Unit 9

During the next two class periods you will work with your group on the design of a water system for a new urban development. The urban design scenario for the Unit 9 group project is a 10-acre parcel of land with proposed suburban development. The goal is to design the development to include up to twenty-one 2,000 ft² homes on 1/3-acre lots incorporating the urban water sustainability principles learned in the module, including implementation of rain gardens, pervious concrete, water-efficient landscaping, decentralized wastewater management, green roofs and rainwater harvesting. Your group design should strive to achieve sustainability goals and to consider the cost of your design.

The explanation of the project is included in this handout: Unit 9 - Student Instructions (Microsoft Word 2007 (.docx) 2.8MB Aug20 24)

Your individual report and the group presentation will be assessed using this rubric: Unit 9 - Rubric (Microsoft Word 2007 (.docx) 31kB Jul5 16)

Day One

Activity 9.0 - In-Class: Review Synthesis Activity

By today, you should have submitted your PowerPoint slides of items related to water sustainability in cities. You will want to review the handout explaining this assignment (Microsoft Word 2007 (.docx) 24kB Jul5 16).

Activity 9.1 - In-Class: Mind Map

Today, you will continue to work on the mind map of an urban water system that you have been developing with your group through the entire module. But today, you will apply the mind map to a new urban water system of your own design. Your team must prepare a water system mind map of the coupled urban-natural hydrologic and atmospheric system of the site, exploring the interconnections of the various water elements as well as other sub-systems that interact with the water system. You may revise your group's mind map that you have been working on throughout the module. As a group either add to your existing mind map, or create a new one for this new urban water system.

Activity 9.2 - In-Class: Preliminary Plan

As a group, brainstorm for strategies to make the water system for the proposed urban development sustainable and resilient. Your group's preliminary plan should include (1) a sketch of the initial site design and (2) a listing of tasks to complete the project that includes identifying what your team knows (and from what unit), what your group needs to learn, how much time each task will take, and who will accomplish each task.

Homework

Activity 9.3 - Homework: Individual Calculations and Report

You will work individually to prepare a three-page report with attached calculations and figures explaining your plan and proposed strategies for achieving a sustainable water design for the proposed scenario. See the student handout for more details.

3.0 Introduction

Write an introductory paragraph addressing the impact the urban development has on the hydrologic system (Unit 2)

3.1 Outdoor Water Use

Use concepts learned in Units 4 and 5 to develop a water-efficient landscape design for the yards and communal areas of the development. Calculate the water use if all landscaped areas are turf, then compare water use of their water-efficient design to the water use of the turf landscape.

3.2 Indoor Water Use

Use concepts learned in Units 5 and 7 to reduce the indoor water consumption of the proposed development, then compare your proposal with typical values of indoor water use.

3.3 Catchment Scale Water Management

Use concepts learned in Units 2 and 6 to compute the pre-development and post-development storm water runoff from the site. Then use strategies learned in Units 5 and 6 to propose strategies to reduce the developed runoff and water quality impacts, with the goal of reducing the post-development runoff to pre-development levels.

3.4 Urban Climate

Consider possible urban climate effects from the change in albedo following the development. And considering what you learned in Unit 3, propose strategies to reduce these impacts.

3.5 Extreme Events

Use concepts learned in Unit 8 to propose strategies to increase the resilience of the proposed development to potential extreme flood and drought events.

3.6 Summary and Conclusion

Clearly explain, using the triple bottom line as a framework, why your development proposal is more sustainable than a typical development.

Day Two

Activity 9.4 – In-Class: Group Planning

You will reconvene in your group and integrate your individual plans into a group design. Then you will organize your plan into a group presentation using flip charts/poster paper and markers. Your plan and presentation should include the following:

• Site design
• Plan for reducing indoor and outdoor water use and amount of savings for each compared with typical values, including justification for the strategies used.
• Selected strategies used to reduced indoor and outdoor water consumption and runoff.
• Net reduction in water consumption and runoff. How much less water does your proposed development use than a "typical" development?
• Plan for reducing the storm water runoff from the development to match the natural (pre-development) hydrograph and for minimizing negative water quality impacts.
• Potential urban climate impacts and strategies for minimizing impacts.
• Possible strategies to increase the resilience of the development to potential extreme flood and drought events.
• Assessment of how well your proposed design meets the goals of water sustainability in urban areas considering the triple bottom line.
• Consideration of cost of selected strategies
• Explanation of why you chose the strategies that you chose, how these strategies affect the impact of urban development on the hydrologic cycle and why your development proposal is more sustainable than a typical development.

Activity 9.5 – In-Class: Group Presentations

Your group will present its proposed design to the rest of the class. Your presentation should include all of the bulleted items listed above for Activity 9.4.

Your report and presentation will be assessed on the following:

• Accuracy and completeness of computations
• Demonstration of understanding of sustainability
• Demonstration of understanding of the impact of urban development on the hydrologic cycle
• Sustainability of design
• Reduction in water consumption – what strategies did you implement? Can you explain your rationale for why you chose the strategies that you did? Did you iterate on different options?
• Reduction in storm water runoff – does the developed runoff = natural runoff? Can you explain your rationale for why you chose the strategies that you did? Did you iterate on different options?
• Consideration of cost of design

Activity 9.6 – In-Class: Peer and Self Review

You will review your peers' presentations and review your group's design using this rubric: Unit 9 - Peer-review Rubric (Microsoft Word 2007 (.docx) 22kB Jul5 16)