persuasive project urban sprawl first draft

Urban sprawl has become a consistent part of the landscape in many cities across the U.S. This form of development became popular after WWII and continues to be a prominent staple of American culture. Suburban neighborhoods were built for people who had the means and desire to move out of the city and into the country, with the intention of living a more peaceful life. As this began happening, suburbia ceased to resemble country living and started to resemble urban living, thus the sub-urban was created. Since WWII, these areas have grown bigger and bigger. They have also begun to lose their connection with a specific urban center causing this relationship to become increasingly undefined. As they have grown, suburban areas have caused automobiles to become a necessity, have promoted individualistic living and have used up valuable farmland (Silverthorn, 2004). Thus, urban sprawl is; destroying our environment by creating pollution, hurting our communities by discouraging people from living and work together and harming agriculture by destroying land. In this essay I want to dissect this statement and describe each part individually.
To start things off, let’s look at the environment and urban sprawl’s effect on it. One of the main features of urban sprawl is its use of motor vehicles. Because most people living in suburban areas commute long distances to work, cars have become the main form of transportation. This is because these areas are not dense enough to support public transportation or trains. So for people to get to work, they have to drive their cars. Also, since urban sprawl areas are so spread out, people have to drive their cars to get to the grocery store, go shopping or take their kids to soccer practice. All of this driving creates air pollution. An issue of Public Health Reports said, “Motor vehicles are the leading source of air pollution”. In many suburban areas across the nation, automobiles account for as much as 58% of emissions of nitrogen oxides and 47% of hydrocarbon emissions. This air pollution harms the Ozone and creates health problems for residents as well as residents downwind of suburban areas. So urban sprawl necessitates vehicle use, which in turn harms the environment by causing air pollution (Frumkin, 2002).
Now that we have explored urban sprawl’s effect on the environment, let’s turn to its effect on community. What I mean by community is a group of people who interact on a regular basis. Communities are characterized by social and economic interaction where goods and services are exchange locally. In addition, people are socially united by certain attitudes, beliefs or goals. I feel the institution of urban sprawl is destroying this idea of community. I believe this is happening in suburban areas because people no longer have need of each other. Local business owners no longer have a stake in their community because they no longer provide the goods and services consumed by people in those communities. Also, individuals in communities are not “about the town” anymore. Transportation is done mainly by vehicle, thus reducing the opportunity for social interaction, which is more prevalent in areas where people have the ability to walk where they need to go.
Finally, we have the issue of agriculture and urban sprawls effect on it. First, I want to explain the importance of agriculture. Agriculture is the means by which we grow and produce food, so obviously it’s important for our survival. If our country decreases our agriculture we will be forced to import more and more food from other countries. This harms our economy by causing money to leave it. There are also health issues to think about regarding the quality of imported food. With all this said, food produced in America and more specifically food produced locally, is the most preferable choice. Now that we know why it’s important, we see that the increase in urban sprawl, which eats up valuable land, is threatening agriculture. According to Tim Bishop of the New York Times, “Nationally, preserving open space is the single most important environmental imperative, considering the Department of Agriculture's estimate that urban sprawl will consume 95 million acres of farmland over the next two decades”. With less and less land available for agriculture, the ability for America to locally produce food is diminishing. So, we see that urban sprawl is having a real effect on agriculture by destroying valuable land, which could be used for growing food.
At the begging of this essay I stated that urban sprawl is having harmful effects on our environment, communities and agriculture. Through my examination of these issues I showed what these harmful effects are. I also provided reason why it’s important for Americans to be aware of these issues. When I look at urban sprawl as a whole, I feel that something needs to be done about it. One way to start the process of change is to be aware of one of the main causes of urban sprawl, consumption. The amount Americans consume is not sustainable. These suburban areas are hot beds for unsustainable consumption, especially in the regards to energy. As I stated before, motor vehicles are the main source of transportation in suburban areas. Sustaining this rate of energy consumption is not going to be possible forever. Understanding the issues is the first step and once it has been obtained, plans can be formed and change can begin to happen.

Works Cited
Bishop, Tim (2006, 12, 10). Keeping the Farm in the Family. The New York Times, p. 14LI.

Frumkin, Howard (2002).Urban Sprawl and Public Health. Public Health Reports. 117, 201-217.

Silverthorn, B. (Producer), & Greene, G. (Director). (2004). The End of Suburbia
[Motion picture]. Electric Wallpaper, Canada