title: Life cycle implications of urban green infrastructure.
abstract: Low Impact Development (LID) is part of a new paradigm in urban water management that aims to decentralize water storage and movement functions within urban watersheds. LID strategies can restore ecosystem functions and reduce runoff loadings to municipal water pollution control facilities (WPCF). This research examines the avoided energy and greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions of select LID strategies using life cycle assessment (LCA) and a stochastic urban watershed model. We estimate annual energy savings and avoided GHG emissions of 7.3 GJ and 0.4 metric tons, respectively, for a LID strategy implemented in a neighborhood in New York City. Annual savings are small compared to the energy and GHG intensity of the LID materials, resulting in slow environmental payback times. This preliminary analysis suggests that if implemented throughout an urban watershed, LID strategies may have important energy cost savings to WPCF, and can make progress towards reducing their carbon footprint.
authors.affiliation: Civil, Architectural, and Environmental Engineering, Drexel University, 3141 Chestnut Street, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA. spatari@drexel.edu
authors.forename: Sabrina
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Spatari
authors.forename: Ziwen
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Yu
authors.forename: Franco A
authors.initials: FA
authors.lastname: Montalto
mesh_terms: D000397:Air Pollution / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D058572:Carbon Footprint / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D002947:Cities / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D002958:City Planning / Q000379:methods*; D003247:Conservation of Natural Resources / Q000379:methods*; D063245:Plant Development; D014876:Water Pollution / Q000517:prevention & control / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D014881:Water Supply / Q000032:analysis / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*