Environmental Design Commons^™

Culvert Material Cost Comparison, New England Environmental Finance Center

Economics and Finance

The following tables provide a detailed look at the role that culvert material and culvert diameter play in the overall cost of a culvert replacement project. Table 1 displays the cost per foot purchase price arranged by diameter size for the various culvert materials that are currently available. Table 2 displays the average additional culvert pipe material cost (increased cost to upsize minus original in-kind replacement cost) that would be incurred when upsizing a given diameter of culvert with a 50 foot length by factors of: 200%, 250% and 300%.

Unlv Magazine, Tony Allen, Shane Bevell, Donna Mcaleer, Ched Whitney, Cate Weeks

UNLV Magazine

No abstract provided.

Construction Cost Models, Barry Dikeman

Economics and Finance

The following are a series of cost estimate models similar in format to a typical engineer’s estimate that were developed in support of our financial impact assessment report for LD 1725. The models us current material costs, labor costs, and equipment costs for the region to provide a comparative cost analysis of seven culvert replacement scenarios. The models provide information about what the cost impact of LD 1725 would be for typical culvert replacements in Maine. However, due to the inherent restrictions of the cost modeling framework we were not able to include the abundance of variables that would be …

Walking Box Ranch Planning And Design Quarterly Progress Report: Period Ending June 10, 2010, Margaret N. Rees

Walking Box Ranch

• UNLV has purchased weather equipment, established a weather station at the ranch, and has begun collecting weather data and conducting preliminary research. The station collects hourly data on temperature, humidity, wind speed and direction, and insolation that is transmitted wirelessly to UNLV and captured and projected on the PLI WBR website. A database of weather information will be maintained for further analysis. Research quantifying solar insolation at the ranch will be conducted.
• UNLV has begun preparing informational brochures that will be available to the public at the ranch in the future and will provide information on biology, geology, anthropology, and …

Walking Box Ranch Planning And Design Quarterly Progress Report: Period Ending April 10, 2010, Margaret N. Rees

Walking Box Ranch

• UNLV and Dornbusch and Associates have signed a contract for Dornbusch to conduct a “Visitor Services Feasibility, Compatibility, Market Study, and Business Plan” at the ranch, including all future museum and research center activities. This effort is kicking off in April 2010.
• UNLV is in the process of purchasing and installing a weather station at the ranch, and will conduct preliminary research using this equipment. Funding for a dual axis solar tracker was obtained from the UNLV sustainability initiative.
• Bill Wood, UNLV Real Estate Management, is continuing to work with Rex Bell to create an inventory of items that Rex …

Walking Box Ranch Planning And Design Quarterly Progress Report: Period Ending January 10, 2010, Margaret N. Rees

Walking Box Ranch

• To advance educational and research goals at the ranch UNLV will fund the purchase and installation of a weather station at the ranch, and preliminary research using this equipment. PI Dr. Suresh Sardineni, Mechanical Engineering, will assess the renewable energy resources at the ranch and find methods to integrate them into existing and proposed new buildings at the site. The planned facilities will monitor beam and global solar radiation, wind speed and direction, temperature, and realative humidity. UNLV will provide funding to support two graduate students and partial salary for Dr. Sardineni.
• Bill Wood, UNLV Real Estate Management, is working …

Walking Box Ranch Planning And Design Quarterly Progress Report: Period Ending October 10, 2009, Margaret N. Rees

Walking Box Ranch

• UNLV has finalized a scope of work with Dornbusch and Associates to conduct a “Visitor Services Feasibility, Compatibility, Market Study, and Business Plan” and is now working with purchasing to sole source this contract.
• UNLV is continuing to work with BLM and Viceroy Mining to obtain rhyolite from the Viceroy Castle Mountain deposit to use for building stone in the new construction.
• UNLV submitted an EPSCoR proposal requesting ~$2.67M over three years to conduct sustainable energy research at WBR, which would include design and installation of green energy technologies.
• UNLV is working with Condit to finalize the WBR brand.
• UNLV …

Walking Box Ranch Planning And Design Quarterly Progress Report: Period Ending July 10, 2009, Margaret N. Rees

Walking Box Ranch

• UNLV participated in the 100% Design Concept Plan meeting, June 10-12, 2009 at the BLM Las Vegas Field Office and Walking Box Ranch (WBR), and provided comments toward proposed concepts for the museum and field, research, and training center at Walking Box Ranch.
• A request for funding for road construction and repair at WBR was submitted to NDOT (6/24/09).
• UNLV participated in the following meetings related to the search for renewable energy funding for the ranch: ARRA Implementation Workshop sponsored by Senator Reid (4/16); UNLV Stimulus Funding Workshop (4/17), Renewable energy meeting with UNLV engineering faculty (4/21), Harry Reid Center …

Land Conservation And Land Use In New England: Trends, Challenges & Opportunities, Amanda Loomis, Tom Devine, Andrea Small, Brittany Howard, Brett Richardson, Stephanie Dulac

Land Conservation

Sprawling development patterns accelerated across the New England landscape in the last three decades and consumed the region‘s forests, farms, and open spaces at an unprecedented rate. New England‘ers in all six states formed land trusts, supported statewide conservation organizations, and collaborated with state and federal partners to protect some of their most-prized recreation lands, wildlife habitats, and working lands. The current economic recession has slowed development pressures across the region and offers an opportunity to build on recent successes. The time is right to plan a coordinated New England conservation strategy that protects and links the region‘s natural assets. …

South Burlington Vt: New Urbanist South Village, Jack Kartez, Richard Barringer

Planning

The 220 acre master plan for South Village, the largest project in the City of South Burlington’s history, encompasses multiple housing types and innovative provisions for affordable housing. It integrates housing with open space and natural resource conservation, including a major Community Supported Agriculture project developed by a nonprofit partner, the Intervale Foundation. While not a mixed-use project (that is, commercial as well as residential development), South Village nonetheless represents a qualitative change in approach for South Burlington by incorporating large-scale open space preservation as part of development and multiple housing-types in one project. The case study recounts events leading …

Walking Box Ranch Planning And Design Quarterly Progress Report: Period Ending April 10, 2009, Margaret N. Rees

Walking Box Ranch

• UNLV faculty and PLI scientists and interpreters participated in the 50% Design Concept Plan meeting, March 25-27 at UNLV-PLI and Walking Box Ranch (WBR), and provided comments toward proposed concepts for the museum and field, research, and training center at Walking Box Ranch.
• UNLV is continuing to work with the Architectural Resources Group (ARG) under our SAT grant, to complete Master and Preservation Plans that will guide the SNPLMA-funded museum and field station projects now underway.
• The National Historic Register nomination process, initiated under the SAT grant, was approved and WBR was placed on the NPS National Register of Historic …

Walking Box Ranch Planning And Design Quarterly Progress Report: Period Ending January 10, 2009, Margaret N. Rees

Walking Box Ranch

• Eight UNLV faculty and PLI interpreters participated in various components of the December 1- 4, 2008 kickoff Meeting that initiated UNLV’s involvement in the SNPLMA funded project to construct a museum and a field, research, and training center at Walking Box Ranch.
• UNLV is continuing to work with the Architectural Resources Group (ARG) under our SAT grant, to complete Master and Preservation Plans that will guide the SNPLMA-funded project that has just begun. The National Historic Register Nomination process is continuing under the SAT.
• Jean Cline met with members of UNLV’s upper administration to apprise them of the project and …

Preserving Assets In At-Risk Municipalities: Financial Strategies For Climate Change Adaptation, New England Environmental Finance Center

Climate Change

A large share of America's population, businesses and economic activity now occurs in coastal areas. At the same time, during this century many coastal communities are likely to be severely impacted by sea level rise and increased storm surge and tidal flooding.

“What to do” about this vulnerability is the subject of this brief. It is intended to help municipalities identify courses of action and steps they might take toward increasing their resilience, especially regarding financial resources that will need to be allocated toward the various strategies identified.

Heat Transfer Correlations For Low Approach Evaporative Cooling Systems In Buildings, Ben Costelloe, Donal Finn

Articles

The experimental performance of an open industrial scale cooling tower, utilising small approach temperature differences (1–3 K), for rejection of heat at the low water temperatures (11–20 °C) typical of chilled ceilings and other sensible air–water heat dissipation systems in buildings, is examined. The study was carried out under temperate maritime climatic conditions (3–18 °C wet-bulb temperature range). Initially a theoretical analysis of the process at typical conditions for this climate was conducted, which indicated that a water to air (L/G) mass flow rate ratio of less than 1.0 was required for effective operation. Consequently for these low L/G ratios, …

Portland Me: Affordable Housing V. Open Space, Patrick Wright, Brett Richardson, Richard Barringer

Planning

Amid an acknowledged “affordable housing crisis”, a first-time developer approaches the City to release part of a tax-acquired property, promising a smart-growth development that would provide sorely needed starter homes for working families. The case highlights the complications of balancing competing interests in Portland ME. It shows where rational planning fails in the presence of strong neighborhood opposition, a disjointed city staff structure, and the absence of political will among City Councilors. It highlights the need for champions within local government when a project evokes competing interests. It demonstrates the extent to which “words matter” to policy outcomes, and who …

Brunswick Me: De-Militarizing The Bnas, Anne Holland, Brett Richardson, Richard Barringer

Planning

Closure of the Brunswick Naval Air Station in 2011 will have profound economic impacts on the entire mid-coast Maine region of Maine, with an estimated loss of 6,500 jobs and $330 million annual income. Throughout the Base Realignment and Closure process, Brunswick, the region, and the State of Maine followed federal rules and developed the federally-funded Brunswick Local Redevelopment Authority (BLRA) to plan for reuse of the 3300 acre base. In its planning process, the BLRA adhered to a number of well thought-out Guiding Principles, including the use of extensive public participation and the consideration of “smart growth” principles and …

Sustainable Portland: Implementation Series 1, New England Environmental Finance Center

Climate Change

When the Sustainable Portland Task Force Report was released in November 2007, under the leadership of Mayor Jim Cohen, Portland Councilor Kevin Donoghue had the idea that students at the Muskie School of Public Service might be able to help implement recommendations from the report. It may have helped that Kevin was himself a graduate of the Community Planning and Development Master’s program at the Muskie School, but it was a good idea nevertheless. He approached Professor Sam Merrill in the CPD program, who spoke with the new Mayor Ed Suslovic about a possible partnership between the City and the …

Inside Unlv, Shane Bevell, David Ashley, Tony Allen, Mamie Peers, Allison Miller

Inside UNLV

No abstract provided.

The Costs Of Not Using Green Design In The Usaf: Would Using Green Building Design Have Resulted In Life Cycle Cost Savings?, John Kimball Osborne

Theses and Dissertations

This study’s purpose is to determine if using green building design would have resulted in life cycle costs savings for the United States Air Force. Green designs are those that employ steps to mitigate the impacts facilities have on the environment by using resources more efficiently than conventional design. The prevailing ranking system for green design in the United States is the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) rating system which evaluates facilities on certain characteristics, assigning point values that translate to non-certified, certified, silver, gold, or platinum ratings. The author attempts here to show how previous studies indicated …

Allagash Wilderness Waterway Working Group On Structure, Management And Oversight: Choosing Common Ground And Moving Ahead, Allagash Wilderness Waterway Working Group

Maine History & Policy Development

In his June 19, 2006, Executive Order, Governor John E. Baldacci directed the Working Group to “offer its best guidance and advice to the Governor respecting the long-term governance, management, and oversight structure for the Allagash Wilderness Waterway” (AWW). In the intervening six months the members of the Working Group have engaged in an examination of the forty-year history of the Waterway and an analysis of the conditions and circumstance that led to the Governor’s Executive Order. We have reviewed documentation of the AWW history, taken testimony at numerous public meetings and hearings, conducted correspondence with members of the several …

Allagash Wilderness Waterway Working Group On Structure, Management And Oversight: Choosing Common Ground And Moving Ahead (Executive Summary), Allagash Wilderness Waterway Working Group

Maine History & Policy Development

In his June 19, 2006, Executive Order, Governor John E. Baldacci directed the Working Group to “offer its best guidance and advice to the Governor respecting the long-term governance, management, and oversight structure for the Allagash Wilderness Waterway” (AWW). In the intervening six months the members of the Working Group have engaged in an examination of the forty-year history of the Waterway and an analysis of the conditions and circumstance that led to the Governor’s Executive Order. We have reviewed documentation of the AWW history, taken testimony at numerous public meetings and hearings, conducted correspondence with members of the several …

Selected Lid Projects In New England, New England Environmental Finance Center

Planning

Examples of low impact development (LID) projects in each state in New England.

The Experience Of A Lifestyle, Brian Lonsway

School of Architecture - All Scholarship

This essay traces the evolution of themed environment design from theme parks to a series of new architectural types – Urban Entertainment Destinations, Lifestyle Enhancement Centers, and Lifestyle Villages – as a chronicle of spatial mediation from urban décor to urban design technique. Culled partly through semiotic deconstruction and partly through ethnographic investigation, this history examines the environmental design techniques employed in these spaces in order to better understand the relationship of design practice to the cultural practices of work and leisure.

From spatialized branding strategies to the neo-urbanist configurations of location-based entertainment, leisure/entertainment ventures use these narratively motivated techniques …

Thermal Effectiveness Characteristics Of Low Approach Indirect Evaporative Cooling Systems In Buildings, Ben Costelloe, Donal Finn

Articles

Meteorological enthalpy analysis of temperate and maritime climates above latitude 45°N suggests that the water-side evaporative cooling technique has considerable unrealised potential with contemporary “high temperature” building cooling systems—such as chilled ceilings and displacement ventilation. As low approach conditions are the key to exploiting the cooling potential of the ambient air, thermal performance at such conditions needs to be investigated. To address the research issues, an industrial scale test rig, based on a low approach open cooling tower and plate heat exchanger and designed to maximise evaporative cooling potential, has been constructed. The thermal effectiveness of such systems (as a …

The Growing Together Guide: A Companion Resource To The New England Environmental Finance Center/Melissa Paly Film, New England Environmental Finance Center

Smart Growth

What local leader or public official wants to be faced with an SOS the “same old story” of public discord and confrontation over growth and development in one’s community? That situation has become a problem for efforts to promote smart growth. Investments are needed in the walkable, compact, traditional‐streetscape and mixed use neighborhoods and developments that are more sustainable and healthy than sprawl, for both people and the landscape. Yet attempts at such change all too often end up mired in costly public controversy and stalemate.

South Kingstown Ri: New Zoning For An Historic Mill, Maggie Jones, Richard Barringer

Planning

The village of Peace Dale in the town of South Kingstown, Rhode Island, developed around several mills that commenced operations in the 1800s. One mill, known as the Palisades, is still partially active and in excellent condition, but much of its square footage is unutilized. A citizens’ group of artists and business people joined with the mill owners and the town of South Kingstown to develop new zoning regulations to make more flexible the permitted uses for the mill site. The proposed zoning will allow the mill complex to feature a mix of retail, residential, and manufacturing uses, while preserving …

Amherst Ma: A New Village Plan For Atkins Corner, Maggie Jones, Richard Barringer

Planning

The case study describes a successful smart growth initiative in the town of Amherst, Massachusetts, at an intersection known as Atkins Corner. The initiative grew from two motivating factors: the necessity of realigning Route 116, a major north-to-south artery through the town, to decrease traffic accidents at the intersection and improve pedestrian safety; and a desire on the part of Hampshire College and the Town to create a village center at the intersection. Through a consensus-building process involving key town officials, Hampshire College, neighbors, and the design firm of Dodson Associates, agreement on the project was reached with local stakeholders …

Thermal Performance Of Low Approach Evaporative Cooling Systems In Buildings, Ben Costelloe, Donal Finn

Conference Papers

Meteorological enthalpy analysis of temperate and maritime climates above 45˚N suggests that the water-side evaporative cooling technique has considerable unrealised potential with contemporary "high temperature" building cooling systems - such as chilled ceilings. As low approach conditions are the key to exploiting the cooling potential of the ambient air, thermal performance at such conditions needs to be investigated. To address the research issues a test rig, based on an open cooling tower and plate heat exchanger and designed to maximise evaporative cooling potential, has been constructed at DIT. A combination of experimental measurement and analysis is used in the investigations. …

Analysis Of Per Capita Expenditures Of Suburbanizing Communities In Maine, New England Environmental Finance Center

Economics and Finance

This study analyzes per capita expenditure trends among selected fast-growing Maine towns from 1970-2004. The ten communities studied are termed as “suburbanizing” towns. This term is used to describe towns that over the past 30-40 years have been in the process of transition from rural to suburban – in terms of their population and housing densities, their forms of government, and the services they provide, as well as other characteristics.1 Such towns are of particular interest because they have been absorbing a healthy percentage of the state’s population growth during this time period, often at the expense of Maine’s service …

Thermal Efficiency Characteristics Of Indirect Evaporative Cooling Systems, Ben Costelloe, Donal Finn

Conference Papers

Recent developments in enhancing heat transfer in cooling towers, together with the success of chilled ceilings, have prompted a review of the evaporative cooling technique. in temperate maritime climates. The thermal efficiency of such systems is a key parameter, as a measure of the degree to which the system has succeeded in exploiting the cooling potential of the ambient air. This paper presents the results of experimental research into the thermal efficiency of a water-side open indirect evaporative cooling test rig designed to achieve low (1-4 K) approach conditions. Secondary efficiencies in the range 0.24-0.76 have been achieved.