I invite you to look over and comment on the ONE-L article of the day:
Tan Yigitcanlar [School of Urban Development, Queensland University of Technology; E-Mail: f.dur@qut.edu.au ] and Fatih Dur, Developing a Sustainability Assessment Model: The Sustainable Infrastructure, Land-Use, Environment and Transport Model,
Sustainability 2010, 2, 321-340. Readily accessible at:
http://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/2/1/321/pdf
Abstract: Measuring the comparative sustainability levels of cities, regions, institutions and projects is an essential procedure in creating sustainable urban futures. This paper introduces a new urban sustainability assessment model: ―The Sustainable Infrastructure, Land-use, Environment and Transport Model (SILENT)‖. The SILENT Model is an advanced geographic information system and indicator-based comparative urban sustainability indexing model. The model aims to assist planners and policy makers in their daily tasks in sustainable urban planning and development by providing an integrated sustainability assessment framework. The paper gives an overview of the conceptual framework and components of the model and discusses the theoretical constructs, methodological procedures, and future development of this promising urban sustainability assessment model.
Keywords: sustainable urban development; urban sustainability; urban sustainability assessment; indicator-based sustainability assessment; sustainability indicators; sustainability indexing model
Conclusion: The research results demonstrate that it is possible to produce a viable local level sustainability assessment model, apply the model to a major urban area (e.g., Gold Coast City), and produce a mappable sustainability index. However, this paper only describes the first iteration of the SILENT Model. In this first run we only looked at the basic four key dimensions of urban sustainability (i.e., urban demography, land use and urban form, transport and the environment). Parallel to the views of Gasparatos et al. [40,41], we also acknowledge that additional aspects are also needed to be considered (e.g., equity, participation, and the precautionary principle). Hence, further research is anticipated which will focus on enhancing the model by testing various indicators in order to best reflect comparative sustainability levels of urban localities. Another area for further development and amendment of the model involves the inclusion of infrastructures other than transport (e.g., water, sewerage, stormwater, power) in to the SILENT Model. Moreover, decreasing the grid cell sizes and developing a parcel-based module of the model are among the improvements to be explored in future refinements. All these improvements will also be tested in several pilot studies, and several sensitivity analyses with different weightings will be conducted before the model is potentially adopted into Gold Coast City Council's planning mechanism. While still in its infancy, the SILENT Model has been tested on the Gold Coast case study by using hypothetical data. The sustainability indexing and assessment experience has shown that, when fully operationalised, the model has the potential to help planners and policy makers to pursue an integrated framework for locally adoptable sustainability policies. The model is useful in providing unambiguous representation of relationships in urban form and problem areas of urban settings and, where necessary, policies can be tested and accommodated. The model employs a holistic view of urban dynamics and is not only an invaluable sustainability and environmental impact assessment model, but also a practical planning decision support system. When considered in the context of growing population, urban and environmental problems and climate change, the SILENT Model has an immense potential to aid involved parties in forming sustainable urban and transport development policies and in monitoring their impacts on the environment.
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Charles Wankel
St. John's University, New York
http://facpub.stjohns.edu/~wankelc
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