Urban Sprawl and Public Health

by Frumkin, Howard; Frank, Lawrence; Jackson, Richard

• ISBN13: 9781559633055
• ISBN10: 1559633050
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2004-07-09
• Publisher: Island Pr

Summary

In Urban Sprawl and Public Health, Howard Frumkin, Lawrence Frank, and Richard Jackson, three of the nation's leading public health and urban planning experts explore an intriguing question: How does the physical environment in which we live affect our health? For decades, growth and development in our communities has been of the low-density, automobile-dependent type known as sprawl. The authors examine the direct and indirect impacts of sprawl on human health and well-being, and discuss the prospects for improving public health through alternative approaches to design, land use, and transportation. Urban Sprawl and Public Health offers a comprehensive look at the interface of urban planning, architecture, transportation, community design, and public health. It summarizes the evidence linking adverse health outcomes with sprawling development, and outlines the complex challenges of developing policy that promotes and protects public health. Anyone concerned with issues of public health, urban planning, transportation, architecture, or the environment will want to read Urban Sprawl and Public Health.

Author Biography

Howard Frumkin is Professor and Chair, Department of Environmental and Occupational Health, Rollins School of Public Health of Emory University, and Professor of Medicine, Emory Medical School in Atlanta.

Table of Contents

Preface	xi
Acknowledgments	xix
CHAPTER 1 What Is Sprawl? What Does It Have to Do with Health?	1	(25)
Defining and Measuring Sprawl	3	(2)
Core Concepts: Land Use and Transportation	5	(10)
Varieties of Sprawl	15	(4)
The Subjective Experience of Sprawl	19	(3)
Overview of This Book	22	(4)
CHAPTER 2 The Origins of Sprawl	26	(18)
Transportation	27	(1)
The Pull of the Suburbs	28	(6)
Expanding Cities: From Growth to No Growth	34	(1)
The Automobile Age	35	(1)
Zoning	36	(2)
Federal Housing Policy and Suburban Growth	38	(1)
Urban Sprawl in the Postwar Years	39	(3)
Conclusion	42	(2)
CHAPTER 3 The Evolution of Urban Health	44	(21)
Urban Pestilence and Filth	46	(11)
Industrial Pollution in Cities	57	(4)
The Social Pathology of City Life	61	(3)
The Future of Urban Health	64	(1)
CHAPTER 4 Air Quality	65	(25)
Land Use, Transportation, Air Quality, and Health: A Model	65	(3)
Travel Behavior, Emissions, and Air Quality	68	(11)
Air Quality and Public Health	79	(10)
Conclusion	89	(1)
CHAPTER 5 Physical Activity, Sprawl, and Health	90	(19)
The Varieties of Physical Activity	92	(2)
The Health Benefits of Physical Activity	94	(3)
Physical Activity and the Built Environment	97	(8)
Limits to What We Know	105	(2)
Conclusion	107	(2)
CHAPTER 6 Injuries and Deaths from Traffic	109	(14)
Motor Vehicle Crashes	110	(3)
Pedestrian Injuries and Fatalities	113	(8)
The Risk of Leaving Home	121	(2)
CHAPTER 7 Water Quantity and Quality With Steve Gaffield	123	(14)
Water and Health: An Overview	123	(3)
The Hydrology of Sprawl	126	(5)
Sprawl and Water Quality	131	(4)
Conclusion	135	(2)
CHAPTER 8 Mental Health	137	(24)
The Mental Health Benefits of Sprawl	138	(1)
The Mental Health Costs of Sprawl	139	(1)
Driving and Mental Health	140	(18)
Sprawl and Mental Health: The Big Picture	158	(3)
CHAPTER 9 Social Capital, Sprawl, and Health	161	(25)
What Is Social Capital?	161	(4)
The Decline of Social Capital	165	(1)
Does Social Capital Affect Health?	166	(5)
Does Sprawl Undermine Social Capital?	171	(9)
The Role of Income Inequality	180	(4)
Conclusion	184	(2)
CHAPTER 10 Health Concerns of Special Populations	186	(15)
Women	186	(2)
Children	188	(7)
The Elderly	195	(2)
Poor People and People of Color	197	(2)
People with Disabilities	199	(1)
Conclusion	200	(1)
CHAPTER 11 From Urban Sprawl to Health for All	201	(22)
Healthy Places	202	(2)
Smart Growth	204	(9)
Limits to Smart Growth	213	(3)
A Public Health Approach to Smart Growth	216	(4)
A Shared Vision: Land Use and Transportation for Public Health	220	(1)
Conclusion	221	(2)
Notes	223	(56)
Bibliography	279	(46)
Index	325