Sustainable ways of managing for environmental services in Kathmandu Valley

The paper deals with the worsening condition of the environment in Kathmandu Valley. It gives an analysis of the transformation of the Valley; and identifies the causes that have helped to sustain its ecology and social system. It tries to address how its identity and character have survived so f...

Full description

Bibliographic Details
Main Author: Joshi, Jibgar
Format: Conference or Workshop Item
Language:English
Published: 2008
Subjects:
Online Access:http://eprints.usm.my/34912/1/HBP29.pdf
_version_ 1825833178355466240
author Joshi, Jibgar
author_facet Joshi, Jibgar
author_sort Joshi, Jibgar
collection USM
description The paper deals with the worsening condition of the environment in Kathmandu Valley. It gives an analysis of the transformation of the Valley; and identifies the causes that have helped to sustain its ecology and social system. It tries to address how its identity and character have survived so far. It also looks into how the people and their culture linked with the economy of the Valley, played a positive role in the wise use of its resources in the past. The Valley is urbanizing at a rapid pace. This has led to many environmental problems; and the needs of the increasing population could not be met. People leave their native villages and come here to get some kind of work in an informal setting. Their incomes are so small that they can not afford most of the environmental services. This makes the environment deplorable for them to live or work. Most people in the Valley do not have access to adequate water and sanitation. There is an increasing shortage of water. The problems of solid waste management and the poor condition of roads have worsened the environment. The quality of life is declining due to pollution in terms of carbon emission, waste generation, noise, ugliness, and dirt. This clearly shows that there is an increasing incidence of slums in the Valley. As a result, the demand for a good local environment has increased. There is a tendency to locate modern activities in more pleasant areas. This is also clear from the differences in land values due to hedonic pricing. People get urban services in different ways. In the provision of these, the primary objective of the government is not to enhance the quality of environment as such. The paper examines why the provision of services has not improved the living conditions of the people. Despite huge investments in infrastructure, the needs of the people are not met. Nor has there been any increase in the physical assets that will help to meet the future needs. It looks at alternative ways of providing services. It highlights the relevance of traditional ways that people used to manage their ambience. It works on how these can be used to develop new areas while sustaining the ecological resources of the Valley. The paper finally suggests measures for the revival of traditional ways of living and their integration to support the Valley level service networks.
first_indexed 2024-03-06T15:03:55Z
format Conference or Workshop Item
id usm.eprints-34912
institution Universiti Sains Malaysia
language English
last_indexed 2024-03-06T15:03:55Z
publishDate 2008
record_format dspace
spelling usm.eprints-349122017-06-06T02:41:38Z http://eprints.usm.my/34912/ Sustainable ways of managing for environmental services in Kathmandu Valley Joshi, Jibgar TH1-9745 Building construction The paper deals with the worsening condition of the environment in Kathmandu Valley. It gives an analysis of the transformation of the Valley; and identifies the causes that have helped to sustain its ecology and social system. It tries to address how its identity and character have survived so far. It also looks into how the people and their culture linked with the economy of the Valley, played a positive role in the wise use of its resources in the past. The Valley is urbanizing at a rapid pace. This has led to many environmental problems; and the needs of the increasing population could not be met. People leave their native villages and come here to get some kind of work in an informal setting. Their incomes are so small that they can not afford most of the environmental services. This makes the environment deplorable for them to live or work. Most people in the Valley do not have access to adequate water and sanitation. There is an increasing shortage of water. The problems of solid waste management and the poor condition of roads have worsened the environment. The quality of life is declining due to pollution in terms of carbon emission, waste generation, noise, ugliness, and dirt. This clearly shows that there is an increasing incidence of slums in the Valley. As a result, the demand for a good local environment has increased. There is a tendency to locate modern activities in more pleasant areas. This is also clear from the differences in land values due to hedonic pricing. People get urban services in different ways. In the provision of these, the primary objective of the government is not to enhance the quality of environment as such. The paper examines why the provision of services has not improved the living conditions of the people. Despite huge investments in infrastructure, the needs of the people are not met. Nor has there been any increase in the physical assets that will help to meet the future needs. It looks at alternative ways of providing services. It highlights the relevance of traditional ways that people used to manage their ambience. It works on how these can be used to develop new areas while sustaining the ecological resources of the Valley. The paper finally suggests measures for the revival of traditional ways of living and their integration to support the Valley level service networks. 2008-12 Conference or Workshop Item PeerReviewed application/pdf en http://eprints.usm.my/34912/1/HBP29.pdf Joshi, Jibgar (2008) Sustainable ways of managing for environmental services in Kathmandu Valley. In: 2nd International Conference on Built Environment in Developing Countries., 3rd- 4th December 2008, Universiti Sains Malaysia, Pulau Pinang.
spellingShingle TH1-9745 Building construction
Joshi, Jibgar
Sustainable ways of managing for environmental services in Kathmandu Valley
title Sustainable ways of managing for environmental services in Kathmandu Valley
title_full Sustainable ways of managing for environmental services in Kathmandu Valley
title_fullStr Sustainable ways of managing for environmental services in Kathmandu Valley
title_full_unstemmed Sustainable ways of managing for environmental services in Kathmandu Valley
title_short Sustainable ways of managing for environmental services in Kathmandu Valley
title_sort sustainable ways of managing for environmental services in kathmandu valley
topic TH1-9745 Building construction
url http://eprints.usm.my/34912/1/HBP29.pdf
work_keys_str_mv AT joshijibgar sustainablewaysofmanagingforenvironmentalservicesinkathmanduvalley