ABSTRACT
Quito stands on the eastern flank of the Pichincha volcano in Ecuador. The city’s strong population growth is leading to the uncontrolled spread of settlements on steep slopes surrounding the volcano, including environmentally vulnerable areas such as the rims of ravines and the banks of creeks. This pattern of urban encroachment has brought with it the removal of vegetation cover and the consequent exposure of slopes to erosion by wind and water, the obstruction of watercourses, and the loss of biodiversity and natural landscape.
