Towards Mitigating Environmental Challenges in City Development: The Sustainable Landscape Architecture Approach
*Akagwu, M
Department of Architecture, Federal University of Technology, Akure
*Corresponding author: majaakagwu@yahoo.com
Accepted on June 20, 2014
Abstract
Human developmental activities on the biophysical environment have precipitated a number of adverse impacts on the environment resulting to a number of environmental challenges. It is no secret that building construction and operations, urban growth and city development have enormous direct and indirect impact on the environment. These impacts are in terms of energy use, atmospheric emissions, use of raw materials, waste generation, water use and many other city degrading problems. The intergovernmental panel on climate change (2007) reports that carbon (IV) oxide equivalent of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere has already exceeded 400parts per million. This has been considered a critical point and already above the threshold that can potentially cause dangerous climate change. In the quest to curb these prevailing environmental problems, a conceptual developmental approach broadly referred to as sustainability was evolved. This is a mode of human development in which resource use aims to meeting human needs while ensuring the maintenance of natural systems and the environment both now and in the future. The issue of open spaces is very central in establishing the implications of landscape architecture on the environmental sustainability of the city development. This paper through the methods of conceptual analysis of literature and case study of some major open spaces in Lagos, Nigeria, reveals that Sustainable landscaping involves the consideration of ecological, social and economic aspects when implementing a plan. This paper outlines different environmental challenges and how sustainable establishment of natural and artificial landscape elements in open spaces can be used to mitigate the prevailing problems.