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Urbanization and Environmental Effects
Executive Summary

1. This sector report has defined three regions in TRA, according to urbanization status and the situations of biodiversity and international waters. The first region is central district. The second is peripheral district. And the third region is exterior district. Central district and peripheral district are the main body of this sector report.

2. Urbanization in TRA can be characterized as:
- Overall urbanization level in TRA is in a medium size. There still exists certain distance compared with developed countries. And it is lower than average urbanization level of Russia and higher than China. (In the view of China sector and Russia sector)
- There is an unbalanced distribution of urbanization development in TRA. Urbanization in China sector owns the characters of low starting point and high speed, full of energy and vitality. In Russia sector, characters of urbanization can be described as high starting point and stable development. In DPRK sector, there is low urbanization level and lack of motive power.
- Due to large population, in China sector there is broader urbanization region, larger radius and higher frequency of human activities, which lead to heavier pressure on environment.

3. Impacts of urbanization in TRA on biodiversity are as follows:
- The urban construction, which cause the loss of habitats of biology and fragmentation of large ecosystems and hinder the immigration and reproduction of the biology and
- The industry development, which decrease the habitats of biology by industrial factory land use and the solid waste land used, and damage the growth of the biology by discharging the toxic industrial effluent, and cause the fragmentation of the large ecosystems by mining the raw materials and by factory land use
- The increasing radius of human, which destroy the ecosystem by tourism and transportation lines, hinder the reproduction of biology by transportation and building dams, decrease the number of wild plants and animals by poaching and hunting and over collecting
- The agriculture production, which convert habitats to agriculture land and affect the growth of the biology by using chemical fertilizer, pesticide and agriculture plastic film
- Increasing sewage and refuse which cause the loss of habitats by piling the solid wastes, damage the aquatic animals and the other animals by discharging the sewage into rivers and the toxic solid wastes.

As a whole, the urbanization in China sector on TRA affects the biodiversity from the above aspects stronger than that in Russia sector. The biodiversity state is still good in TRA.
4. Impacts of urbanization on international waters are as follows:
- Urban population growth and industry development increase the demand for freshwater, and also acerbate the contradiction between limited water supply and increasing water demand.
- Urban infrastructure doesn't match with urban productive function especially treatment facilities, which lead into the pollution of Tumen River.
- In recent 10 years, the pollution situation in Tumen River got peak point in 1995, and presently, is ameliorated a lot, due to anthropogenic effective ways. However, there still exist 2 enterprises that are urgent to be harnessed. Moreover, problems of domestic pollution will become more and more apparent.
- Comparative to China sector, inland water pollution is slight in Russia sector, due to small population and less industry enterprises. But with the coming of economy recovery, the pollution problem still needs concern.
- There have no been great changes of pollution sources distribution in the recent 10 years.
- The situation with pollution of Rivers in South Primorye and North-Eastern China and aquatory of the western part of the Peter the Great Bay is alarming and requires immediate actions on construction and commissioning of wastewater treatment facilities and development of river and marine monitoring network on the territory of Russia, China and Northern Korea.
- In the whole, groundwater in China sector is of good quality, though fairly slight contamination can be observed. Quality of Groundwater in the Russian sector of TRE is satisfactory. But there exists potential threat of pollution.
- Urbanization impacts on soil are mainly from industrial effluents and slag, polluted water irrigation. Soil and water loss has also been a serious problem caused by urbanization.

Recommendations
1. Defining urban development guidelines, which is beneficial to the protection of biodiversity, international waters and sustainable development.
- on the whole, controlling the amount and distribution between cities, so as to decrease perturbations on biological habitats.
- individually, controlling the extension of urban land, making full use of urban potential and increasing urban capacity, so to alleviate the pressures on eco-environment and water sources.

2. Formulating scientific and reasonable urban planning and constructing ecological cities
- providing enough spaces for animals and plants growth, by the ways of reasonably laying out cities, and coping with the relation of cities, protected areas and waters, and the relation between transport corridors and immigration lines of animals.
- replacing the construction materials which are hazardous or can lead to forest decrease, through urban management; meanwhile, specifying the position, amount, and means of digging and filling; treating construction garbage.

3. Constructing and perfecting urban infrastructures, which are conductive to environmental protection, so to minimize pollution intensity.
- treating industrial waste to harmless standard
- constructing urban drainage system which can separate rain and sewage in each city.
- improving treated rate of industrial and domestic effluents to 100%.
- classifying, bagging, recovering and harmlessly treating domestic wastes.

4. Actualization of choosing and restricting system for industrial projects in terms of environment and ecology.
- all new projects and extended projects should meet the requirement of cleanness and saving water.
- mainly developing ecological tourism, strictly restricting sightseeing places and transport lines in protected areas and forbidding hurting.

5. Reinforcing the construction and management of natural reserves.
- further strengthening facilities and system construction, so to really reach the goal of protection.
- enlarging protected scope in more populated areas such as the new reserves in China sector
- building and protecting "green corridors" between reserves and between biological habitats, so to ensure habitual immigration and reproduction of animals.
- further returning arable lands to forest and grass lands, and controlling mined areas, so to restrict and decrease erosion areas.

6. Harnessing and controlling serious pollutants sources with clear point
- restricting or harmlessly replacing pesticides in urban life and grasslands
- strictly monitoring and controlling discharged sewage exits.
- renovating main severe pollution enterprises and towns, emphasis laid on Shixian, Kaishantun of China

7. Strengthening government management and administrative methods
- formulating policies such as investment policy, population policy, and industry policy, and establishing environmental protection atmosphere.
- perfecting laws and systems, such as tourism controlled system, discharged sewage controlled system, controlling constructive material system and protected area system.

8. Strengthening publication and education of environmental protection and intensifying citizens' consciousness of environment.