James Scott

Unit 2 Assignment Rough Draft: (1)Safety and Health

More essential to livability than any other factor is safety and security. Without them we wouldn’t have the opportunity to truly enjoy the places we live. Most people in the world live in some state of fear, whether it’s from civil war, organized crime or common criminals. In addition, the health of many people throughout the world is threatened by pollutants in the environment and everyday hazards. Whether in a war torn nation or the streets of Los Angeles, the presence of crime, pollution and other safety hazards poses a direct threat to the people living in those areas.

It’s fair to say that the most immediate threat to the safety of individuals within a community is crime. A community is not livable if it is not safe. Sustainable communities address crime from the bottom up, rather than the other way around. Crime is a systemic problem (encompassing discrimination, education, mental health, etc.), and being such must be addressed in a holistic manner. First and foremost is education, which treats the root cause of poverty. Nearly as important are community activities and programs that give youth the opportunity to grow up in an environment where they can learn to interact well with others and feel a sense of inclusion. Communities that offer active, wholesome lifestyles for families see the development of children into responsible, law abiding adults (notice that in order for such lifestyles to be feasible, sustainable communities must have adequate recreational space for such activities to take place).

Less apparent than crime, but just as dangerous, are everyday hazards. The greatest threat to individuals in the developed world is car accidents. An unintentional yet very desirable benefit of expanding public transportation and encouraging walking and biking is lowered public risk for vehicular fatalities. As driving has become a greater part of the American lifestyle, so has the risk for death or injury. Less traffic, fewer roads and lower speed limits not only make communities safer, it makes them nicer places to live.

A silent health threat that has become increasingly pervasive is pollution. When you breathe polluted air, drink contaminated water or eat food grown with chemicals, you are risking your health without even knowing. Our communities are saturated with chemicals. We use untold amounts of synthetic pesticides both indoors and out, the household cleaners that we touch and breathe contain toxic chemicals, and nearly every manufactured good imaginable has been treated with flame retardant, preserving agents or other materials that pose potential threats to public health. Sustainable communities, in order to ensure health and safety, use materials that are known to be both environmentally benign and harmless to living things. Sustainable communities must be both healthy and safe if they are to be livable.