Environment Seminar: Rapid increase in urban sprawl in Montreal: What is our vision for the future and how could a greenbelt get us there

Current trends in land uptake for urban development across the planet contradict the principles of sustainability. Urban planning has not been able to stop urban sprawl. Urban sprawl causes loss of fertile farmland, soil sealing, and loss of ecological soil functions. It results in higher car dependency, higher greenhouse gas emissions, higher infrastructure cost for transport and water supply, and the degradation of many ecosystem services. Urban sprawl in Montreal has increased dramatically in the last 60 years. Without the implementation of rigorous measures, sprawl is likely to increase strongly in the future. To address this issue, greenbelts and the densification of existing built-up areas have been proposed. In what landscape and cityscape do we want to live in the future? How could a greenbelt help? How effective have greenbelts been in other cities?   

Dr. Jochen Jaeger is an Associate Professor in the Department of Geography, Planning and Environment at Concordia University. His research interests are mostly in landscape ecology, road ecology, and environmental assessment. Examples of research projects in his lab include trends of urban sprawl across the planet and the effectiveness of greenbelts at reducing urban sprawl. Other recent research projects address the need for better consideration of ecological connectivity in environmental impact assessments and the question of how long wildlife fences along highways need to be to effectively reduce wildlife mortality on roads. Most recently, a team in his lab developed a predictive model for high-risk mortality zones for turtles on roads in Quebec. Dr. Jaeger is looking forward to discussing with you the environmental issues of proliferating urban sprawl and rapid road construction.