Green
Development Tools
Green Development and Community Design
Green Buildings
Green Development
Green Developments 2.0 CD-ROM
A companion to Green Development,
this recently updated CD serves as a resource to a wide variety
of design professionals (including architects, engineers, and
designers), community leaders, and real-estate financiers. The
new version contains over 200 case studies of green buildings
and projects from around the world. Green Developments features
more than 400 photographs, plans, and other images, 30 minutes
of video and audio clips (including voiceover by Robert Redford),
resources, and web links.
EPA's
Tools and Technical Assistance for Strategic Conservation of
Greenspace
Explains how the implementation of locally-based, long-term
open space conservation plans are a critical element in achieving
smart growth. Provides key tools and technical resources to
help build the capacity of states and local communities to develop
preservation priorities for their remaining undeveloped greenspace.
Tools
for Community Design and Decision-Making
An online resource for Community Design tools. The Tools Matrix
gives an overview of both technical and non-technical tools.
New
Tools for Community Design and Decision Making:
An Overview
This online presentation is by Peter Katz of Urban Advantage
and focuses on regional, town planning and community design
tools with special focus on New Urbansim and Smart Growth
InfraCycle
Software -- Fiscal Impact
A fiscal impact tool that calculates the life-cycle cost of
municipal infrastructure including fire, police, roadways, sidewalks,
street light, park land, recreation facilities, storm-water,
sanitary sewers, transit, schools, school busing. Municipal
revenues can be calculated from sources such as taxes, levies,
development charges, application fees. Revenues are compared
to costs to determine if revenues will support costs.
Green
Communities
EPA's online toolkit to help community leaders plan the future
they want. Available only on the Internet, this assistance kit
can help communities integrate their unique social and economic
social and economic circumstances into an environmentally friendly
growth plan.
PLACE3S
An urban design and land use planning process created to help
communities understand how growth and development decisions
can contribute to improved sustainability.
Smart
Places
A tool for geographic decision-making. Smart Places enhances
decision making insight in target marketing, economic development,
land use planning, transportation systems, facilities, environmental
remediation and protection, energy forecasting, water allocation
and resource control. This tool is used to evaluate the implications
and opportunities of alternative plans.
US DOE's Smart Communities
Network's Land Use Planning Tools
A collection of links to innovative methods, computer software
applications, and resources for interpreting land use data and
evaluating land use planning alternatives.
Smart
Growth Toolkit
A printed resource guide to help planners develop a smart-growth
program that promotes strategies such as infill and brownfield
development. The guide includes a model for starting a smart-growth
effort, sample meeting agendas, tips on working with the media,
descriptions of successful smart-growth programs, and lists
of contacts and additional resources.
CITYgreen
A GIS software program for mapping, measuring and analyzing
urban ecosystems. The program considers trees and other natural
resources in the community development process. It allows users
to create ecological maps, conduct technical analysis of the
ecology, summarize results, and create graphic presentation
materials. CITYgreen allows users to analyze storm water, summer
energy savings, air quality and urban wildlife.
SCALDS
A prototyping model that estimates the full cost of alternative
land use patterns. The EXCEL based spreadsheet is called the
Social Cost of Alternative Land Development Scenarios (SCALDS)
model. The model estimates monetary and non-monetary costs associated
with urban land development. It builds on three areas of research
– least-cost planning which has been used by utilities
for a number of years, full cost of travel studies, and cost
of service/cost of sprawl research.
Smart
Growth Tools for Main Street - National Trust for Historical
Preservation
This tool kit offers information on several progressive smart
growth tools that communities around the country are using to
combat sprawl while preserving the uniqueness and economic health
of their towns.
Smart
Growth: History, Tools, and Challenges - National Audubon
Society
Summarizes various Smart Growth tools and describes state and
local examples of Smart Growth initiatives and programs.
Clark
Labs for Cartographic Technology and Geographic Analysis
Idrisi32 offers environmental modeling, risk assessment,
analysis, image processing, decision support, policy analysis,
change and time series analysis.
Environmental
Simulation Center
Computer modeling simulates realistic images and experiences
of hypothetical situations and projects. Viewers can "walk"
or even "drive" through simulated cities and towns
and experience projects as if they were built, allowing a close
assessment of the project's merits and failings.
Green Buildings
Building
for Environmental & Economic Sustainability (BEES)
A Windows-based software program aimed at designers, builders, and product manufacturers
that provides a means of balancing the environmental and economic performance of building
products. BEES measures the environmental performance of building products by using an
environmental life-cycle assessment approach specified in the latest versions of ISO 14000
draft standards.
Green Building
Advisor
A software program that helps identify actions to reduce the
environmental impacts of a building project while ensuring healthy
and productive indoor spaces. GBA demonstrates specific design
strategies to improve the environmental performance, cost-effectiveness,
and healthiness of all phases of a building and its site, from
pre-design through occupancy. The strategies are prioritized
by the program based on information input about the project,
such as location, type and size of building, and characteristics
of the site.
Building
Energy Software Tools Directory - US DOE
Information on 135 software tools for building design with focus
on energy efficiency, renewable energy, and sustainability in
buildings.
High
Performance Building Toolbox - US DOE
Provides general guidelines, simulation software, and resources
to help design and achieve high-performance buildings.
Building
Life-Cycle Cost (BLCC)
Computer program version 5.0 provides an economic
analysis of proposed capital investments expected to reduce
long-term operating costs of buildings or building systems.
BLCC complies with American Society of Testing Materials (ASTM)
standards related to building economics and NIST Handbook 135,
Life-Cycle Costing Manual for the Federal Energy Management
Program. BLCC is the primary program in a set of six NIST computer
programs providing computational support for the analysis of
capital investments in buildings. The Quick BLCC program provides
a convenient method of setting up and solving relatively simple
life-cycle costing problems that require determining the design
alternative with the lowest LCC for two or more mutually exclusive
alternatives.
Sustainable
Building Technical Manual
A manual intended to meet the building industry's need for a
comprehensive manual of sustainable building practices. It provides
clear, easily applied guidelines and useful practices that can
be readily introduced into new construction, renovation, and
building operations. The manual focuses on commercial size building
projects, but includes useful tips for buildings of all sizes.
This manual, in Adobe Acrobat format, can be downloaded directly
from the site or ordered in hard copy by calling (303) 275-4813.
Guidelines
for Creating High Performance Green Buildings
A Pennsylvania state-produced guide intended for decision-makers
and others involved with designing, constructing and developing
green buildings. It includes useful information on green design
systems, case studies, and references and sources.
LEED --Leadership
in Energy and Environmental Design: Green Building Rating System
A voluntary designation/certification that may be sought by
building owners, designers, or others for new or existing commercial,
institutional, or high-rise-residential buildings. The "LEED
building" designations (Platinum, Gold, Silver, and Bronze)
are awarded to buildings that meet the LEED criteria, which
include both mandatory and optional elements.
DOE-2
An hourly, whole-building energy analysis program that calculates
energy performance and life-cycle cost of operation. Can be
used to analyze the energy efficiency of given designs or the
efficiency or new technologies. Other uses include utility demand-side
management/rebate programs, compliance certification, and training
of energy-conscious design professionals.
Energy-10
A DOE-supported computer design tool for small commercial
and residential buildings, developed by DOE's National Renewable
Energy Laboratory. This package helps architects and designers
assess how a building will use energy and identify which energy-efficiency
strategies are the most effective. It's at the forefront of
the new generation of easy-to-use programs that help architects
and engineers evaluate the details of building energy use at
every step in the design process.
EnergyGauge
This computer tool developed by the Florida Solar Energy
Center allows users to determine Energy Code compliance and
Home Energy Rating System (HERS) calculations. Both professional
and standard versions are available.
EnergyPlus
A "new generation" building energy simulation
program that builds on the best features and capabilities of
BLAST and DOE-2. Package includes innovative simulation capabilities
including time steps of less than an hour, built-in template
and external modular systems, simulation modules integrated
with heat balance-based zone simulation, and input and output
data structures tailored to facilitate third-party interface
development.
Facility
Energy Decision Software (FEDS)
Developed at Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, this
program provides a comprehensive method for quickly and objectively
identifying energy improvements that offer maximum savings.
FEDS 5.0 provides an easy-to-use tool for identifying retrofits,
selecting minimum life cycle costs, determining payback, and
enabling users to prioritize options.
REM/Design
A user-friendly, yet highly sophisticated, residential energy-analysis
and code-compliance software. Developed specifically with the
needs of homebuilders, remodelers, energy consultants, and designers
in mind. Calculates heating, cooling, hot water, lights, and
appliance loads; consumption; and costs for single- and multi-family
designs.
REM/Rate
A user-friendly, yet highly sophisticated, residential energy-analysis,
code-compliance, and rating software developed specifically
for the needs of home energy rating systems (HERS) providers.
REM/Rate calculates heating, cooling, hot water, lighting, and
appliance energy loads; consumption; and costs for new and existing
single- and multi-family homes.
Last updated: January 30, 2004
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