Votre ressource mondiale sur le patrimoine
EN
ES
FR
Réf.
43317
Type
article
Titre
Investigate past polluting activities on public health and land uses
Langues
English
Auteurs
Hauser, Stephan J. / Aktürk, Gül
Maison d'édition
Cities
Date
2022
Titre de la revue
Cities: the international journal of urban policy and planning
Vol. & n°
v. 123 n. 103599
ISSN
0264-2751
Mots-clés
environmental deterioration / industrial heritage / pollution / urban development / ports / town and country planning / aerial surveys / historical surveys
Résumé en anglais
Port regions are hubs connecting a nation and its hinterland to the rest of the world. Port cities' authorities and actors have always dealt with pressures and compromises in the sharing of space between agriculture, tourism, industry, and urban developments. The limited availability of land created conflicting uses over time especially when industrial sites disappear from the built environment to leave a polluted soil and water. The current literature discusses in detail changes in industrial land use, pollution of industries, and urban sanitary issues. Yet, only a few studies investigate the consequences of past industrial and urban developments on the health of citizens. This paper thus asks: How have authorities considered historical industrial activities in spatial planning policies and what are their consequences on public health in port cities? Of all pollutants, oil appears to be the widest spread with long term risks to human health. Oil industrial development in the port city of Dunkirk in the north of France can demonstrate this influence of past land uses. The objective is to highlight the impacts of past polluting activities over current populations' health in port city regions and the potential consequences of historically contaminated sites on public health.Port regions are hubs connecting a nation and its hinterland to the rest of the world. Port cities' authorities and actors have always dealt with pressures and compromises in the sharing of space between agriculture, tourism, industry, and urban developments. The limited availability of land created conflicting uses over time especially when industrial sites disappear from the built environment to leave a polluted soil and water. The current literature discusses in detail changes in industrial land use, pollution of industries, and urban sanitary issues. Yet, only a few studies investigate the consequences of past industrial and urban developments on the health of citizens. This paper thus asks: How have authorities considered historical industrial activities in spatial planning policies and what are their consequences on public health in port cities? Of all pollutants, oil appears to be the widest spread with long term risks to human health. Oil industrial development in the port city of Dunkirk in the north of France can demonstrate this influence of past land uses. The objective is to highlight the impacts of past polluting activities over current populations' health in port city regions and the potential consequences of historically contaminated sites on public health.