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wentieth century cities have created not only an attractive area for the ambitious young individual pursuing a career, or a central business area; it has also attracted a new and wild population- the vermin. Rising numbers in the population of urban areas has generated more waste material in a limited dumping space. Garbage in some areas, are collected twice for the week, leaving garbage to be stockpiled in local areas. Consequently, this attracts vermin in their numbers and different kinds. Cockroaches, rats, flies, fleas, even stray dogs and cats find meals in the communities’ refuse. These unwanted guests bring with them diseases of all sorts passing them to humans. In a previous blog post I mentioned my exploration of Port of Spain, me and my colleagues noticed many things that would invite vermin. Bins overflowing with garbage, and food items scattered about, perhaps from which a stray dog or cat made a meal. I just couldn’t help but wonder where are all the city corporation cleaners?

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and reclamation is the processes involved in creating new land from oceans, riverbeds or lakes. It is also known as land fill (not to be confused with landfill). Cities occurring near the coastline (coastal cities) have employed this strategy to expand their cities. The Port of Spain International Waterfront Centre at Wrightson Road, Port of Spain, sits on reclaimed land. Such cities or buildings face threats every day because there is much negativity surrounding this concept; draining of wetlands results in habitat destruction and an imbalance in the ecosystem. In some areas land reclamation is not a legal practice due to environmental laws. Reclaimed land is also susceptible to soil liquefaction during earthquakes which would damage buildings and infrastructure. Additionally it (reclaimed land) is also susceptible to flooding during hurricanes and adverse weather systems. The picture shows an aerial view of an area of reclaimed land in our capital. It shows its vulnerability to the sea. 

                          http://www.udecott.com/images/uploads/invadersbay.jpg

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xponential urban growth is having a profound negative effect on the urban population. People move into the city cause overcrowding within the area.  Overcrowding becomes a catalyst for diseases and infections as sanitation is compromised. More people existing in the city promote person to person disease transmission. Furthermore, international travel has made cities hubs for business and pleasure for tourists. This also causes the spread of diseases as tourists would bring new and foreign diseases. The pattern of settlement pattern in Trinidad makes it optimum for breakouts of diseases (clustered and lineated). The link takes you to Nairobi, Kenya, an example where the emergence of diseases in the city center has been the study for researchers:

http://www.zoonotic-diseases.org/home/research/urbanzoonoses.

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he expansion of cities throughout the world has been considered an accomplishment by many countries. Cities boast of how developed or undeveloped a country may be and suggest how progressive the economies are. I mentioned in a previous post, about vagrancy and the homeless however forgot to mention that urbanization also destroys homes. That is destruction of the natural habitat of the flora and fauna. By expanding cities, encroachment into forested areas, hillsides, valleys and even sea areas and has resulted in trees being cut, the loss of habitats, ecosystems, breeding grounds. Consequently indigenous animals are becoming endangered and some even extinct. Here is some proof:

http://www.trinidadexpress.com/news/Otter-loses-his-way-227322831.html

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rban heat island is the term used to describe metropolitan areas with significantly higher temperatures than its surrounding areas due to the effects of human activities. The main cause of this is the modifications of the environment, particularly land surfaces which store shortwave radiation. Heat is also generated by other means for instance vehicles, air conditioning coolers. The area is usually hotter than surrounding areas. The urban heat island causes environmental impacts such as an increased run off rate- thereby increasing the risk of floods; increase in pollutants like dust, smoke, ozone; a decrease in water vapor in the atmosphere because there is a reduction of plants. Furthermore it impacts on the microclimate of the area, hotter than the surrounding areas during the day and warmer at night.

          This is a phenomena occurring in both developed and developing cities. However the developed cities face more severe consequences as they span a larger area than the smaller developing cities. The more harsh consequences is smog which is a mixture of fog and smoke which traps other pollutants like dust particles and ‘hangs’ over urban areas. It is very toxic to humans and can result in sickness, shortened lifespan and death.

http://news.yahoo.com/latest-china-smog-emergency-shuts-city-11-million-055104682.html

Intense urban growth and expansion has lead to overcrowding and another dreadful phenomena-VAGRANCY. In Port of Spain, vagrancy is an issue which is steadily increasing at alarming rates. They are usually the consequences of dangerous drug abuse (cocaine and other narcotics). In my third blog post I made mention of the amounts that were observed in our capital and the disgust that a person would experience. Furthermore the vagrants may be mentally unstable and can spontaneously attack. The picture above shows a vagrant walking on the highway leading into the capital. The presence of the Beetham landfill in such close proximity to the capital is also a contributing factor for the amount of vagrants present. http://www.newsday.co.tt/news/0,148645.html

The picture depicts a traffic pile up going into Ports of Spain. Just like many major cities of the world Port of Spain is not immune to the congestion that comes with urbanization. Commuters face this problem everyday as they make their journey into the capital for work, school, business or pleasure. This traffic is the result of the vast amounts of vehicles from across the island coming into the capital. Also the narrow roadways may not be able to accommodate number of cars moving in and out. Added to this, the amount of traffic lights should be increased to regulate the flow.

Traffic congestion, pile up, whatever it may be called is a major problem in even the so called first world cities and not just confined to our small island city. Check this out: http://www.usatoday.com/story/money/cars/2013/05/04/worst-traffic-cities/2127661/

Having explored the city (POS), I was able to discover that our capital faces numerous problems. Firstly I disliked the vast numbers of homeless people that were on the streets. They pose a threat to pedestrians as some of them may be mentally and can spontaneously attack. Apart from them being dangerous, it is completely distasteful for the tourism sector. 

Added to this, is the pollution I noticed along the tour. Litter was strewn throughout the streets, in the river and garbage was heaped as if the area is a dumping ground. This problem should be immediately rectified by providing bins or more frequent garbage collection. And as mentioned before Trinidad is a tourist destination and garbage is a far from pleasant sight.

Also some areas of the main shopping streets (Charlotte and Henry Streets) were congested with vendors, retailing goods. Passersby are forced to walk on the roadway since pavements are no longer able to accommodate the capacity of persons on the move. Children are forced to walk on the streets, putting them at a risk of becoming road accident victims.

Despite the many issues our capital city possesses, (which might I add is common to many other cities in the developing and developed worlds), there appears to be a lot of good coming out as well. For instance, the city is compact- shopping malls, stores, food courts, hotels and other service centers  are available “a stone’s throw away” from each other. One doesn’t have to commute far or go out of their way to get errands done. The presence of police on foot patrol made me and I’m sure others feel safe, as well as aided in the traffic movements.

To sum it all up, the exploration and my findings were both enlightening and interesting and definitely a good experience for me. 

As any other city, Trinidad’s capital Port of Spain, faces pollution in its various forms as one of its urban problems. Air pollution is derived from the substantial amounts of vehicles that come into the city on a daily basis. Streets are filled and lined with cars emitting poisonous carbon monoxide and large quantities of particulate. The tropical heat combined with the heat of automobiles, machinery use and the concrete forests makes Port of Spain an urban heat island compared to its surrounding areas.

Furthermore improper disposal of garbage is evident in the city. Unsightly heaps of rubbish can be seen along the roadway of the city, making it not only hazardous but also a tourist distraction.

Urban catalysis is the term given to the series of projects geared towards urban development. Increasing urban areas encourages stimulation of economic activity via commercial enterprise; therefore it is responsible for the establishment of the major cities of the world. Despite the benefits of urbanization, there are also many adverse effects.

Adverse effects of urbanization.

Slums also known as informal settlements are areas of densely populated villages usually around the city area. They are characterized by poorly constructed houses (galvanize, plastic, pieces of boards) shanty towns and squalor. Sea lots in northern Trinidad is an example of a slum area. Bordered by the busyness of the capital on the east, and the unpredictable waters of the gulf to the west, the slum exists just as any other settlement in Trinidad and Tobago. As one passes this area to enter the capital, litters can be seen strewn throughout the street connecting to the rest of the capital; graffiti decorates the walls of unpainted, mold covered walls of buildings aged with weather. Signs of dilapidation, poverty and neglect are visible to the naked eye.

An aerial view of shacks in Sea Lots, Port-of-Spain by the sea front. 

PHOTO: EDISON BOODOOSINGH

http://guardian.co.tt/news/2013-04-07/seeing-future-sea-lots