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Write a 1250 words paper on the topic Problem Caused by Urbanization

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Write a 1250 words paper on the topic Problem Caused by Urbanization. Urbanization has been praised because of its potential to bring or generate economic growth and prosperity, efficiency in the utilization of resources, as well as improving the well-being of persons in terms of accessing better healthcare and other facilities. However, it has also been castigated for creating massive problems in urban centers such as pollution, growth of informal settlements, crime and many others. This paper will define urbanization, identify problems caused by urbanization in Beijing and evaluate the effectiveness of solutions, which have been implemented to tackle these problems.

Urbanization is defined as the shifts in populations of persons from rural areas to urban centers in a gradual manner (Miller, 2012). Urbanization has rapidly spread across the world. Initially, the industrial revolution and the agrarian revolution largely contributed to urbanization. Today, it is estimated that over half the world’s population have found a dwelling place in urban centers, towns, cities, and megacities. According to the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), over 5 billion people will be living in cities by the year 2030. Urbanization is also envisaged to spread faster in the continents of Africa and Asia (Miller, 2012). While it is without a doubt that urbanization brings with it a wide range of benefits such as economic growth and a sense of well-being, it has also been strongly faulted for causing untold misery through increased inequality, pollution, and poverty.

Having briefly described the term urbanization, it is pertinent that we examine the problems that have been occasioned by urbanization specifically in Beijing. We will then evaluate the solutions that have been put in place to address the challenges. The first problem that has been caused by urbanization in the city of Beijing is pollution. In China, where the population is currently estimated to have reached 1.3 billion people, about 53 percent of the population is living in the cities. In the year 1950, only 13 percent of the population was city dwellers (Miller, 2012). This significant increase depicts how seriously urbanization has affected urban population growth. This&nbsp.increase in population in the city has created a myriad of problems with air pollution being one of them. Air pollution in Beijing is largely caused by emissions from coal-fired plants, which are driving the construction industries.