Scenario planning focused on land use, transportation and energy
Overview Readings
- EPA. 2000. Projecting Land Use Change: A Summary of Models for Assessing the Effects of Community Growth and Change on Land-Use Patterns. Office of Research and Development, Washington, D.C. EPA/600/R-00/098. Click here to download a PDF copy.
- The Energy-Aware Planning Guide, developed by the California Energy Commission (Smart Growth and Land Use section), focuses on the relationship between energy, land use and transportation. Note: The CEC previously developed a data-based planning tool called PLACES3 which is no longer supported – you can download an archived 2007 copy of this document here PLACES3.pdf.
- EPA – Integrated Climate and Land Use Scenarios (ICLUS) – part of EPA’s Global Change Impacts and Adaptation program – from the web site: “Climate change and land-use change are global drivers of environmental change. Impact assessments frequently show that interactions between climate and land-use changes can create serious challenges for aquatic ecosystems, water quality, and air quality. In many cases, it is impossible to determine the impact of climate change without consideration of land use and land cover dynamics.”
Other resources for understanding urban design/development, transportation, energy and climate
- Andrea Sarzynski et al. SHRINKING THE CARBON FOOTPRINT OF METROPOLITAN AMERICA. Brookings Institute May 2008 – available here: http://www.brookings.edu/reports/2008/05_carbon_footprint_sarzynski.aspx
- Growing Cooler: The Evidence for Urban Development and Climate Change - Reid Ewing et al, 2007 (Urban Land Institute) – on this web site you can download an executive summary and technical report)
- Sustainable Urban Energy Planning – A Roadmap for Research and Funding (California Energy Commission, Public Interest Energy Research Program) – good overview of the role of urban planning and management in energy reduction. You can download a copy here if the site does not respond.
- EPA’s Smart Growth publications web site - see especially the report entitled “Our Built and Natural Environments: A Technical Review of the Interactions Between Land Use, Transportation, and Environmental Quality” for a good overview of the general relationships between urban design, transportation, and environmental quality.
- National Center for Smart Growth Research (University of Maryland)
Case studies
- Federal Highway Administration – Scenario Planning - http://www.fhwa.dot.gov/planning/scenplan/index.htm - good links to case studies, articles, and workshops regarding scenario planning that attempts to integrate transportation, land use, and environment.
- Under the link for Noteworthy Practices, the Summary Report (Integrating Land Use Issues into Transportation Planning: Scenario Planning) by Keith Bartholomew provides an interesting overview of various scenario planning efforts in the US over the last 20 years.
Planning Firms using GIS-Based Scenario Analysis
- Fregonese and Associates - Portland, OR, based planning firm specializing in comprehensive planning and regional visioning, using GIS intensive tools
- Criterion Planners - home of the Index planning support tool
- Renaissance Planning Group - a planning, design, and policy analysis consulting firm (see Scenario Planning project examples)