Urban ecology and transformation of technical infrastructure

• Published in: International planning studies Vol. 4; no. 2; pp. 253 - 265
• Main Author: Nielsen, Susanne Balslev
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Colchester Taylor & Francis Group 01-06-1999; Taylor & Francis; Taylor & Francis Ltd
• Subjects: Debates; Drinking water; Ecology; Economic sociology; Environmental impact; Environmental regulations; Infrastructure; Planning; Planning. National and regional planning; Sociology; Sociology of economy and development; Studies; Sustainability; Sustainable development; Urban development; Urban planning; Water supply; Water utilities; Denmark; Water; City Planning; Social network; Ecology; Environmental Protection; Economy; Local Policy; Energy; Infrastructure; Urban Policy; Wastes; Technique; Public Facilities
• ISSN: 1356-3475; 1469-9265
• DOI: 10.1080/13563479908721738

There is a need to rethink technical infrastructure for energy and water provision and for handling sewage and solid waste due to environmental problems related to the current large-scale systems. From the author's point of view this includes a shift towards combining bottom-up and top-down strategies instead of seeing such strategies as incompatible. In Denmark there is an increasing interest in user involvement and small-scale solutions to environmental problems, but still most planners of the large supply systems continue a top-down attitude towards the planning process. It is argued that the main barrier to implementing urban ecology in network management is the lack of understanding of technical infrastructure as more than technique, and the technicians' faith in large-scale solutions. Today's planning practice and the momentum of the established systems require new forums for strategic debates if urban ecology is to be included in future network management. A methodology is presented for structuring a debate on future sustainable systems, which includes new actors with very different viewpoints on network management in the debate on the transformation process.