Impacts of Urbanization
Introduced| English | Meaning |
|---|---|
| urbanization/ˌɜːbənaɪˈzeɪʃn/ | The growth of the share of people living in cities. |
| impervious surfaces/ɪmˈpɜːvɪəs ˈsɜːfɪsɪz/ | Surfaces that prevent or greatly restrict water from infiltrating into the ground, such as pavement and roofs. |
| urban heat island/ˈɜːbən hiːt ˈaɪlənd/ | An urban area that is warmer than its surrounding rural areas because of buildings, surfaces and human activity. |
The growing city
- More than half the world now lives in cities.
- As people move in, towns spread out over the land.
- Cities bring jobs and opportunity — but reshape the environment.
- This growth of cities is called urbanization.
What urbanization is
- Urbanization 城市化 is the growth of towns and cities.
- People move from the countryside seeking work and services.
- Buildings, roads, and car parks replace fields and forests.
- This transforms both the land and how water and heat behave.
Urban sprawl: housing spreads over former farmland, sealing the soil so rain runs off instead of soaking in
Urbanization is…
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Urbanization is the growth of cities as more people move from the countryside into towns.
Paved surfaces and flooding
- Cities cover the ground with concrete and tarmac.
- These impervious surfaces 不透水面 stop rain from soaking into the soil.
- Instead, water runs off fast, overwhelming drains and causing floods.
- The polluted runoff also carries oil and litter into rivers.
Covering land with concrete and roads creates impervious surfaces, which…
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Impervious surfaces block rain from soaking in, so water runs off fast and causes flooding.
Cities being warmer than the surrounding countryside is called the urban heat ____.
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The urban heat island effect: dark roofs and roads absorb heat, warming the city.
Heat and habitat
- Dark roofs and roads absorb the Sun's heat, so a city is warmer than the countryside — the urban heat island 城市热岛 effect.
- More traffic and industry mean more air pollution.
- And building over natural land destroys wildlife habitat.
- Urban growth changes the local climate as well as the landscape.
What does urbanization cause?
Sort each effect of urban growth by the environmental problem it causes.
Building cities over natural land destroys wildlife habitat.
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Urban growth paves over forests and fields, removing the habitat that species depend on.
Select all true statements about urbanization.
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Urbanization brings real environmental problems. The other three are correct.
An impervious surface does not just get wet — it changes how a whole watershed behaves. Where soil once soaked up rain and released it slowly, concrete sends it rushing straight into drains. That is why paving over a city can turn a normal rainstorm into a flash flood.
Rain on soil versus concrete:
- In a forest, rain soaks into the soil, feeding plants and refilling groundwater.
- In a city, the same rain hits concrete and rushes into drains all at once.
- The drains overflow, streets flood, and the water — now full of pollution — pours into the river. The land use changed the flood.
Urbanization is the growth of cities. It covers land with impervious surfaces that stop rain soaking in, increasing runoff and flooding. Dark surfaces create the urban heat island effect, traffic worsens air pollution, and building over natural land destroys habitat.