S e a r c h f o r a S u s t a i n a b l e C i t y
89
Figure 1 Tripod Sustainable Development
Source: International Council on Local Environmental Initiatives(1996) cited in Newman and Keynworthy,
1999.
Metabolic Model
Based on the concept of Sustainable Development and ally to the thought of that “the
city is a dynamic and complex ecosystem” (NEWMAN and KENWORTHY 1999),
Newman and Kenworthy (
id
.) had developed a method for measurement of the
sustainability, through quantitative municipal data. In this method, they had called
Extended Metabolic Model of Human Settlements.
In the method, is related the size of the city (density) with the sustainability (efficiency),
where, how much bigger it will be a city, greater its efficiency or structural complexity.
Newman and Kenworthy (
ibid
.) still say that: “the ecological standards assist to see that
how much bigger if becomes the city, as in a mature ecosystem, it is directed to a more
efficient use of resources and a higher level of information, organization and
environmental control."
