Cities in Western Asia have been growing at an amazing rate.  They are quickly becoming some of the largest in the world, and some of the most environmentally harmful.

From 1990 to 1995, city populations grew by an annual average of 4.2%.  People moved from the rural areas to the urban centers because they were impoverished or because their land was no longer usable.

Now, approximately 70% of the population of Western Asia lives in cities.  Much of the population shift was not fully expected.

In order for cities to thrive, food usually has to be produced in large quantities nearby.  Because there are few extremely fertile farming areas in Western Asia, the development of cities in the region is sometimes difficult.

West Asian cities have generally done an insufficient job of dealing with the waste they produce.  Especially in poorer areas, large amounts of waste often go untreated.  This can lead to health problems and contamination of natural habitats.

Many toxic chemicals are released into the West-Asian environment, as are some radioactive wastes.  Phosphate production, for example, could contaminate the water supply, causing sickness among the population.  Also, nuclear power generation has produced large amounts of waste, which are constantly threatening to leak into the environment.

For a variety of reasons, air pollution is growing at an alarming rate in the urban areas.  Many countries do not have environmental regulations, often because the cost of such regulations would be too high.  Also, many industries lack the funds and the technology for cleaner production processes.