Systems-Based Sustainability Assessment of Built Facilities

Military installations today are faced with the challenge of housing their functional units in the context of diminishing capital facility budgets, an excess of buildings that no longer meet functional requirements, and the pressure to find solutions that meet mission requirements without compromising the natural environment. To aid the Army in finding a home for its Environmental Policy Institute, Georgia Tech's Sustainable Facilities and Infrastructure Program was employed to identify ways in which an abandoned but historically significant former hospital could be sustainably converted into an environmental showcase that meets the needs of its new inhabitants. Georgia Tech's staff applied the method of systems-based sustainability assessment to analyze the functional requirements and proposed technologies to be used in the facility, and systematically identified ways in which the proposed design could be improved. A second outcome of the project was a research agenda for development of new technologies to meet the Army's sustainable building needs in future facility projects.

Resources:

Pearce, A.R., and Fischer, C.L.J. (2001). Systems-Based Sustainability Analysis of Building 170, Ft. McPherson, Atlanta, GA. Summary analysis report to the Army Environmental Policy Institute, Atlanta, GA, May. – This is the final project report.

Pearce, A.R., and Fischer, C.L.J. (2001). Resource Guide for Systems-Based Sustainability Analysis of Building 170, Ft. McPherson, Atlanta, GA. Report to the Army Environmental Policy Institute, Atlanta, GA, May.) This is the final resource guide developed for this project.

Pearce, Annie R. (2001). "Systems-Based Sustainability Analysis of Building 170, Fort McPherson, GA," Joint Services Pollution Prevention and Hazardous Waste Management Conference, August 20-23, San Antonio, TX. - A summary presentation giving an overview of the project.

Pearce, Annie R. (2000). “Setting a Research Agenda for Sustainable Military Installations,” Joint Services Meeting on Sustainable Military Installations, October 24, Brooks Air Force Base, San Antonio, TX. – This presentation describes elements of the research agenda under development as part of this project.

Pearce, Annie R. (1999). “Prioritizing Improvement Options for Built Environment Sustainability: The Sustainable Facilities & Infrastructure Program,” Proceedings, Federal Planning – Approaching the Millenium. Fourth Annual Conference and Workshop of the Federal Planning Division , American Planning Association, Seattle, WA, April 21-23. – this presentation describes the underlying approach to prioritizing improvement options that was used in the Building 170 project (abstract)

Pearce, A.R. and Vanegas, J.A. (accepted for publication). “Systems-Based Sustainability Assessment of the Built Environment,” in Eady, D.S., ed., Sustainability and the United States Army, U.S. Army Environmental Policy Institute, Atlanta, GA. – this book chapter describes the overall approach to systems-based sustainability assessment (to be uploaded)

For more information, contact Dr. Annie R. Pearce at annie.pearce@gtri.gatech.edu.