Sustainable Building Technical Manual - Etn-presco.net

CHAPTER 5Sustainable Site De s i g n★ S I G N I F I CA N C E .This chapter focuses on green site-planning strategies and practices that specificallyrelate to assessing and selecting a site for uses such as office buildings and parks, institutionaland research structures, retail businesses, and industrial facilities. The purpose ofsustainable site planning is to integrate design and construction strategies by modifyingboth site and building to achieve greater human comfort and operational efficiencies.Sound site planning is prescriptive and strategic. It charts appropriate patterns of use fora site while incorporating construction methods that minimize site disruption and theexpenditure of financial and building resources.AuthorNicholas T. DinesSite planning assesses a particular landscape to determine its appropriate use, then mapsthe areas most suitable for accommodating specific activities associated with that use.The process is based upon the premise that any landscape setting can be analyzed andstudied as a series of interconnected geological, hydrological, topographic, ecological,climatological, and cultural features and systems. An ideal site plan is one in which thearrangement of roads, buildings, and associated uses is developed using site data andinformation from the larger macro-environment, including existing historical andcultural patterns of the community.Selecting a building site begins the process of calculating the degree of resource use andthe degree of disturbance of existing natural systems that will be required to support abuilding’s development. The most environmentally sound development is one that disturbsas little of the existing site as possible. Therefore, sites suitable for commercialbuilding should ideally be located within or adjacent to existing commercial environments.Building projects also require connections to mass transit, vehicular infrastructure,and utility and telecommunication networks. Sound site planning and buildingdesign should consider locating building-support services in common corridors, or sitinga building to take advantage of existing service networks. This consolidation can minimizesite disruption and facilitate building repair and inspection.