Spatial equity measurement in Buenos Aires Province (Argentina)

AUER, ALEJANDRA; MIKKELSEN, CLAUDIA ANDREA; ARES, SOFÍA ESTELA

Handbook of Quality of Life and Sustainability: Socio-spatial and Multidisciplinary Perspectives. International Handbooks of Quality Of Life Series

Springer

Año: 2020;

AbstractDistricts with large urban centers demonstrate the territorial inequalities in the "urban-rural continuum" where most services are concentrated in urban spaces. These disparities hinder territorial equity, understood as the geographical configuration that guarantees all of its inhabitants the same conditions of access to a good quality of life. This chapter aims to analyze territorial equity in the province of Buenos Aires (Argentina) based on the study of quality of life indicators and sustainability, and measured at the district level. The methodology used was based on the analysis of indicators through statistical methods and geographic information systems. Territorial equity was measured through the analysis of indicators that integrate the dimensions of education, water and health, dwellings, economic activity and employment, communication and connectivity, and the environment. The data sources applied corresponded with the National Census of Population, Homes and Housing, digital elevation models and monthly precipitation data, as well as reports from the Ombudsman´s Office of the Nation and of the province of Buenos Aires. The results show the presence of territorial inequalities in relation to the quality of life of the population, especially with regard to water and health services, dwellings, and communications and connectivity. Inequalities also result from territorial processes, such as agricultural development, with the consequent rural depopulation, the leaving of small producers, environmental risks from the increased use of chemical inputs, as well as the advancement of private neighborhoods and the growth of average cities, especially in districts near the Metropolitan Region of Buenos Aires.