Los Angeles Urban Development
How is L.A. effected by increased population?
The City of Angels
Las Angeles, otherwise known as the city of angels, started out as a small Mexican town. After California was made a state in 1850 L.A. saw a growth in population, especially due to the gold rushes of the time. Over time this city has became iconic in its own sense and is hailed as the United States television and film industries center. It also lays claim to places like Hollywood boulevard, as well as the famous Hollywood sign.
Starting around 1850 Los Angeles's population began to grow rapidly. This is especially true after WW2 where Los Angeles seen major growth in population, as well as the rest of California. The population growth has continued on into the 21st century. As of 2008, California has became the most populated state in America. Though population growth has slowed down in recent years, California still remains as having one of the highest population growth rates in America. California alone has around 36.8 million residents.
Land use around Los Angeles used to be used for farming due to the fact that it is prime farm land. The climate in this area is labeled under Mediterranean which makes it great for farming and producing crops. Though since the population growth from the 20th century and so on this land has underwent major changes. Instead of farming this land is now going under urban development for housing, commercial development, and expanse of cities. Though this process of development has been slowly increasing since the late 19th century but the booming population of the 20th has made the urban development really increase and go at a faster, more alarming rate.
Environmental and Economic Effects
Due to the population growth of the 20th century, particularly in the 1980's, the loss of farming and natural land around L.A. has been very prevalent. This land has been taken up for commercial development and housing. The 20th century saw Los Angeles become an industrial center in the United States. This industry continues to grow, which creates problems due to the fact that it is often unsightly. This makes it hard for houses to be sold and to hold their worth because no one wants to see or live near industrial sites. It also causes pollution and smog in Los Angeles. The population increase has also affected the environment in bad ways. The farming and natural lands that were once around Los Angeles helped keep flooding at bay. Though now that these lands are gone the rivers easily flood areas because nothing is there to stop this from happening anymore.
Food Production Elsewhere
There are many potential benefits and negative impacts of having food production elsewhere other than the areas surrounding Los Angeles. Some of the benefits would include potentially lower food costs, and increased business in other areas rather than just Los Angeles. In places where development is less intensive there will be more open areas for food production and agriculture. This would keep food costs down due to the fact that there would not be a lot of competition or shortage of land which would create a balance. This also creates good economic effects for smaller towns that have more land for agriculture because it gives them a good industry to thrive off of. Though negative effects are still prevalent such as production and transportation costs, unideal land types, other countries producing food, and flooding in Los Angeles areas. Production and transportation costs could be higher for growing food and such in other areas due to the land type as well as the cost of transporting the food to the areas it is supposed to go. Unideal land types are also a problem because they could need extra fertilizer and other things which relates back to production costs. Other countries producing food can be a problem due to the United States loss of industry, the wait time of shipments, as well as water usage. Water usage is a factor because these farmlands would most likely be in the west where water can be short handed. Lastly, Los Angeles would still face the natural lands and flooding issues.
Tessa Clanton
Matthew Hyppolite
4th block
