Do internal migrants suffer from housing extreme overcrowding in urban China?

Housing deprivation is central to economic deprivation. Identifying disadvantaged group(s) suffering from housing deprivation is a necessary step before the government can design effective housing assistance programmes. Using a nationwide micro-level data-set from the Chinese Family Panel Studies, we evidence the disadvantage that internal migrants face related to extreme overcrowding. We find that renters, whether natives or internal migrants, are more likely to suffer extreme overcrowding than homeowners, nationally and in most Chinese regions. However, both rural and urban migrants are less likely to be owner-occupiers than native residents. By comparing homeowners vs. renters, we further discover that migrant homeowners are less likely to suffer extreme overcrowding than the native residents of China’s cities. Conversely internal migrant renters face the highest odds to live in extremely overcrowded dwellings. Overall, findings suggest that the Chinese government needs pay special attention to improve internal migrant tenants’ living condition, particularly so for those renting.     

Spatial patterns of residents’ daily activity space and its influencing factors based on the CatBoost model: A case study of Nanjing,China

The complexity and fragmentation of people's activity space are challenging to planners. However, the relevant studies are mostly concerned on the relationship between the social attributes and the activity space of residents in a single or several communities, or the spatiotemporal laws of activity space on a macro scale. The research on the spatial characteristics of residents' activity space still needs to be strengthened. The present study analyses the spatial patterns of residents' activity space based on mobile phone signaling data to fill the gap of previous studies that assessed residents' activity space across small geographic areas. First, according to the spatial scope and direction of an activity space and residents' activity coverage rate, spatial patterns can be divided into three types: compact, extended, and directional extension patterns. The CatBoost method is then used to statistically analyze the influencing variables of spatial patterns, and the order of importance of the following influencing factors is determined: the built environment is more influential than social and economic situations. This study aims to strengthen the understanding of residents' activity space at the spatial level and provide a basis for the optimization of communities with different spatial patterns.     

Conceptualizing mega-event flagships—A case study of China Pavilion of Expo 2010 Shanghai China

Mega-event flagship (MEF) is a dual instrument for staging a mega-event and catalyzing regional urban renewal. Despite its unfailing popularity and controversial nature, many initiators seem to equate MEF development with signature architecture, resulting in a persistent issue of underuse among MEFs in the post-event era. Although research findings indicate that the early stages hold the key to the future of MEFs, insufficient research on this crucial matter has been done to provide useful analyses as to how to achieve this. To rectify this, this paper presents a case study of China Pavilion (CP) as the most spotlighted MEF initiated by Expo 2010 Shanghai China. Through participant observation, archival records, and documentation, the case of CP was extensively explored to learn how the client organization has addressed the issues of form, function, and future positioning at the early stages. By linking the pre-Expo conceptualization with its post-Expo performance, the case brings a renewed attention to the early stages of MEF development. Although it is a single-case study, this research yields results that indicate the possibility of having beneficial spillover impact on broader-scale urban renewal by balancing an MEF’s dual mandate.     

Involving the Private Sector in Affordable Housing Provision: Can Australia Learn from the United Kingdom?

The focus of this article is to clarify the preconditions for the successful leverage of private investment to help both maintain and expand the affordable housing stock in Australia. To do this we examine a range of initiatives that have enabled such leverage in the UK and explore the lessons that can be drawn for Australia from this experience. The article provides an overview of UK experience since the 1980s and, from this, identifies the key factors that have both contributed to and constrained the expansion of affordable housing in the UK. It signals the key barriers and emerging challenges for the continued operation of this system of affordable housing provision in the UK and draws out the lessons, both positive and negative, that might help determine what is needed in Australia in order to fulfil the stated objective of the current Commonwealth State Housing Agreement—namely, to attract significant private investment into the provision of affordable housing. The concluding section addressing what might be done to increase the potential for leverage in the Australian situation, in the context of this policy goal.     

Mechanism of evolution of stress–structure controlled collapse of surrounding rock in caverns: A case study from the Baihetan hydropower station in China

During the excavation of the underground powerhouse in the Baihetan hydropower station, which is currently still under construction, stress–structure controlled collapse has occurred frequently. In order to study the mechanism behind the evolution of this kind of collapse, an in situ experiment involving microseismic (MS) monitoring was carried out in the left main/auxiliary powerhouse. In this paper, the spatiotemporal characteristics of stress–structure controlled collapse are summarized and presented. A field survey, scanning electron microscopy and MS monitoring have been used to investigate a typical stress–structure controlled collapse that occurred during the monitoring period. These methods provided a consistent set of results, namely, that tensile fracturing is the rock-mass fracturing mechanism that is most active during the process of evolution of stress–structure controlled collapse. In addition, the evolution of the microseismicity during the development of the studied collapse was also obtained. The results provide a direct case history that will assist the prediction and support of stress–structure controlled collapse disasters and contribute to excavation of deeply-buried caverns in the field.     

Has the Habitat for Humanity Housing Scheme achieved its goals? A Ghanaian case study

This work evaluates the Habitat for Humanity Housing Scheme in Ghana in the context of its goals. The Logical Framework is used to aid this assessment. We find that though the housing scheme has made progress in accommodating the low-income community in Agona and Kona, 80% of the houses develop cracks soon after completion. Apart from a few houses, the scheme has not improved any inadequate housing. Probably the most serious downside of the scheme is that it makes no serious effort to create economic opportunities in the community apart from housing. Little wonder that about 64% of the beneficiaries are yet to repay their loans.

Green Apartments in Nanjing China: Do Developers and Planners Understand the Valuation by Residents?

The Chinese government promotes green construction as part of the strategy to reduce energy consumption. In practice, green construction can be impeded because various stakeholders valuate green attributes in different ways. This paper uses the analytic hierarchy process to analyse the extent to which developers and planners understand the valuation of green apartment attributes by residents in Nanjing. Results show that buyers of green apartments rank green attributes lower than safety and accessibility, and rank healthy construction materials and comfort much higher than thermal isolation or reduced energy costs. Green developers tend to focus on aspects that define their margin, such as green attributes and locational benefits and overlook the social needs, which are not addressed in building codes and not under their control. They have better understanding of green residents' priorities with health issues; planners are more familiar with the social needs of residents and lack green marketing knowledge.     

Home sweet home? A case study of household dust contamination in Hong Kong

It is well recognized that many heavy metals have chronic effects on humans and as such, they are potential environmental health hazards, particularly to young children (see, for example, Body P, Inglis G, Dolan P, Mulcahy D. Environmental lead: a review. Crit Rev Environ Control 1991;20:299-310). Considerable attention has been paid to the study of metal pollution in city air, roadside dusts and soils. However, there is a lack of concern of the presence of trace metals in house dust in the populous city of Hong Kong, where it has traditionally been assumed that such pollutants are rapidly dispersed by ocean breezes. This research aims at quantifying the concentrations of heavy metals within the home environment in Hong Kong and their relationships with environmental factors. The results of this study seem to suggest that traffic and the age of the building and neighborhood are more important factors than the types of industry and socioeconomic status in affecting household dust contamination. The metal burdens in Kwung Tong, an old area with heavy traffic, are significantly higher than other districts. When a Kruskal-Wallis one-way analysis of variance was performed on the ranked metal concentrations in different housing districts, the Chi-square values are all significant at a probability level of < 0.001. This might be attributable to the fact that there is no highly contaminating industries (such as metal smelters, battery plants and petrochemicals) in Hong Kong. The dust metals may travel from the roads, through the windows and balconies, into the houses, as those homes that do not have their windows opened often had a lower level of contaminants in their house dust (median Cd= 3.6 microg/g; median Cu = 313.2 microg/g; median Pb = 144.6 microg/g; median Mn = 211.6 microg/g; and median Zn = 1,333.7 microg/g). Moreover, those occupants who sweep their floors or dust their furniture on daily bases, or use vacuum cleaners, had a lower level of metals inside their houses. Another finding of interest is that the color of the wall paint used in the house may be another factor influencing the contamination levels.     

Property-rights regime in transition: Understanding the urban regeneration process in China – A case study of Jinhuajie,Guangzhou

A variety of stakeholders have proposed different models of urban regeneration of China, and indicate an institutional arrangement that is more complex than a model dominated by the government or neoliberal interests. This study argues that the path to an effective property-rights regime for urban regeneration has become circuitous as it has needed to follow the trial-and-error process of institutional transition in China. Operational-level rights originally assigned to different actors have been gradually reclaimed by the land users and by the effect of market forces through ‘property-rights regime in transition’. Four rounds of regeneration were observed in Jinhuajie, Guangzhou over the past three decades, indicating the adoption of four property-rights regimes that have evolved sequentially, namely, a semi-open market for neighbourhood redevelopment, a semi-open market for land occupied by state-owned enterprises, an open market for redevelopment and an open market for both redevelopment and refurbishment. Each property-rights regime only reassigns one or two bundles of operational-level property rights from one actor to another to provide opportunities for older organisations to adapt to the new system. This inevitably led to an interweaving urban fabric and sub-optimal results of urban regeneration. This research suggests greater attention should be paid to cases of regeneration in different contexts as well as the interactions among the various stakeholders.     

Contention for urban state space and the rise of society in China: A case study of “housing planting” in Hohhot

Existing literature has overemphasized the power of state in the theorization of China's urbanization and transition, and after the reform and opening-up, substantial attention has been given to the interaction between state and market. Comparatively, the role of society has been vastly underestimated. The paper selects housing planting in Hohhot to explain how local villagers contended actively with local states for and over space to increase compensation for land requisition. The contention has caused severe social conflicts, high compensation cost, and forced demolition, thereby threatening local states' land finance and development. Essentially, space has become a useful tool for citizens to preserve their interests. This implies that with the rise of society, China's urbanization is transitioning from a high-speed and low-cost stage to a high-quality and high-cost stage. Due to the changing relation between state, capital, and society, many pertinent institutions need to be adjusted as well. The paper calls for additional attention to the state-society-relation perspective when theorizing China's urban development.     

Developing roles in change processes – A case study from a public sector organisation

Even though change is recognized to be of utmost importance in today´s organisations, there exists no common understanding of change roles. The relationship between change roles and program and project roles seems not to be clear, although many changes are organized by projects. The paper presents a case study of a transformation of a public organisation. In an action research approach together with representatives of the case study company relevant roles for the change were developed and established.     

Spatial impact of urban expansion on surface water bodies—A case study of Wuhan,China

This study aims to raise the level of attention paid to surface water management issues in spatial planning and urban development processes. In the case of cities located in alluvial river plains, surface water bodies may occupy large areas but severe ecological and environmental consequences can arise if they are given insufficient weight in the planning and development processes. After discussing in general terms some of the connections between surface water bodies and urban land use we specifically examine the situation in Wuhan, one of the largest cities in China, which has many surface water bodies in its urban region. We measure and analyse land use changes between 1993 and 2004 to lakes and shallow water bodies and their riparian areas using data derived from detailed land use surveys of the city. Our results show that urban expansion has had a significant impact on Wuhan's surface water bodies and their riparian zones. The reduction, disappearance and pollution of surface water may contribute to the undervaluation of water bodies, thereby increasing the likelihood of further impacts taking place. An integrative and proactive land use planning and management system at regional strategic level and local action level is considered to be essential if surface water systems are to be conserved and improved. Increased recognition of their societal and ecological value should be reflected in more detailed attention to the spatial requirements of water bodies and riparian areas in urban planning policies.     

Environmental values and attitudes among farmers in China – a case study in the watershed of Yuqiao reservoir of Tianjin Municipality,China

Failure to curb water pollution in China brings to the fore the issue of environmental values and attitudes among Chinese farmers. Applying the New Ecological Paradigm Scale this study finds that the pro-environmental value of New Ecological Paradigm (NEP) Worldview has a stronger standing among the studied Chinese farmers than the Dominant Social Paradigm (DSP) Worldview.     

Housing provision in high growth regions. A comparative study of four European sub‐regions

Best‐practice technique as a concept was developed for the purpose of analysing the structure of manufacturing industries. In my article I argue that the concept may also be applied to the construction industry, though the rationale differs somewhat. Instead of considering the technique embodied in the real capital, one should see it as part of the organization in Marshall's meaning. This would lead to different unit operating costs and different labour productivity among firms competing in the same market. The extent of the variation of the labour productivity during the period 1979–84 is shown in the paper. Productivity functions of different efficiency groups are estimated in order to establish the best‐practice production function. In that process it is also shown that during the period 1979–84 the efficiency of the firms using the best‐practice technique grows faster than the efficiency of all other firms.     

Does climate matter? An empirical study of interregional migration in China

This study focuses on the role of local climate conditions in spurring interregional migration in China over the period 2000 to 2010. We developed a robust empirical approach based on a correlated random effects model and a prefecture-level panel dataset which allows us to account for both within province migration flows and prefecture-specific characteristics. Empirical results reveal that climate conditions are important determinants of migration in China. Specifically, prefectures with warmer winter, cooler summer, and more available sunshine are more attractive to migrants. Economic factors such as income level and employment opportunities are also important drivers of population growth.     

Experiences of TBM operation in gas bearing water condition – A case study in Iran

The Nowsud tunnel (Lot 2B) project is a 25.7 km length water conveyance tunnel which was bored with a 6.73 m diameter double shield TBM. The tunnel consisting of 6.0 m inside diameter which lined with 25 cm thick, 4 pieces honeycomb precast segments. The geology is consisted of limestone, limy shale, black shale and Shally limestone of Cretaceous Garu and Pliocene Gurpi formations. During heading of tunnel, it was encountered with CH₄ gas emission and H₂S bearing water inrushes, up to 890 l/s. A source which could not be plugged with grouting and the heading had to be stopped for several days and months. As far as the author is aware, this condition has not been seen in double shield TBM tunneling.This case study attempts to discuss firstly the quality and origin of poison gases and water ingress into the excavations. Then, the destructive effects of the poison gases and water ingress on different parts of TBM, concrete corrosion, considerable delay in tunnel progresses and negative impact on tunnel personals productivity have been evaluated.Finally, with respect to restricted space in TBM and back up, a executable solution methods have been pursued to abatement and prevention of the poison gases and water ingress into the excavations, while the construction is in progress by double shield TBM.     

Mixed structures—A case study of a portal frame in concrete and timber

The authors explain the rationale behind the design of a 30 m span timber trussed portal frame with concrete columns. The design decisions as well as design methods are explained. They show that by using timber to its best advantage, a lightweight, cost-effective structure can be obtained.