming?s experience of has
been widely disseminated through local seminars.
Contact: Lin Wei, Yang Xia
Tel: 86-871-3171174
Fax: 86-871-3177118
E-mail: kupdi@km.col.com.cn
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Energy use, conservation and production
Utilisation of biogas from household waste - Czech Republic
Kromeríz lies at the southern edge of the Haná, Czech
Republic and has a population of about 30,000 people. Utilisation
of biogas from household waste, which began in 1993, is based on
an exhausted and disused clay pit that was an environmental hazard.
The Kromeriz Town Hall administrative officials had turned the pit
into a dumpsite for household waste. The layer of the deposited
material reached up to 12m. Total volume of the deposited waste
amounted to 180,000 m3. The deposited subsoil consisted of clay,
with substantial layers of eroded sandstone and sand-clay. As a
consequence, the eco-system of a nearby pond was destroyed. Leach
from the deposit polluted the subsoil water and the deposit's biogas
escaped to the ambient environment.
The new administrative officials at the Kromeriz Town Hall focused
on bringing to an end the uncontrolled waste dump and pollution
of both subsoil and surface water. The decision making process involved
Council officials and Local Council members, of the town of Kromeriz.
Through the initiative, the pond was cleaned and the eco-system
balance restored. Biogas was tapped and re-vegetation of the entire
area to provide a green park for the inhabitants of the nearby housing
estate was done together with providing a cheap source of household
heating energy. The pumping operation under the biogas utilisation
conditions facilitates heating of hot water for 200 households during
winter. Since the beginning of the project, 337,177 m3 of biogas
has been tapped and pumped from the deposit. The lesson learnt from
this project is that there is potential to generate biogas from
household waste when proper technology is employed. The biogas utilisation
project is being replicated in other towns of the Czech Republic.
Contact person: Olga Sehnalova
Telephone: 00420 0634 321154
Fax: 00420 0634 331481
Email: MeU.KM@brn.pvtnet.cz
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Traditional Energy and Environment Conservation, Tanzania
Tanzania Traditional Energy and Environmental Organization (TaTEDO)
is a coalition of volunteer individuals, artisans, small holder
farmers, community-based organizations (CBOs) and micro enterprises
involved in the development and promotion of renewable energy systems
for enhancing sustainable environment and socio-economic development
of communities. Approximately 30 artisan groups use scrap metal
to manufacture improved stoves for woodfuel conservation. The income
generated contributes to poverty eradication. Agro-forestry initiatives
encourage people to plant tree species with multiple end-use and
shorter rotations. The development of tree nurseries completes the
production-consumption cycle.
Contact person: Mr. Estomih N. Sawe
Fax: 255 51 74400
E-mail: tatedo@raha.com
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Vienna Energy "WIEN ENERGIE", Austria
The "WIEN ENERGIE" (Vienna Energy) centre is a joint
initiative launched by "WIENSTROM" (Vienna Electric Company),
"WIENGAS" (Vienna Gas Company) and "FERNWAERME WIEN"
(Vienna?s Alternative Source of Energy mainly from Incinerators)
for the purpose of providing competent assistance in energy matters
addressing customer needs and the services required, e.g. hot water,
light or heat. Energy counselling is free of charge and constitutes
an essential element in the overall trend towards source minded,
cost efficient and environmental friendly energy supply. Assistance
is particularly youth oriented, its aim is to make young people
aware of how to use valuable energy sensibly.
The information centre is designed as a youth centre and has been
equipped with state-of-the-art technology, offering free Internet
access, an adventure slide, as well as interactive play stations
for a real "energy experience". An "energy bike"
has been installed to demonstrate how much it takes to generate
one's own energy. All exhibits are fully operational to attract
visitors' attention, e.g. to conservatory layouts and how they incorporate
seasonal fluctuations, to show the effects of different types of
insulation material and windows, of glass flues in heating systems,
solar systems, windmills, etc. The entire concept concentrates on
introducing important issues through playful interaction. Customers
can go online to access information on alternative forms of energy
production and thus have first hand experience of these types of
energy and their performance under varying weather conditions.
What makes this concept so successful is the fact that customers
receive competent, independent and comprehensive counselling (on
all sources of energy) and are not pressurised into buying any appliances
or tools. Regular training and information classes on all aspects
of life are held to increase the circle of customers, courses on
feng shui, kinesiology, solar energy systems, etc. These are complemented
by exhibitions on child protection, Tibet, hot water, and many more,
which usually run for several weeks at a time. The WIEN ENERGIE
centre has become an essential element in Vienna's holiday programme
for children and young adults. 60,000 visitors per year speak of
the quality of our services and the choice of location in one of
the city's busiest shopping streets.
Eng. Andreas Paul Mariannengasse
Tel: +43/1/4004/34100
Fax: +43/1/4004/34199
Email: andreas.paul@wienstrom.co.at
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Iperbole/Internet Metropolitan Civic Network - Italy
Bologna has a population of 900,000 and is the Italy's administrative
capital and the most important node of communication in Italy. "Realising
digital democracy, telematic participation and citizenship"
and building an on line interactive community is the key idea of
Iperbole, an Internet-based citizens free-of-charge metropolitan
civic network that was set up in 1995 by the city of Bologna. The
Municipality of Bologna has traditionally devoted strong efforts
to improve relationships and communications in order to increase
the quality of citizens' participation in Local Authority's activities.
The Municipality offers e-mail service, news, direct access to the
municipal web-site (http://www.comune.bologna.it/ connected to other
local, national and European servers), free full-Internet connections
and to its free resources to all citizens requesting it free of
charge. The Internet is a useful tool for job seekers who receive
advice from professionals through an interactive session. The project,
due to the large number of persons connected (about 10 % of the
whole population with a growing rate of 20 new users every day)
is becoming a very efficient way for the families, enterprises,
public and private bodies, to retrieve information and services,
at home or the workplace.
The Iperbole/Internet service is based on the principles of the
employment of telematics and new technologies for administrative
innovation and partnership with the "organised civil society";
the right to information; and involving the virtual community as
a partner of the urban administration in enabling decision-making
processes between urban actors. Citizens can take part in the public
life of the city via the web-site of the city administration and
by participating in on-line discussions with 35 local newsgroups.
The new technology helps to establish reciprocal communications
between the administration and the society. In April 1998 Iperbole
counted 13500 citizens using the free Internet access, 600 organisations,
70 schools and hundreds of administrative offices were on line.
Contact Person: Leda Guidi
Tel: 39-51-203210
Fax: 39-51-223142
Email: com@comune.bologna.it
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Sanitation
SAPMA Housing and Environmental Project - Grenada
SAPMA Housing and Environmental Project is located to the North
East of St. Andrew's in the rural communities of Pearls, Moyah,
Conference, Tivoli and La Potrie. It began in 1991 after a poverty
survey was carried out by Caribbean Conference of Churches. The
communities identified were very poor and under developed, the housing
units were very small and prone to natural disasters. There were
very few families who could afford safe drinking water and the sanitation
condition was deplorable because most people used nearby streams,
rivers and bushes to dispose of their waste which was a health hazard
to the many young children and the elder persons in the communities.
The objectives of the practice were to improve the housing conditions
through access to affordable houses and to improve existing poor
and small structures by rehabilitating them.
The initiative has managed to upgrade the poor sanitation condition
and this has reduced the risk of outbreak of diseases among young
children and elderly in the communities. The housing and environmental
conditions have improved by approximately 40 and 45% respectively.
Since the initiation of the practice 40% of the target group received
housing materials for construction purposes and 50% received assistance
with pit latrines and house construction. Also many families now
enjoy piped water. Generally housing provision has improved in the
area and there has been an improvement in the sanitation while the
local business earned money from the purchase of materials. Most
of those involved in the rehabilitation and construction of the
houses gained relevant skills in addition to the employment opportunities
presented by the initiative.
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Rehabilitation of Urban Areas - Guarapiranga Project -
Brazil
The Guarapiranga Water basin is located in the northern part of
Sao Paulo region of Brazil and extends into Embu-Guaco and Itapecerica
Da Serra municipalities. The Environmental Sanitation Program of
the Guarapiranga Water basin started in 1993, aiming to guarantee
the water quality of the Guarapiranga Reservoir, through corrective
actions including basic sanitation infrastructure and capacity building
for fresh water management. The implementation was based on the
concerted efforts of state and local authorities with financial
support from the World Bank.
The Guarapiranga Reservoir presently supplies near to 25 percent
of the drinking water to the Sao Paulo Metropolitan Area (SPMA).
The urban informal settlements (more then 190 different slums) had
progressively expanded into the lower part of the basin, near the
reservoir. The rehabilitation and expansion of the Guarapiranga
area entailed relocation and resettling of the slum dwellers. The
works included new streets, paving, drainage, channelling of streams
and waste collection. The population participated in the process
of architectural design and civil works by offering suggestions
on the most suitable design solutions.
The implementing authorities also developed a proposal for the
Guarapiranga Water-basin Management agency which involved an environmental
master plan for the water basin integrating sectoral plans for land
use, sewerage, solid waste and water quality.
As a result of the programme the following has been achieved:
• Construction of basic infrastructure for 190 slums, home
to 20,000 families (or 100,000 inhabitants);
• 264 kms of sewer network to serve 80% of the 580,000 inhabitants
of the Guarapiranga Water-basin;
• Drainage construction and restoration of 13 sq. km. of urban
areas which had deteriorated due to insufficient drainage
• Land-use planning and the resettlement of 4,000 families
living in high-risk sites with construction of houses averaging
42 m2.
Contact person: Sao Paulo
Fax: 606-6311
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Durban Metro Water Services: Sewage Disposal Education
Programme, South Africa
Durban is the main port of the Republic of South Africa. It is
situated on the East Coast of South Africa, approximately 600km
South East of Johannesburg. It is the commercial center of the province
of KwaZulu Natal. Durban Metro Water Service's Sewage Disposal Education
Programme arose out of the need to curb high levels of sewage pollution
and maintenance costs incurred through the abuse and misuse of sewerage
systems in the Durban metropolitan area. This education programme
has become a vehicle of broader social reconstruction and development.
Directed by Durban Metro Water Services, it involves public / private
partnerships, and aims to establish a climate of civic responsibility,
calling on communities to support their local government and businesses
in the construction and development of their living environments.
The main objective of the Sewage Disposal Education Programme is
to create a better understanding of the workings of the sewerage
system amongst communities, especially first time users of these
services. This is done through a number of innovative educational
interventions, which encourage interactive and participative learning.
Educational resources and toolkits have been designed for use in
schools and at informal education settings, such as clinics. Road-show
and street theatre performances are presented at informal settings
to a broad spectrum of the community, reaching out to less literate
members of communities.
The education programme has made a quantitative impact. In Umlazi
(population 262,000) for example, blockages have been reduced from
approximately 1300 per month to 300 - 400 per month, after a period
of about one and a half to two years. Sewage blockages throughout
the Metro area have resulted in savings equivalent to US$ 200,000.
The education campaign has reached 141,646 learners and 212,104
adults. The entire education programme has been introduced in 226
schools and many clinics. In addition, within the period of one
year, 550 street theatre performances were held in the Durban metropolitan
area, reaching approximately a further 35,600 adults and 40,000
school children. Rewarding public/private partnerships have resulted
from the programme, with buy-in from industry. Emphasis has been
placed on community capacity building and skills development, and
the employment of women has been encouraged. By-laws have been passed
and formalised in the form of a Legal Framework for Pollution Management.
Over thirty facilitators are now fully employed. In additions the
program provides employment to thespians who perform on the streets.
Durban Metro Water Services has pioneered the Sewage Disposal Education
Programme in South Africa. As a result of an invitation to present
an aspect of this educational programme to the World Bank Water
Supply and Sanitation Forum in Washington, Durban Metro Water Services
has received an invitation to help develop a toolkit in Kenya, for
improving delivery of water supply and sanitation services to low
income urban communities, which could be utilised by service providers
throughout Africa
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Partnership in Service Delivery for Sustainable Rural Water
Provision in South Africa
South Africa's Department of Water Affairs and Forestry (DWAF)
initiated a Community Water Supply and Sanitation Programme, which
focuses on the delivery of water and sanitation to rural populations,
previously disadvantaged by apartheid. Initiated in 1997, DWAF appointed
a single contractor known as Programme Implementation Agents (PIA)
for each province using a competitive tender process to carry out
the implementation of water and sanitation projects. A key component
of the contracts is the Build, Operate, Train and Transfer (BoTT)
that is designed to empower community members while ensuring sustainability
of the projects. The BoTT contract is an adapted version of the
contract for Turnkey Projects and facilitates for the transfer of
many client responsibilities to the PIA. The PIA complements existing
resources by bringing in additional capacity and provides the provinces
with an integrated team for all phases of a project. Capacity building
in the state and the community is a key element of the PIA responsibilities
and the community retains key decision making responsibility.
The contract places emphasis on the partnership required between
the PIA, the Department, Local Government and the community. The
state provides the capital for infrastructure as well as setting
the overall planning and delivery objectives. The private sector
provides the project management and technical resources required
to integrate the physical project with the social and institutional
component provided by community development facilitators. DWAF is
in the process of adapting the BoTT programme to suit local government
requirements by addressing such issues as decentralization and transfer
of responsibility for projects to local authorities.
Over a 4-year period, the BoTT programme in the four provinces
has provided water to approximately 4,000,000 people. In addition,
BoTT contracts have proved to be a speedy mechanism to address specific
problem areas such as:
The mobilization of NGO's and job creation
Rapid response to disaster in the Northern Province when large floods
affected the region
A rapid response in KwaZulu natal to a cholera epidemic both in
terms of sanitation and clean water supply.
Support has been given to water services institutions, notably to
water services authorities (local government) and water boards.
These are long-term contracts, kept flexible to cater for a changing
legislative and social environment. DWAF will eventually move away
from being a delivery agent and will serve as a fund administrator
for future water and sanitation, provide policy and strategy guidelines,
specialised contractual support, and monitoring and evaluation for
water and sanitation sector support programmes.
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The Urban Drainage System Project of Quanzhou,
China
Situated in the south-east littoral of China and as one of the
three largest central cities of Fujian Province, Quanzhou belongs
to the first group of 24 historic cultural cities designated by
the State. It is one of the most economically active and vibrant
areas in Fujian Province with a per capita GDP of US$2100 in 2001.
The Quanzhou metro area covers 11,000 square km with a population
of 7.28 million, of which 680,000 people are living in the central
urban area of 40 square km. The former urban drainage system of
Quanzhou was originally composed of several urban drainage ditches.
As a result of lack of maintenance over time, the ditches piled
up with sludge. Whenever typhoons, rainstorms or mountain torrents
broke out, the quantity of water combined with tidal forces resulted
in water logging. In Quanzhou's history, every time water logging
happens, serious damage to people's lives and properties occurred
around the Jinjiang River. The total loss of the water logging since
1949 amounts several hundred millions of US dollars.
In order to solve these problems the Municipal Party Committee
and government decided to completely realign the urban drainage
system. Public consultations were held to ascertain people's unmet
needs and priorities. In January 1999, the Municipal People's Congress
adopted a resolution on the Construction of Quanzhou Urban Drainage
System. The technical objectives involved the implementation of
a drainage and storage system that would withstand 100-year flood
risk and 20-year torrential rain risk; and a water purification
facility with a daily capacity of 50,000 tons. The project design
team adopted a phased approach to implementation so as to minimize
disruptions to people's lives and commerce. The total investment
required amounted to US $86,230,000.
Volunteer Campaigns were launched such as the Sludge Cleaning Campaign,
the Hundred-Day Campaign and the Three-Month Campaign to mobilise
public opinion, awareness and participation in various aspects of
the project. During the project, technical methods were applied
to reduce negative impacts on the environment and to reduce inconvenience
for the residents. Government official consulted with households
in the demolition areas to move people in a timely and stress free
manner. Affected households were provided with compensation for
re-housing. Poor families, overseas Chinese families and families
with disabled or elderly persons were given priority. 1578 people
of this category were re-housed.
The historical profile of Quanzhou as a "Clean spring and
fresh flowers" has been restored. The urban ecological condition
and living environment have substantially improved. The Xibeiyang
Flood Detention Basin has a capacity of floodwater detention of
82.3 hectares and 2 million cubic meters; and the Puxi Flood Detention
Basin has a capacity of floodwater detention of 20.1 hectares and
900,000 cubic meters. The project not only solves the long-term
menace that threatened life and property of the residents, but has
also enlarged urban water and green areas which are extensively
used by the citizens for recreation and entertainment. The value
of previously undesirable land and real estate around the urban
drainage has increased. New residential estates, recreational and
commercial areas and office blocks are being built all over the
city.
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New York Avenue Metro Station Corporation, USA
The North of Massachusetts Avenue (NoMa) area has a population
of 5,600 of which 90% is African-American. The average income per
household is US $ 23,396, which is well below the citywide median
of US $ 30,727 with 24% of the residents earning the poverty-level
income. Nearly 50% of the households in the target area do not own
an automobile, thus making the increased availability of transit
very important for increasing economic opportunity. The area was
previously a thriving industrial, business and distribution centre
but over the years deteriorated and was characterised by abandoned
buildings, vacant land and a blighted cityscape.
In 1998, as part of the city's strategic economic development planning
process, the DC Department of Housing and Community Development
(DHCD) organised a NoMa development strategy. Working closely with
the community and the private sector the plan recommended the creation
of the New York Avenue Metro station as the catalyst for developing
NoMa as a magnet for technology and media businesses, jobs and housing.
Action 29 - New York Avenue Metro Station Corporation is a non-profit
organisation responsible for coordinating the private sector role
in building the new Metrorail Station.
The key objective of the initiative was to promote sustainable,
transit-oriented, mixed-use economic and community development that
would promote investment, create jobs, attract and expand businesses,
raise incomes, reduce poverty, stabilize and improve housing and
neighbourhoods. The main strategy was to develop three key industry
networks: media/publications, information technology/telecommunications
and the entertainment industry in the NoMa area.
A feasibility study funded by the DC DHCD was used to mobilise
finances to construct the station. Major private property owners
in the areas, the DC government and the US government provided financial
support. This commitment to construct a new transit station and
promote neighborhood economic activity has already provided the
impetus for large-scale employers to locate or expand in the area,
spurring major development activities including the Washington Gateway,
the BET Technology Park, the Union Station Telecom Center, and the
McKinley High School technology campus. In addition, community improvements
such as new streets and streetscape design, new and renovated housing,
a bicycle and pedestrian trail, retail stores and other small business
opportunities, and education and job training are all part of this
creative partnership. This initiative serves as a model for creating
liveable neighbourhoods through public - private partnership and
infrastructure development and is just one example of a significant
trend in North America, Europe and other regions to concentrate
housing and commercial development around access to public transportation.
This practice will lead eventually to a highly efficient and a more
sustainable urban environment.
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Ride the Wind Project, Calgary, Canada
Calgary is a city of about 860,000 people located at the base of
the Rocky Mountain Foothills in southern Alberta, Canada. The city's
economy has been built on a diverse economic base consisting of
agriculture, energy, tourism and its favourable location as a distribution
centre for manufactured goods produced in western Canada. Since
the 1960s, Calgary's history has been one of sustained growth, with
the population more than doubling from 400,000 in 1971 to present.
Calgary Transit operates an extensive integrated transit system
consisting of light rail transit (referred to as the C-Train), and
regular bus and community shuttle service. Calgary Transit began
service in 1909 with a 12-car streetcar system operating along 10
miles of track servicing a population of 30,000. By 1918, service
had extended to outlying communities. Modern buses were introduced
to Calgarians in 1932 and streetcars were slowly phased out of the
system's operations throughout the 1940s, replaced by both diesel
and electric trolley buses. By the early 1970s, trolley buses had
been completely phased out at about the same time Calgary's population
began to boom.
The construction of Calgary's Light Rail Transit System, the "C-Train,"
began in 1978. The existing transit system encompasses 32 kilometres
of C-Train track, 33 C-Train Stations, more than 10,000 park and
ride stalls, and a fleet of 100 light rail vehicles and 760 buses
which carry approximately 75 million revenue passengers annually.
The City of Calgary's Ride the Wind Project that was launched in
September, 2001, making Calgary's C-Train the first wind-powered
public transit system in North America. As a result, the entire
100-car fleet is 100 percent emissions free. Calgary's C-Train dramatic
rise in ridership in recent years demonstrates its success and popularity
among Calgarians. Since its inception, May 25, 1981, more than 500
million riders have hopped on the C-Train. About 187,000 customers
currently ride the C-Train every workday. Calgary Transit's bus/C-Train
ridership has soared by 33 per cent over the past five years at
the same time the city's population rose by 15 per cent. C-Train
ridership alone shot up by 73 per cent during the same time period.
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Bridge Building at the Local Level BBLL, Kathmandu, Nepal
Rivers isolate the people living in the numerous settlements in
the Himalayas from the rest of the country. To cross these rivers,
villagers either have to walk long distances to reach the other
side or alternatively wade across dangerous waters which have claimed
the lives of many people. The Government of Nepal could not meet
the demand for bridges due to financial and logistical constraints.
Bridge Building at the Local Level (BBLL) was established to aid
Nepali Communities to revive their traditional bridge building skills.
The objective elaborated by community members is to develop a trail
bridge that is labour intensive (as opposed to capital) so that
local people will take ownership and benefit from the investment.
Overcoming initial opposition from the Government, BBLL started
maximizing on local material and labour while minimizing on the
negative impact on the environment.
Essentially, the community organizes itself and identifies the
bridge site and secures building material that is locally available.
Subsequently, BBLL reciprocates by providing drawings, training
on a bridge model and availing "foreign" material such
as steel cables, deck and cross beams. Communities have been very
successful in lobbying for funds from their Local Governments which
in some cases gradually takes over the support BBLL used to provide.
This has freed up BBLL's time and resources to work in other districts.
Since its inception ten years ago BBLL has supported 840 bridges
with an average span of 65 metres, maximum 180 metres and walkway
width up to 1.06 metres. The bridges open up markets, enhance local
economies, and provide access to health facilities as well as access
to schools. BBLL has been targeting the remote poor and pays particular
attention to providing equal opportunities for all.
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