17 November 2022

Encroachment upon ecologically sensitive areas intensifies flood hazards

New paper published:

Andreasen, M. H., Agergaard, J., Kofie, R. Y., Møller-Jensen, L., & Oteng-Ababio, M. (2022). Urban encroachment in ecologically sensitive areas: drivers, impediments and consequences. Buildings and Cities, 3(1), pp. 920–938. DOI: https://doi.org/10.5334/bc.210

The paper examines the drivers and consequences of unregulated urban expansion processes in Accra, Ghana, are examined together with the associated encroachment upon ecologically sensitive areas in the city’s rapidly growing periphery.

Urban expansion dynamics and settlement consolidation wield significant pressure on ecologically sensitive areas, e.g. wetlands, riparian zones and coastal lagoons, which are transformed into housing development through drainage, landfilling, channelling of streams and construction of barriers. Encroachment upon ecologically sensitive areas is associated with intensifying flood hazards. 

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