University of Western Sydney, Australia.
Int J Urban Reg Res. 2012;36(2):245-60. doi: 10.1111/j.1468-2427.2011.01094.x.
Shrinking mining cities — once prosperous settlements servicing a mining site or a system of mining sites — are characterized by long-term population and/or economic decline. Many of these towns experience periods of growth and shrinkage, mirroring the ebbs and flows of international mineral markets which determine the fortunes of the dominant mining corporation upon which each of these towns heavily depends. This dependence on one main industry produces a parallel development in the fluctuations of both workforce and population. Thus, the strategies of the main company in these towns can, to a great extent, determine future developments and have a great impact on urban management plans. Climate conditions, knowledge, education and health services, as well as transportation links, are important factors that have impacted on lifestyles in mining cities, but it is the parallel development with the private sector operators (often a single corporation) that constitutes the distinctive feature of these cities and that ultimately defines their shrinkage. This article discusses shrinking mining cities in capitalist economies, the factors underpinning their development, and some of the planning and community challenges faced by these cities in Australia, Canada, Japan and Mexico.
收缩中的矿业城市——曾经是为一个或多个矿业点或矿业系统提供服务的繁荣聚居地——其特征是人口和（或）经济的长期衰退。许多这些城镇经历着增长和收缩的周期，反映了国际矿产市场的兴衰，而这些市场又决定了每个城镇都严重依赖的主导矿业公司的命运。对一个主要产业的这种依赖，导致劳动力和人口的波动也呈现出平行发展。因此，这些城镇的主要公司的战略在很大程度上可以决定未来的发展，并对城市管理计划产生重大影响。气候条件、知识、教育和卫生服务以及交通联系都是影响矿业城市生活方式的重要因素，但与私营部门运营商（通常是单一公司）的平行发展构成了这些城市的显著特征，并最终决定了它们的收缩。本文讨论了资本主义经济中的收缩中的矿业城市，支撑它们发展的因素，以及澳大利亚、加拿大、日本和墨西哥这些城市在规划和社区方面面临的一些挑战。
