Sustainable Curitiba

By PCH’s Year 10 Class

RecyclingRecycling is the process or reusing waste materials to make new products.

However, Curitiba have a different way of recycling compared to other cities; the green swap.

The normal recycling lorries used across the city cannot get down the narrow unpaved roads in the poorer areas. Instead, they are encouraged to bring their waste to a recycling point. Here, it can be exchanged for food or travel cards to use the busses across the city. Some are also given basic food bags of rice, beans, eggs, bananas and carrots that the city buys inexpensively from the state’s farmers.

At the green exchange, poor people are encouraged to bring their unwanted food that they have grown. This means that they can swap produce with other people throughout the town.

Recycling in Curitiba is now so advanced that two thirds of the city’s daily waste is processed.

Curitiba was awarded the highest environmental prize in 1990 by UNEP, and since its start in 1989 the recyclable waste scheme has accomplished the separation of 419000 tons of recyclable waste- the equivalent of 1,200 20-storey buildings creating 280 square metres of waste.

Citizens asked to sort rubbish into organic and inorganic - rubbish is then collected and further sorted at the plants.

The program is voluntary, but 70% of households take part.

Jess Spong and Baylee Wakefield

Why is it sustainable?Economic Environment Social

More jobs are now available to the public, meaning the poor would be able to support themselves financially. This means there would be less poor people.

Less produce and materials have to be shipped in from other countries. This saves money as less will be made and it wouldn’t of had to be shipped from another country.

The recycling plants employ disabled people which is not normally done in other cities. This gives them a chance to live a normal life.

Poorer people save money from using the green exchange as they do not have to buy extra food.

Less rubbish will be on the streets, making it a cleaner and safer place. Not as much rubbish will be left to decompose.

Quality of life is generally better as there are lots of woods and forests which separate the factories from the towns.

Travel tickets are also given out at the green exchange, so they have access to the city.

Less factories to create new materials. The recycling program creates jobs amongst the poorest sectors of society.

Buses are used to transport workers to the factories, saving money from the fuel. This also eases congestion on the roads.

Recycling trucks do not have to travel any further than they need to- the people come to them.

At the green exchange, people build friendships and connections to the community,

The whole recycling program costs no more than landfill and has the advantages of improving public health with less litter, rats and disease, as well as improving nutrition amongst the poorest sectors of society, creating jobs.

Less landfill sites across the town, meaning the area is safe and attractive.

Alcoholics and homeless people are given a second chance at life by the job opportunities from recycling.

Less pollution is produced in the city, so the residents are healthier.

•In Curitiba, the work for bus lanes began in 1974. The first two of the five arterial roads we being built.

•Lanes are designated to buses only and makes the buses journey quicker, less dangerous and more efficient.

•The five arterial roads were finished in 1982. The transit system produced a spider-web effect and created access to most places in Curitiba.

•Buses are colour coded to show their different routes through Curitiba.

•Bus interchanges make travelling quick and easy because entries and exit doors are wider to fit more people through in a shorter amount of time which means the bus is stationary for less time.

•Passengers buy tickets before they board the bus saving up to an hour a day of travelling.

By Nick and Temi

Environmental

• 75% of commuters use these buses on weekdays, which means that there is 25% less congestion and 30% lower fuel consumption than other Brazilian cities.

•Bi-articulate buses have 3 compartments each holding 270 people allowing more people to travel on each journey using less fuel.

•Environmentally friendly fuels are being used such as LPG( Liquid Petroleum Gas) and Hydrogen which produces hardly any CO2 emissions.

Economical

• Buses are affordable and only 1ticket is needed regardless of how many buses they use.

•Tickets are single priced, this is to accommodate for low-income families who live on the outskirts of the city.

•The Green Exchange also allows poorer people to exchange unwanted items for bus tickets.

Social

•More people can get on a bus because of the amount of space.

•Because of less congestion people can travel around Curitiba faster and in emergencies, police, ambulance, fire brigades and people driving to hospitals can get there quicker.

In the 1970’s Curitiba developed another city as an industrial city (C.I.C) about 10km outside of the main city. This upgraded the city’s economic profile and provided jobs for citizens.

It was purposely built outside of the city because people weren't living near noise and air pollution was emitted.

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20,000 housing units have been built nearer to the industrial city.

50,000 direct jobs and 150,000 indirect jobs provided.

There are nearly 6,000 industrial companies in the industrial city (the C.I.C).

The industry site employs disabled people, allowing them to work and earn money where as no where else would have employed them before because of their mental or physical state.

The C.I.C site, winds will blow the pollution away from the main city of Curitiba. All water sources to the city

are fully protected from any pollution which can cause diseases.

Curitiba designs and produces their own cars, therefore giving more people jobs, and meaning they don’t have to import cars from other countries.

The transport system has been combined with the industrial city, to allow access to the site easier.

All waste from the industrial city is recycled to save money.

The development of the industrial city has encouraged the need for workers, therefore improving the quality of life for the citizens of Curitiba.

Environmental•The waterways and the low-lying land throughout the city that is prone to flooding was turned into parks

•People were encouraged to plant trees and residential areas have to have gardens, •During heavy rain in Curitiba, the boundaries of the parks become a waterlogged and the ducks float a few feet higher. •In the1970s, the parks created accounted for 10 million square meters of preserved land. •In the 1990s, Curitiba was designated the Ecological Capital of Brazil. Six new parks,, and eight wooded areas were created, totalling more than eight million square meters of public preservation areas.

Social•A shepherd and a flock of sheep are employed to mow the grass in the parks. Instead of a cost, the grass becomes a resource, providing meat and wool, which is sold to fund social programmes.

By Katie Harrison

Hannah Carter

Environmental•Open space had to be permeable. No-one can cut down a tree without a permit, and if you gain permission, you have to replace it with two trees. •A sixth of the city is wooded.

Economic •Public open space has grown faster than the population. As the population grew by 2.4 times, the public space per person expanded from 5 to 581 square feet per person. 52 square metres of park per capita, higher than New York, higher than any city worldwide, four times higher than the UN recommendations.

Social•The more green space there is the happier the people of Curitiba will be as generally green outside spaces cheer people up.

Environmental•Where floods used to occur regularly parks were used to transform flood plains into a beautiful place which would attract people of all ages and a place where people would respect.

•Woodlands have become more common now because they take up some the water which helps stop flooding.

•A drainage system has now been put into the river and lakes to make sure it doesn’t over fill and cause a flood.

Economic

•People's homes where getting swept away in vicious floods sweeping away all they own and leaving them without a thing in the world. With flood control this is now a thing of the past.

• People have been given jobs to install such facilities and are given jobs to help keep the park in good check, thus helping the economy.

Social•People do not have to flee from their homes because of the threat of flooding and more people are likely to live their as it’s a safer environment and the city has room to grow without damaging all the hard work put in to save this city.

Fact Sheet 2: Land Use and Public Services

Land Use

•Everyone has easy access to public transport.

•Five main arterial routes from the city centre to the outskirts are used as “growth corridors”

•Two blocks of high density buildings line the arterials to ensure growth was radical rather than all downtown.

•Mixed with this are low density residential neighbourhoods.

•“Citizenship streets” are two storey buildings built along the arterial roads – these have some of the most heavily use bus terminals.

•These “citizenship streets” allow access to public utilities and services such as water, electricity, police and job centres

Public Services

•50 “Lighthouses of Knowledge” are placed strategically in the residential areas.

•These give access to educational centres, and libraries.

•Policemen guard from the top of the “lighthouses” which improve security at night as the lighthouses light up.

•Pedestrianised streets were introduced in 1972 by Lerner, and they were a great success; improving businesses and the economy.

•In fact it was so successful that one street was upgraded to a 24 hour street, where nothing ever closes.

Fact Sheet 2: Land Use and Public Services

Social• Easy access to

transport, allows easy travel.

• The pedestrianised streets provide good shopping space and activities during the day

• The lighthouses provide information and education not otherwise accessible.

• Lighthouses also provide security in streets at night.

Economic• The increased public

transport usage gets more money into the economy.

• Pedestrianised streets improve businesses and provide money to the government.

• The streets also contain multi purpose sports grounds and conference rooms that available free of charge or at a very low cost.

Environmental• Easy access to transport

encourages bus system; and therefore a more environmentally friendly way of travel.

• The pedestrianised streets have stopped traffic and therefore cut down on carbon dioxide emissions.

How is it sustainable?

Return Home Schemes and Improvement in the Countryside.

By: Holly, Reilly and Emma-Jane

In LEDC’s, many cities are flooded with migrants seeking escape from the countryside to pursue a perceived better livelihood. Curitiba is not exempt from these difficulties, however, unlike some of the other cities, they have found a way to resolve this never ending problem.

They have adopted a two-part approach. The return home schemes and improvements to the countryside.

Social workers, are stationed in the interstate bus stations, they provide the first part of the approach. They attempt to spot migrants coming in to the city and then they offer them free transportation home. Life in the countryside has been improved by the government to reduce the strain of the push and pull factors making people migrate to the city. The government have achieved this by providing land, houses and education for the people who farm the land. They grow food for themselves (subsistence farming) and then sell the extra food to make money.

Return Home Schemes and Improvement in the Countryside.

By: Holly, Reilly and Emma-Jane

The return home scheme is sustainable for many reasons:

•Environmental; The return home scheme means less people in the city, so there is less strain on the cities resources. E.g. water and electricity. It also takes up less green space.

•Social; If there is less people in the city, there would not be as much overcrowding, less strain on the transport system, and the facilities would be of a better quality as there will be less people using them.

•Economic; There will be more jobs available because of the scheme, as there are less people in the city hunting for the jobs. Improvement in the Countryside is also very sustainable:

Environmental; leaving green space open and natural,

Social; providing people with education and health services

Economical; jobs are created for farmers.

Return Home Schemes and Improvement in the Countryside.

By: Holly, Reilly and Emma-Jane

This is an example of the sprawling countryside around Curitiba, and how it would like to stay.

This is an aerial picture of Curitiba, the modern and sustainable city that has been created.

This is an example of the favelas, or slums that are common in other 3rd world cities-but not in Curitiba.