Modeling scenarios for Flower Mound.The the town of Flower Mound, northwest of Dallas, Texas “Dallas” redirects here. For other uses, see Dallas (disambiguation). The City of Dallas (pronounced [ˈdæl.əs] or [ˈdæl. , has designated two conservation developments, residential projects that cluster dwelling units on smaller lots than are currently zoned to protect and preserve open space. The goal is to "preserve open or natural lands as an integral component of the development." One, the Sanctuary site sanctuary site Oncology A region of the body–eg, CNS, testes–where leukemia cells are relatively protected from the cytolytic effects of systemic chemotherapy. See Remission. , was used to demonstrate the ecosystem benefits of conventional vs. conservation development land planning. An Urban Ecosystem Urban ecosytems are the cities, towns and urban strips constructed by humans. This growth in the urban population and the supporting built infrastructure has impacted on both urban environments and also on areas which surround urban areas. Analysis prepared by AMERICAN FORESTS American Forests is a nonprofit conservation organization that promotes healthy forests and urban tree planting. The organization was established in 1875 as the American Forestry Association, by physician/horticulturist John Aston Warder and a group of like-minded citizens used data from newly acquired 2006 satellite images and compared them to the site's condition in 2001. [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Using CITYgreen, AMERICAN FORESTS modeled two land development options--first, comparing lot size (1/2 acre vs. 1 acre) to the ecosystem benefits of the preserved open space and tree cover when the number of lots remains the same. The second examined built lots, and how the proportion of tree canopy, open space, and impervious surface Impervious surfaces are artificial structures, such as pavements and building roofs, which replace naturally pervious soil with impervious construction materials. They are an environmental concern because, with their construction, a chain of events is initiated that modifies urban affects ecosystem benefits to the site as a whole. Because less tree canopy and open space were preserved under the conventional development scenario, this site would require an additional 27,000 cubic feet in storm water management, valued at $54,000 when compared to the conservation development site. The Urban Ecosystem Analysis provides a process for the Town of Flower Mound's staff to analyze the ecosystem services Humankind benefits from a multitude of resources and processes that are supplied by natural ecosystems. Collectively, these benefits are known as ecosystem services and include products like clean drinking water and processes like the decomposition of wastes. of its green infrastructure. The examples provided demonstrate that conservation development of a lot will greatly affect stormwater runoff and water quality. AMERICAN FORESTS recommends that staff identify critical conservation protection areas as well as those best for development. For more information on the Urban Ecosystem Analysis and CITYgreen software visit: www.americanforests.org/resources/urbanforests/. The complete Flower Mound report is available at: www.americanforests.org/resources/urbanforests/analysis.php. |
|
||||||||||||||
Printer friendly
Cite/link
Email
Feedback
Reader Opinion