Whole regions 197urbanization and natural resources. Both present and future impacts around
different towns are likely to vary and fluctuate. Targeting windows of oppor-
tunity for local natural-resource protection, and using planning and economic
resources of the region as a whole, should provide for the future.
Nearby major cities and political/administrative units
[R9]Most metropolitan areas have nearby major cities outside the urban region
in 25--50 % of the surrounding directions; a fifth of the metro areas are nearly surrounded
by other cities, and a few have no nearby cities(Figure7. 19).
Nearby major cities outside an urban region are competitors, often for space
and resources in the outer portions of a region, as illustrated above for Philadel-
phia. Metro areas surrounded by outside cities would do well to quickly focus
on land protection in the outer portions of their urban regions.
[R10] Two-thirds of the urban regions contain land of a different major political/
administrative unit (one-third does not), and for 20 % of the regions half or more of the
directions surrounding a city include such land in the urban region(Figure7. 19).
This suggests considerable competition for space and resources in outer por-
tions of urban regions, where political control and decisions by, e.g., another
nation, province/state, or county, diminish the influence of the core city. For
example, critical water-supply sources and drainage-basin protection for the
metropolitan area are often in the outer portion of a region. The regions with
different major political/administrative jurisdictions in several directions prob-
ably need some kind of an ongoing regional authority, in order to plan and
sustain regional resources for all political/administrative units over time.
In summary, 41 ‘‘major” patterns and results emerge here from comparing the
38 urban regions worldwide. These patterns apply to built systems, built areas,
and whole regions. Adding the results for nature, food, and water (Chapter6)
makes a total of 78 patterns identified from the global urban-region analysis. Of
course, other patterns, including many minor ones, exist.
Surprisingly, very few of the patterns correlate with either geography or city
population size (Chapters6 and7). Patterns for natural systems and their human
uses seem to cut across culture, geography, and city size, and be inherent char-
acteristics of urban regions themselves. As a consequence, the patterns suggest
general principles and useful guidelines of wide applicability. Indeed that is a
salutary conclusion for planning, natural systems, and society.