PERTH: Pros and Cons of living in a low density city.
Written by Dr. John Crouch

Perth, the capital of Western Australia is best described as a low density city.  Over the years it has been a magnet for migrants seeking a lifestyle built around its garden suburb character. Perth's growth throughout the twentieth century paralleled the development of the automobile. As a consequence as the population grew and new suburbs developed throughout the twentieth century the suburbs were planned with families living in detached bungalows often surrounded by luxuriant gardens. The automobile made possible the extensive garden suburb character of the city.

The luxuriant greenery of Perth's gardens is somewhat of a surprise perhaps given the long hot dry summers to which the city is subject.  Yet the relatively small nature of the city's population has meant that as Perth has grown to a population of over 1.4 million people today, most families have aspired to a detached bungalow, surrounded by a garden. They have been able to either rent or purchase such a home. 

Many of the people who have settled in Western Australia in the twentieth century came from Britain.  They were used to much higher density living than that, which was necessary in Western Australia.  Detached bungalows, surrounded by gardens were regarded as ideal places for rearing families.  However the downside of such a low density lifestyle was that the sprawling suburbs of Perth were only habitable if each family had at least one automobile and possibly two. The automobiles were necessary to take the children to school, travel to work and bring in the shopping.  Petrol driven automobiles are large emitters of greenhouse gases.

The government was hard-pressed to develop an efficient, frequently available public transport system in such a sprawling metropolis. Energy efficient transport was not an option, which could be made available to, and utilised by, the bulk of the population.

Yet an automobile dependent lifestyle is an extravagant mode of living in the enty-first century: this being a century in which governments all over the world are committing themselves to support policies which would limit the emission of greenhouse gases within their borders. 

The present West Australian government have to be identified with this twenty-first century trend. They have appointed a Minister for Climate change as one of their Ministers.  This is a clear indication of how important they see the potentially dangerous implications of climate change. 

For much of human history the greenhouse gas carbon dioxide had a concentration of perhaps 280 parts per million. However with the advent of industrialisation this concentration has continued to rise.  This concentration has trapped heat within the atmosphere to the point where climates in all parts of the world are changing and growing warmer. Governments around the world are accepting that the increase in carbon dioxide and other "greenhouse" gases can best be explained in terms of human activity.

Western Australia's population is very small: two million and ten thousand people in 2006.  However the low density nature of the 1.4 million people living in the Perth Metropolitan area does not mean that the present government of Western Australia believes that they have no responsibility to lower the levels of carbon dioxide emissions. 

If West Australians can be persuaded to change their lifestyles, for example by using their automobiles less frequently, their per capita carbon dioxide emissions would be reduced.  They would be showing the rest =f the world that they appreciated the effects, which their carbon dioxide =missions could have on others.  It would provide an example to other =arts of the world where the population is much higher than in Perth and =here far more greenhouse gases are emitted to the atmosphere.

If carbon dioxide levels are going to continue to increase unchecked many scientists fear that the large ice sheets of the earth will melt. One of =he effects of this change will be to cause a sea level rise.  This would have a damaging effect on all coastal low lying regions of the world.  this would have a disastrous effect on delta regions of the world, including of course West Bengal and Bangladesh.  Part of the difficulty with carbon dioxide is that once it is released into the atmosphere from the burning of fossil fuels in can remain there as a gas for up to a century.  Thus the increase use of carbon based fuels in Western Australia, can be portrayed as a morally indefensible action, in spite of the small population.

The West Australian government, through the appointment of a Ministry of climate Change, acknowledge that the people of Perth have an international obligation to play their part in lowering greenhouse gas emissions.

The State government have committed themselves to support the total deduction of greenhouse gas emissions by 60 per cent below those emissions pertaining in 2000 by the year 2050.  As an interim measure: in order to achieve this goal, the government have committed themselves to purchase 20 percent of its energy needs from renewable resources such as wind power by 2010.  Wind power is being used to power the new desalination plant necessary to top-up Perth's water supply in order to maintain its garden suburb lifestyle.  Solar water heaters are being encouraged to conserve fossil fuel use. Suburbs are being specially designed around railway stations, so that for the first time in Perth history, citizens have a real choice between the automobile and safe, frequent and environmentally friendly public transport systems. 

Visitors from Bangladesh and West Bengal will find that in the Perth of the years ahead, policies are being pursued, which will aim to be carbon neutral" and not contributing to sea level rise and thus posing any threat to the Gangetic delta.