Regional and Urban Change and Geographical Information Systems and Science: An Analysis of Ontario, Canada

Description

This book presents a systematic analysis of challenges in the field of Geographical Information Systems and Science, geographical analysis, and regional science for Ontario, one of the fastest-changing provinces in Canada and one of North America's largest economic hubs. In nine chapters, the book offers advanced spatial analysis techniques and digital data content to integrate Geographic Information Systems (GIS) as tools to tackle regional and urban challenges. The chapters address the following main topics: 1) state-of-the-art approaches for regional discrepancies, 2) investigations of available methods for advanced spatial analysis, 3) identification of regional patterns and land use dynamics, 4) availability of Web 3.0 data content for regions without standardized data, and 5) the limitations and challenges of urbanization and its impact on landscape, heritage and ecosystems.   The volume is divided into four sections dealing with key issues in Ontario, each addressing the use of GIS for crucial regional decision-making. The book will be of interest to researchers, undergraduate and graduate students, planners, regional scientists, and policy makers. Contents Chapter 1: Land-Use and Land Cover Change: Advancing with Geographic Information Science 1.1 Land Use in Ontario 1.2 Ontario’s Greenbelt 1.3 Ontario’s Land-Use Organizations 1.4 The Importance of Regional Models for Land Use 1.5 Governmental Initiatives of Land-Use Collection 1.6 Urban Land-Use Planning in Ontario 1.7 Volunteered Geographic Information as Land-Use Sources 1.8 Conclusions and Future Work References Chapter 2: Urban Sprawl into the Niagara Region: Urban Encroachment on Agriculture 2.1 Introduction 2.2 Study Area 2.3 Protection Groups and Policies 2.3.1 Niagara Escarpment Biosphere Reserve 2.3.2 Niagara Escarpment Planning and Development Act (NEPDA) 2.3.3 Niagara Escarpment Commission (NEC) 2.3.4 Niagara Escarpment Plan (NEP) 2.3.5 Greenbelt Act/Plan 2.4 Defining Landscape 2.5 Data 2.6 Methods 2.7 Landscape Metrics 2.8 Results 2.9 Conclusions References Chapter 3: COVID-19 in Toronto: Investigating the Spatial Impact of Retailers in the Food Retail and Food Service Sector 3.1 Introduction 3.2 Literature Review 3.2.1 Factors Influencing the COVID-19 Pandemic 3.2.2 COVID-19 Impact on the Economy and Retail 3.2.3 Changes in Consumer Shopping Behavior and Consumption 3.2.3.1 Stockpiling and Hoarding 3.2.3.2 Restaurant to Grocery Store Purchases 3.2.3.3 Transition to Online Purchasing 3.2.4 Applications and Methods Used 3.2.4.1 Qualitative Approaches 3.2.4.2 Quantitative Approaches 3.3 Study Area 3.4 Data 3.4.1 COVID-19 Data Gathering and Pre-processing 3.4.2 Retail Data Gathering 3.4.3 Socio-economic Data Gathering and Pre-processing 3.5 Methodology 3.5.1 Kernel Density 3.5.2 Assessing Spatial Autocorrelation: Using Global Moran’s I 3.5.3 Local Moran’s I Statistic 3.5.4 Geographically Weighted Regression 3.6 Analysis Results 3.6.1 Spatial Distribution of COVID-19 3.6.2 Spatial Distribution of Retailers 3.6.3 Cross-Comparative Analysis of COVID-19 and Retailer Distribution 3.6.4 Geographically Weighted Regression 3.7 Discussion 3.7.1 Key Findings 3.7.2 Contributions 3.7.3 Limitations 3.7.4 Future Research and Next Steps 3.8 Conclusion References Chapter 4: Spatial Analysis of Characteristics and Influencing Factors of Killed or Seriously Injured Persons from Motor Vehicle Collisions Within the City of Toronto 4.1 Introduction 4.1.1 Study Area 4.2 Literature Review 4.2.1 Socio-economic Factors 4.2.2 Spatial Autocorrelation Techniques 4.3 Methodology 4.3.1 Data 4.3.1.1 Killed and Seriously Injured (KSI) 4.3.1.2 Zoning By-Law Classifications 4.3.1.3 Demographic Variables 4.3.1.4 Roadways 4.3.1.5 Former Municipality Boundaries 4.3.2 Aggregation Techniques 4.3.3 Spatial Autocorrelation: Getis-Ord Gi* Statistic 4.3.4 Model Evaluation and Stepwise Regression 4.4 Results and Discussion 4.4.1 Global Autocorrelation and Temporal Characteristics of Injury Incidents 4.4.2 Global Spatial Autocorrelation Trends by Region 4.4.2.1 Etobicoke 4.4.2.2 Scarborough 4.4.2.3 York 4.4.2.4 Toronto 4.4.3 Spatial Clusters and Quantitative Characteristics of KSI by Region 4.4.3.1 Etobicoke 4.4.3.2 Scarborough 4.4.3.3 York 4.4.3.4 Toronto 4.4.4 Backward Stepwise Regression 4.5 Conclusions Appendix: Linear Feature Definitions (City of Toronto 2020) References Chapter 5: Socio-spatial Variation in Informal Caregiving to Ontario Seniors 5.1 Introduction 5.2 Literature Review 5.2.1 Definition of Informal Caregiving 5.2.2 Importance of Informal Senior Caregiving 5.2.3 Policy Context 5.2.4 Factors Influencing the Provision of Informal Care 5.2.5 Need for a Spatial Understanding of Informal Caregiving 5.2.6 GIS Applications in the Continuum of Care for the Elderly 5.3 Study Area 5.4 Methods and Data 5.4.1 Methods 5.4.2 Data 5.5 Results and Discussion 5.5.1 Results 5.5.2 Discussion 5.6 Conclusion 5.6.1 Findings 5.6.2 Limitations 5.6.3 Future Research Appendices Appendix A: Census and Canadian Community Health Survey Questions Appendix B: Language Groups Used to Create INDIV and FAMIL Variables References Chapter 6: A Spatial Statistical Understanding of Inadequate Dwellings in the City of Toronto 6.1 Introduction 6.1.1 Context 6.1.2 Research Questions and Objectives 6.2 Literature Review 6.2.1 History and Background 6.2.2 Home Characteristics and Dwelling Condition Impact 6.2.3 Resident Characteristics and Dwelling Condition Impact 6.2.4 Dwelling Conditions and Interventions 6.3 Data and Methodology 6.3.1 Selecting and Transforming Census Data from Statistics Canada 6.3.2 Methodology 6.3.2.1 Hierarchal Cluster Analysis 6.3.2.2 Stepwise Regression Analysis 6.3.2.3 Bivariate Analysis 6.3.2.4 Spatial Autocorrelation and Spatial Analysis 6.4 Results 6.4.1 Hierarchal Cluster Results 6.4.2 Regression Results 6.4.3 Bivariate Results 6.4.4 Spatial Autocorrelation and Spatial Findings 6.5 Discussion 6.5.1 Regression Model Revelations 6.5.2 Bivariate Relationships and Comparisons 6.5.3 Spatial Patterns and Insights 6.5.4 Limitations 6.6 Conclusion and Progress Appendix (Tables 6.10, 6.11 and 6.12) References Chapter 7: Ontario Wetland Policy Analysis 7.1 Introduction 7.2 Context 7.3 Current Approaches to Wetland Management in Ontario 7.3.1 Provincial Wetland Conservation Acts and Policy Instruments 7.3.2 Ontario Conservation Authorities: The Conservation Authority Act and the Drainage Act 7.3.3 Wetland Conservation Major Actions 7.4 Critique of Current Approaches 7.4.1 Critique of Provincial Management 7.4.2 Critique of the Drainage Act: Limitations Faced by Conservation Authorities 7.4.3 Critique of Major Actions 7.5 Alternative Approaches 7.6 Conclusion References Chapter 8: The Spatial and Temporal Distribution of Airbnb and Its Potential Impact on the Rental Market: A Case Study of City of Toronto, Ontario, Canada 8.1 Introduction 8.2 Background 8.2.1 Digital Platform Economy and the Sharing Economy 8.2.2 Housing and Rental Market in Canada 8.2.3 Policy and Regulation 8.3 Methodology 8.3.1 Data 8.3.2 Analytical Approach 8.3.2.1 Emerging Hotspot Analysis 8.3.2.2 Spatial Regression 8.4 Results 8.4.1 Emerging Hotspot Analysis 8.4.2 Spatial Regression 8.5 Discussion 8.6 Conclusion References Chapter 9: Urban Agriculture and the Neighborhood Context: A Geodemographic Approach to the City of Toronto 9.1 Introduction 9.2 About the City of Toronto 9.3 Background 9.3.1 Green Infrastructure and Urban Processes 9.3.2 Practical Considerations: The Need for Analysis 9.4 Methodology 9.4.1 Data 9.4.2 Data Reduction 9.4.3 Segmentation 9.5 Cluster Descriptions 9.6 Analysis of Urban Agriculture Distribution 9.7 Discussion 9.8 Conclusion References Index