A national building products inventory

Australia has no nationally accepted building products life cycle inventory (LCI) database for use in building Ecologically Sustainable Development (ESD) assessment (BEA) tools. More information about the sustainability of the supply chain is limited by industry’s lack of real capacity to deliver objective information on process and product environmental impact. Recognition of these deficits emerged during compilation of a National LCI database to inform LCADesign, a prototype 3 dimensional object oriented computer aided design (3-D CAD) commercial building design tool. Development of this Australian LCI represents 24 staff years of effort here since 1995. Further development of LCADesign extensions is proposed as being essential to support key applications demanded from a more holistic theoretical framework calling for modules of new building and construction industry tools. A proposed tool, conceptually called LCADetails, is to serve the building product industries own needs as well as that of commercial building design amongst other industries’ prospective needs. In this paper, a proposition is examined that the existing national LCI database should be further expanded to serve Australian building product industries’ needs as well as to provide details for its client-base from a web based portal containing a module of practical supply and procurement applications. Along with improved supply chain assessment services, this proposed portal is envisaged to facilitate industry environmental life cycle improvement assessment and support decision-making to provide accredited data for operational reporting capabilities, load-based reasoning as well as BEA applications. This paper provides an overview of developments to date, including a novel 3-D CAD information and communications technology (ICT) platform for more holistic integration of existing tools for true cost assessment. Further conceptualisation of future prospects, based on a new holistic life cycle assessment framework LCADevelop, considering stakeholder relationships and their need for a range of complementary tools leveraging automated function off such ICT platforms to inform dimensionally defined operations for such as automotive, civil, transport and industrial applications are also explored.

Ecological sustainable development: a study of the obstacles in Australia's construction industry

Ecological sustainable development (ESD), defined as that which meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs, has much to offer in enhancing the quality of life of people and maintaining the environment for future generations by reducing the pollution of water, air and land, minimizing the destruction of irreplaceable ecosystems and cutting down the amount of toxic materials released. However, there is still much to do to achieve full implementation world-wide. This paper reports on three factors-design, attitudes and financial constraints - that are likely barriers to the implementation of ESD within the built environment in Australian industry. A postal questionnaire survey is described aimed at soliciting views on detailed aspects of the factors. This shows that ESD in the Australian built environment has also not been successfully implemented. The main reason is found to be due to the perceived costs involved - the cost of using environmental materials being a predominant factor. The design of ESD, being more sophisticated, also is perceived as involving stakeholders in more expense. There also appears to be a lack of knowledge and a lack of specialised and interdisciplinary design teams available in the Australian context.

Sub-tropical high-density, low rise residential buildings: case study 3

The case study 3 team viewed the mitigation of noise and air pollution generated in the transport corridor that borders the study site to be a paramount driver of the urban design solution. These key urban planning strategies were adopted: * Spatial separation from transport corridor pollution source. A linear green zone and environmental buffer was proposed adjacent to the transport corridor to mitigate the environmental noise and air quality impacts of the corridor, and to offer residents opportunities for recreation * Open space forming the key structural principle for neighbourhood design. A significant open space system underpins the planning and manages surface water flows. * Urban blocks running on east-west axis. The open space rationale emphasises an east-west pattern for local streets. Street alignment allows for predominantly north-south facing terrace type buildings which both face the street and overlook the green courtyard formed by the perimeter buildings. The results of the ESD assessment of the typologies conclude that the design will achieve good outcomes through: * Lower than average construction costs compared with other similar projects * Thermal comfort; A good balance between daylight access and solar gains is achieved * The energy rating achieved for the units is 8.5 stars.

The significance of the resident’s knowledge management in managing the residential property

Most commonly, residents are always arguing about the satisfaction of sustainability and quality of their high rise residential property. Often, all the shortcomings and weaknesses will be blamed on the developers without considering the lack of knowledge management from the residents themselves. It is important, therefore, to show that knowledge management of the residents should be taken into account in relation to the satisfactory and the quality of the high rise residential property. This paper aims to discuss the resident’s knowledge management level of the high rise residential property in showing that resident’s knowledge management is really important to maintain the property at least. To evaluate this situation, the questionnaire surveys are being conducted. The paper analyses and structures the social science research on the importance of knowledge as a resource. The survey evidence demonstrates that, the resident’s knowledge management level was highly related in having high quality and sustainable high rise residential property in Johor Bahru.

Enlarged stopping distance to improve vehicle discharge at urban signalised intersections

Normally, vehicles queued at an intersection reach maximum flow rate after the fourth vehicle and results in a start-up lost time. This research demonstrated that the Enlarged Stopping Distance (ESD) concept could assist in reducing the start-up time and therefore increase traffic flow capacity at signalised intersections. In essence ESD gives sufficient space for a queuing vehicle to accelerate simultaneously without having to wait for the front vehicle to depart, hence reducing start-up lost time. In practice, the ESD concept would be most effective when enlarged stopping distance between the first and second vehicle allowing faster clearance of the intersection.

The Gothenburg Recommendations on Education for Sustainable Development

This document calls on governments, civil society and in particular educators to prioritize processes that develop and strengthen education for sustainable development (ESD). The world has changed since the UN World Summit on Sustainable Development in 2002. While there have been significant initiatives and progress has been made, the scale of effort is still overshadowed by the scope of the problem. For instance, human-induced climate change is creating a long-lasting ecological crisis with severe economic and social consequences. Recently the global economic crisis has drawn attention to the problem of borrowing from resources that do not exist. Poverty, conflict and social injustice remain critical issues on the global agenda. A renewed sense of commitment to the UN Decade of Education for Sustainable Development 2005-2014 is required. Formal, informal and non-formal education and learning processes for sustainability must be strengthened and prioritized. This document supports and builds on the concepts and values that are put forward within UNESCO’s International Implementation Scheme for Education for Sustainable Development and in the Earth Charter. The purpose of ESD is to reorient education in order to contribute to a sustainable future for the common good of present and future generations. ESD recognizes the interdependence of environmental, social and economic perspectives and the dependence of humanity on a healthy biosphere. Participation and involvement are necessary components of ESD, with an emphasis on empowerment and agency for active citizenship, human rights and societal change. Re-orientation is necessary at all levels and in all phases of education, and encompasses community learning, thus making ESD a wider process challenging the form and purpose of education itself.

Environmental regulation in the pork producing industry - bring on the research!

Over the last 20 years, environmental management in Queensland has moved from the policy backwaters of government to the front line of operations by way of regulatory enforcement, industry programs and incentives. When the new Queensland Environmental Protection Act 1994 (EPA) came into effect, the business of environmental management has become a central feature of urban and rural development activity. The concept of environmentally sustainable development (ESD), has given life to the precautionary principle as a way for planners and regulators to place relevant controls on development. The planning, development and operation of pig farming systems has been effected by the new regulatory framework. Ever more definitive standards and approval permits have emerged which endeavour to achieve ESD. With these modern planning instruments in place, rural industry sectors have become, quite legitimately, concerned about future opportunities for research and innovation. This paper asserts that the capacity to engage in research and to achieve innovation in the pork producing industry is not hindered by Queensland environmental regulation frameworks. However, in order for research and innovation to prosper within these frameworks, some protocols need to be followed by the industry. What is at stake is community confidence.

Matka koulun kestävän kehittämisen maisemassa

A Journey in the Landscape of Sustainable School Development “A Journey in the Landscape of Sustainable School Development” is a story of the Sorrila School development process. This research deals with a school development project as a process, and as a part of international projects on Education for Sustainable Development, with ENSI (Environment and School Initiatives) being the most important. The main purpose of the study was to analyze the change process as a general phenomenon as well as the learning connected to it. The research describes the development period 2001–2008 at the Sorrila Primary school. The research questions are as follows: 1. What did pupils learn during the research and development period? 2. How did the coordinating teacher develop personally? 3. How were the ENSI targets and other closely linked projects reached? 4. What was the feedback from the pupils, their parents and other teachers at the school? 5. How did the developing process proceed in 2001–2008? The method used was integrating action research, which also had ethnographical elements. Narrative was the form of the data as well as the manner of reporting. The method as a whole was integrating, ethnographical action research as a story. The research data consisted mostly of Knowledge Forum notes written by the teacher-researcher. Knowledge Forum is an Internetbased collaborative knowledge-building programme. Pupils’, parents’ and other teachers’ feedback, newspaper articles and students’ writings complied the data, which consists of material from seven years. Sustainable development was the basis of the school improvement. The targets of the United Nations Decade of Education for Sustainable Development (2005–2014) were part of the development projects. According to the research results the school was seen as part of complex systems where manifold and interactive learning took place. The learning of pupils, teachers and the school as a community can be characterised socioculturally. The school was able to reach a level of collaborative transformative learning. As well as several concrete projects, such as Comenius school project, school development consisted of networking at many levels. Along with the projects and networking, the school was able to apply the pedagogy of connection, by carrying out integrative and cross-disciplinary themes and using various learning and teaching methods. International cooperation was a natural part of the work. A figure of Aunt Green, the role model of the teacher researcher, was an innovation which resembled a change agent. The other role of the teacherresearcher as a coordinator, was important for her own professional development. According to the results the change process, which relied on sustainable school development, led the school along a road of positive renewals. It was not a series of projects but an ongoing process. The objectives of the international projects were accomplished to a great extent during the research period. According to the principles of action research, the main results were put forward in order to help others to develop their schools. Frictions and problems as well as positive experiences and rejecting dualities were seen as change forces. Keywords: education for sustainable development (ESD), sustainable school development, teacher professional development, integrating, pedagogy of connection, transformative learning

Sustainable building envelope design by considering energy cost and occupant satisfaction

The built environment is a major contributor to the world’s carbon dioxide emissions, with a considerable amount of energy being consumed in buildings due to heating, ventilation and air-conditioning, space illumination, use of electrical appliances, etc., to facilitate various anthropogenic activities. The development of sustainable buildings seeks to ameliorate this situation mainly by reducing energy consumption. Sustainable building design, however, is a complicated process involving a large number of design variables, each with a range of feasible values. There are also multiple, often conflicting, objectives involved such as the life cycle costs and occupant satisfaction. One approach to dealing with this is through the use of optimization models. In this paper, a new multi-objective optimization model is developed for sustainable building design by considering the design objectives of cost and energy consumption minimization and occupant comfort level maximization. In a case study demonstration, it is shown that the model can derive a set of suitable design solutions in terms of life cycle cost, energy consumption and indoor environmental quality so as to help the client and design team gain a better understanding of the design space and trade-off patterns between different design objectives. The model can very useful in the conceptual design stages to determine appropriate operational settings to achieve the optimal building performance in terms of minimizing energy consumption and maximizing occupant comfort level.

Clustering phenomena in Al-4.4 at. % Zn alloy with 0.03 and 0.08 at. % Ag additions

The influence of 0.03 and 0.08 at. % Ag additions on the clustering of Zn atoms in an Al-4.4 at. % Zn alloy has been studied by resistometry. The effect of quenching and ageing temperatures shows that the ageing-ratio method of calculating the vacancy-solute atom binding energy is not applicable to these alloys. Zone-formation in Al-Zn is unaffected by Ag additions, but the zone-reversion process seems to be influenced. Apparent vacancy-formation energies in the binary and ternary alloys have been used to evaluate the v-Ag atom binding energy as 0.21 eV. It is proposed that, Ag and Zn being similar in size, the relative vacancy binding results from valency effects, and that in Al-Zn-Ag alloys clusters of Zn and Ag may form simultaneously, unaffected by the presence of each other. © 1970 Chapman and Hall Ltd.

Clustering and solute-vacancy binding energies in Al-4.4% Zn alloy with 0.01% ternary additions

Isochronal and isothermal ageing experiments have been carried out to determine the influence of 0.01 at. % addition of a second solute on the clustering rate in the quenched Al-4,4 a/o Zn alloy. The influence of quenching and ageing temperatures has been interpreted to obtain the apparent vacancy formation and vacancy migration energies in the various ternary alloys. Using a vacancy-aided clustering model the following values of binding free energy have been evaluated: Ce-0.18; Dy-0.24; Fe-0.18; Li-0.25; Mn-0.27; Nb-0.18; Pt-0.23; Sb-0.21; Si-0.30; Y-0.25; and Yb-0.23 (± 0.02 eV). These binding energy values refer to that between a solute atom and a single vacancy. The values of vacancy migration energy (c. 0.4 eV) and the experimental activation energy for solute diffusion (c. 1.1 eV) are unaffected by the presence of the ternary atoms in the Al-Zn alloy.