A framework for assessing environmental implications of an urban area

Document Type

Conference Proceeding

Publication Date

1-1-2014

Abstract

Increased consciousness of the environment progressively put more pressure on policy makers and urban planners to ensure sustainability of the built environment. The single biggest obstacle to devising environmentally sound urban development plans is the insufficient understanding of the urban system. The interactions between various components of urban environment as well as the large number of factors affecting its' environmental performance, makes it impossible to model today's metropolitan areas in every detail. Therefore some sort of simplification is inevitable for urban environmental modeling. However, to avoid subjective assessment of impact factors, it is necessary to define appropriate quantitative cut-off rules based on needs and available resources. This study proposes a framework for assessing the environmental effects of an urban area based on the concept of statistical "parameter variation and scenario analysis." The method is capable of considering any sector in an urban development with desired level of details and provides information about the significance of environmental effects of that sector, as well as uncertainty of the results. A case study also is provided to elaborate the capabilities of the framework. © 2014 American Society of Civil Engineers.

Publication Source (Journal or Book title)

Construction Research Congress 2014: Construction in a Global Network - Proceedings of the 2014 Construction Research Congress

First Page

2365

Last Page

2374

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