Speculations and Alternative Futures, Mumbai and Navi Mumbai
The research considers the question of where the New Mumbai International Airport Development (NMIA) is to be built. The NMIA will fulfill a key role in the organizational structure for New Mumbai city. The goal of the research is to define the feasibility of the new airport development and the environmental impact on the site.
Firstly, mapping the historical urbanization of Mumbai illustrates that the Old Mumbai city capacity has reached the saturation point along the North-South “development” axis and that upcoming urbanization and speculated development is expected along the East-West “expansion” axis. This shows that New Mumbai urban development is a response not only to economic development but also to the civic aspiration for better urban lives. In addition to this, the NMIA aims to be competitive with major European airports such as the Charles de Gaulle Airport located near Paris and thus the scale of development needs to be chosen accordingly.
Secondly, research on the mangrove system around the project site suggests that the Mumbai metropolitan ecology system requires reconfiguration as the NMIA development impacts the existing ecological system significantly. The radial transect of the area (radius 30km) clarifies that the project site is situated on the bottleneck of the entire watershed east of the site. The site is both an urban expansion point as well as an ecologically vulnerable area.
Finally, one tributary has been highlighted to study exactly how the water edge is affected by urbanization. The shape of the water can be transformed and shifted by major infrastructure and urbanization.