An Eco-Marxist Analysis of Oil Depletion via Urban Sprawl

摘要

The United States' urban zones are the most sprawled in the world. Urban sprawl in the US substantially contributes to global oil depletion and to the global warming phenomenon. In this article the author demonstrates that urban sprawl can only be fully comprehended within the political economy framework developed by Karl Marx. Marx concepts of value and rent are indispensable to understanding the profligate use of fossil fuels vis-d-vis urban sprawl. Additionally, the author shows that the public policy-making process that prompted/maintains urban sprawl in the US is consistent with the business dominance view of public policy formation.