ABSTRACT

This thesis analyzes the environmental impact of marginal urban development in a Colombian city. In order to do so, the research addresses the phenomenon from a multidisciplinary approach that allows, first, to identify the multiple causes that encourage this type of occupation, and second, to present logical explanations about their formation, evolution, consolidation and impact. The geographical context of the study is the city of Montería, the research was carried out in eight years, and the analyzed period of time is this between 1952 and 2010.

The thesis shows, from different disciplinary approaches, the negative effect that causes irregular occupation of ecological, social, economic and urban development subsystems, and the related phenomena generated in each, or collectively, that is, disruption of local ecosystems, health risks, insalubrity, economic imbalances and deficiencies that adversely affect urban environmental quality in the city of Monteria. In addition, different categories of settlements, associated mainly to construction type, domain origin, time of creation and perception of the occupants are established. 

The multidisciplinary approach that guides the research require the use of a variety of theoretical elements that come from not only urbanism, but from other disciplines such as architecture, economics, ecology, law and sociology, among which we highlight traditional concepts of urban development, or "informal", "marginal", "spontaneous", "irregular" and "subnormal" city, settlement of progressive development, and "self-made housing" Likewise, we provide new theoretical elements that enable a better understanding and explanation of the phenomenon, and the expansion of a glossary, yet somewhat controversial. These concepts are: "subrule housing", "transitional housing", "subrule city", "urbavillanización", "settlement of slow development," "delayed development" "precarious", "semi consolidated" and "public advocacy informal settlement" .

To achieve the objectives it has been necessary to study the phenomenon in other geographical contexts, inside and outside the country through rigorous literature search or through fieldwork. In this sense, the data was obtained directly from primary sources, and large amount of highly reliable secondary sources, mainly from Latin American, European and US experts of high international recognition in the area of urbanism and the environment. To supplement existing data, new schemes of environmental impact analysis and a proposal for intervention in informal settlements are developed. 

The research shows a number of conclusions, which according to their impact, are listed as follows: a) findings related to social and legal aspects; b) associated with urban and architectural aspects c) economic aspects, and d) ecological aspects. To reach each of them the role played by different actors involved in this phenomenon, mainly the central government, local government, community, irregular developers, land owners and NGOs have taken into account. Finally, one of the main findings established is that the main problem in this city, are not the informal settlements, their number, or population as such, but the social, economic, urban and ecological resulting from their location in sites unsuitable for housing, or likely to become nature reserve.