Estuaries are dynamic features of a coastline whose sediments are influenced by riverine and marine processes. Periodic events such as floods, as well as variations in mouth status, greatly affect the energy levels within an estuary and subsequently the amount of sediment erosion and deposition that takes place. Concurrently, pollutants are transported and deposited into estuaries and can reside in the sediments for many years. The estuaries of the eThekwini Municipality in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa, are exposed to a variety of pollutants; however with the expanding industrial sector within this region, metal contamination is of concern. This study investigates the sedimentology and geochemical variations of six estuaries within the municipality namely, the uTongati, uMdloti, uMgeni, Isipingo and uMbokodweni estuaries as well as the Durban Harbour. To determine the spatial variations in estuarine sedimentology, sediment cores were collected longitudinal to the estuary axis. The core samples were analysed for sediment colour, texture and organic matter content. To assess the geochemical variations, core samples were analysed for Zn, Cu, Cr, Ni, Pb, As, Fe, Al, Ca, S, P, Mg, Mn, Cd and V concentrations. Some samples were also carbon dated to provide a temporal aspect to the sediment and geochemical variations. Descriptive and graphic techniques were used to examine the sedimentology within the estuaries; and the geochemical data was analysed with the use of multivariate statistics. Additionally, pollution indices and sediment quality guidelines were utilized to assess the pollution levels within the sediments. The results indicated that lower energy environments caused by protracted mouth closures in the uMdloti and Isipingo estuaries accounted for large amassing of fines. In contrast, the accumulation of mixed coarse and fine sediments in the uTongati and uMgeni estuaries was an indication of high fluvial flows and open mouth conditions. All carbon dated ages for all estuaries were greater than 700 years which may be attributed to a combination of scouring effects from past and recent flood events and also possibly due to the deposition of re-worked older sediments from upstream. Low metal concentrations were found within the sediments of all estuaries, and the presence of fines and organic matter governed their concentration variations with depth. The uMgeni and uMbokodweni estuaries which are located immediately downstream of industrial and urban areas, were found to contain relatively higher concentrations of elements Pb, Cu, As and Ni. These metals showed high enrichment within the sediments; however actual concentrations were below sediment quality guideline levels. General pollution levels within all estuaries were very low, and can be attributed to the climatic influences within this region which has a ‘cleansing’ effect on the estuarine environments in removing contaminants. / Thesis (M.Sc.)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, Durban, 2014.

During the Apartheid period township areas were excluded from development. Townships only contained residential land uses, and limited social services of poor quality. Such areas lacked economic activities people had to travel to the city for employment opportunities and access to better services. As a result of apartheid planning, the country was left with cities and towns that are racially divided, lack access to business and other services and have sprawling informal settlements and spread out residential areas that make cheap service delivery difficult. All the above mentioned outcomes require a new approach to address the development challenges in South Africa. This led to the formulation of Integrated development planning processes, which were adopted to contribute towards eradicating the legacy of the past by providing a framework for economic, social development, environment protection and to deal with spatial and infrastructure issues in all the municipal areas. This study presents findings on the extent in which integrated development planning initiative in eThekwini Municipality has transformed and integrated the Inanda, Ntuzuma and KwaMashu (INK) areas. Based on the findings of this research it has been revealed that integrated development planning approach has played a major role in transforming and integrating the INK area, hence there has been improvement in the social, economic and the spatial aspects of development. However it is recommended that the municipality also consider development of light industries and skills development initiatives to address social and economic issues that are a challenge for INK areas / M.T.R.P. University of KwaZulu-Natal, Durban 2013.

China is a country built on traditions and one of its most respected traditions is a preference for the family unit. The closeness of the family unit is carried over into the economic life of the country. Family members not only live together, but also work together in the fields or in enterprises. The advantage of this is that families have a guaranteed labour force that is not only loyal and can also be trusted. The disadvantage however is that positioning within the business is not always based on merit and competence, or trustworthiness which can ultimately impede growth. This research was an examination of Chinese family-owned businesses that focused on their management practices. The purpose of the study was to explore the management characteristics of Chinese family-owned businesses by means of interview data collected from five Chinese businesses in the Cape Metropolitan area. The emphasis of the project concentrated on the establishment, expansion and growth, ownership and leadership, management structure, the impact of cultural factors and the strategy for the future as well as challenges in terms of competitors and environments.

No abstract available.

Thesis (M.A.)--State University of New York at Binghamton, Department of Geography, 2008. / Includes bibliographical references.

Magister Commercii - MCom / China is a country built on traditions and one of its most respected traditions is a preference for the family unit. The closeness of the family unit is carried over into the economic life of the country. Family members not only live together, but also work together in the fields or in enterprises. The advantage of this is that families have a guaranteed labour force that is not only loyal and can also be trusted. The disadvantage however is that positioning within the business is not always based on merit and competence, or trustworthiness which can ultimately impede growth. This research was an examination of Chinese family-owned businesses that focused on their management practices. The purpose of the study was to explore the management characteristics of Chinese family-owned businesses by means of interview data collected from five Chinese businesses in the Cape Metropolitan area. The emphasis of the project concentrated on the establishment, expansion and growth, ownership and leadership, management structure, the impact of cultural factors and the strategy for the future as well as challenges in terms of competitors and environments. / South Africa

One of the most pressing problems faced by large urban areas is traffic congestion. Traffic congestion, or the urban transportation problem is not a new phenomenon, having existed since the process of urbanization began. Low density urbanization or suburbanization, facilitated by the availability of large numbers of automobiles has contributed to the present traffic problem. The causes of the problem have long been recognized by planners and decision makers, and viable solutions have been proposed. However, in spite of solutions being known, the problem still exists and has become worse. The purpose of this study is to observe how planners have dealt with the land use and transportation factors which contribute to the ever worsening traffic problems in a suburban area. It is hypothesized that the fragmented nature of the planning and decision making processes have resulted in a lack of co-ordination and co-operation in planning to resolve the urban transportation problem. The objectives of this thesis are to gain an understanding of: 1) why the urban transportation problem exists; 2) the planning process involved in finding solutions to this problem; and 3) the effect of the fragmentation of authority over various factors of land use and transportation. The methodology includes the following steps. The first is a literature review of the current thought on the subject of traffic congestion, and the factors causing it. The second is a literature review of the planning process and the theoretical foundations of current thought on land use and transportation studies. This will be followed by a case study using a descriptive historical approach. The case study reviews developments as well as past land use and transportation studies for the study area. The fourth step involves an interpretation of the information provided in the case study in light of the literature review. The area chosen for the case study is the Greater Vancouver Regional District's North East Sector. This Sector has experienced accelerated development and an increasing 111 population dependant upon the automobile for mobility. Low density land use, has created automobile dependent development, which make an automobile a necessity. A large percentage of the workforce in the area has to commute to other areas. Numerous studies have been commissioned to find solutions to the North East Sector's transportation problems. Despite the realization of the causes of traffic congestion, the solutions presented in the studies have not been comprehensively implemented to achieve workable results. There were two major findings of this study. The first is that planners and decision makers are aware of the relationship between land use and transportation planning. The second is the fragmentation of authority for different aspects of land use and transportation has frustrated attempts to resolve traffic congestion, through a fragmenting of the planning and decision making process. / Applied Science, Faculty of / Community and Regional Planning (SCARP), School of / Graduate

The concern of this study is with residential location. It is contended that while consideration of economic and broad social variables will explain general patterns of segregation, finer differentiation exists which can only be revealed when detailed household characteristics are taken into account. The hypothesis under examination is that the social character of an individual or household has a significant effect on the choice of residential location, people with similar social characteristics grouping together in the same residential area. The hypothesis was tested in two upper income areas of Vancouver, British Columbia - Shaughnessy and British Properties - the expectation being that two distinct groups might emerge, representing an old elite group and a new upper class. Such a distinction was sought in terms of three main variables - mobility, family ties and social background. After interviewing thirty households in each area it was found that two distinct groups did emerge, the Shaughnessy group displaying characteristics attributable to the old upper class - stability, strong family ties and a prestige social background common to all the members - while the British Properties residents were highly mobile, had weak family ties and varied social backgrounds lacking the prestige elements present in the other group, such characteristics being typical of a new elite. These distinct social groups are shown to be spatially segregated with households of similar characteristics occupying the same residential area. / Arts, Faculty of / Geography, Department of / Graduate

This thesis examines the opportunities and constraints facing the implementation of Transit Oriented Development (TOD). TOD consists of concentrated, mixed use development within walking distance of a commercial core and a transit stop that provide the focal point for the community and connect the resident to the region. Despite the fact that many planners accept TOD as a useful form of development, TOD has experienced barriers to its implementation. Neither the barriers to implementation, nor the opportunities for overcoming them have been sufficiently researched. This case study of land use planning at the four east Vancouver station areas of Joyce, 29th Avenue, Nanaimo and Broadway of the 'Expo' Advanced Light Rapid Transit (ALRT) line, known locally as 'SkyTrain', addresses this deficiency. Planning literature, planning documents, interviews with seven Vancouver planners, zoning and land use maps, and a land use survey provided the data from which conclusions were drawn. The research suggests that the major barriers to TOD implementation along the Vancouver 'Expo' line were poor transit routing, difficulties in assembling large parcels of land, lack of coordination between public entities, separated regional land use and transportation planning, inadequate political commitment to design and mitigation measures, the setting of goals for the station areas that are not TOD goals and the intrusive nature ALRT due to its elevated guideway. Many of these barriers correspond with those identified by the TOD literature as existing in other cities, but significant barriers that were identified in the case study but not by the literature include the intrusive nature of the ALRT technology due to its elevated guideway, the decision making process that had the province make decisions (e.g. the type of rapid transit technology to be used) without local input, and the absence of sustained implementation. Opportunities for overcoming barriers to TOD include creating more participatory decision making processes that ensure decisions that affect local communities are made at the municipal and regional, rather than provincial, level, the creation of a directly elected agency responsible for both land use and transportation planning, increased coordination between public agencies, and the creation of TOD guidelines. / Applied Science, Faculty of / Community and Regional Planning (SCARP), School of / Graduate

Since the mid-sixties, and more particularly, since the beginning of 1972, housing prices in major urban centers across Canada have risen so sharply that it has become almost impossible for most Canadians to acquire adequate housing accommodation within their means. The rate of increase in the cost of land for housing, in comparison with other housing cost components, has been tremendously high. Why is the cost of land and housing so high in a land-rich country like Canada, and what could be done to control the rising cost of land and housing is the concern of this study. This thesis argues that the existing system, whereby, land is owned, planned, serviced, developed, and marketed, has built-in drawbacks and weaknesses that give rise to many problems which contribute to the high cost of urban land for housing. It is suggested that the value of urban land mostly represents the value created due to the general growth of the urban community and public development planning decisions. The benefits from such value increments in urban land rightlyabelong to the urban community. But in the existing system, in which land is predominantly owned by private owners and developed at the will of private owners and developers, these value increments in urban land remain in the hands of the private owners. It is argued that such profits from increments in land value due to community growth attract all forms of speculative practices that, to a very large extent are responsible for increasing the cost of land for housing. This is also responsible for the problem of conflict of interest at all levels or public development planning decision-making. It is further argued that in the existing system authority for public planning and development control is too fragmented in the light of present-day regional urban reality. It is irrational, inefficient, and costly to the public interest at large. The thesis suggests that to control the high prices or urban land and housing, the existing system must be modified so that the benefits from the socially-created value in urban land can be channelled back to the advantage of the community instead of being left to the sole advantage of the private owners. It argues that this can be achieved by large-scale public acquisition of land far in advance of need for its development, comprehensive planning on regional scale, servicing, and selling or leasing of such public land for development. Acquisition of land far in advance of need for development by public agencies will eliminate speculation and reduce the cost of urban land for housing. The thesis presents a general description of the existing urban land development system with particular reference to the Greater Vancouver Region in British Columbia. The system is identified as consisting of two main components: one being the private market mechanism in which land is privately owned, developed and marketed; the other being the public development planning, development controls, and development decision-making process. The role of private development market and the role of various public agencies in the development of urban land is described. The effects of public development planning decision-making at the general urban growth on the value of land is discussed. The problems of land speculation, conflict of interest at all levels of public development planning decision-making, and fragmented public planning authority and their effects on the cost of land and housing described. The experiences of Edmonton, Red Deer, and Saskatoon with public acquisition and development control of land and their success in keeping the price of land and housing under control are cited. In conclusion the concept of public involvement in the ownership of land and its development is recommended and some measures and steps to be adopted for successful implementation of public land assembly, land banking, and development controls are suggested. / Applied Science, Faculty of / Architecture and Landscape Architecture (SALA), School of / Graduate