environmental Science Section 1CG Fall 2023 CO

Please ensure you have completed Activity #1 ENVS Unit 3: What is smart growth?, the interactive Playposit video before attempting this activity.

Purpose

Students will analyze a map showing a fictitious undeveloped area within a city and develop a growth plan that utilizes smart growth concepts. Map is attached below.

Introduction: “’Smart growth’ covers a range of development and conservation strategies that help protect our health and natural environment and make our communities more attractive, economically stronger, and more socially diverse.

Development decisions affect many of the things that touch people’s everyday lives — their homes, their health, the schools their children attend, the taxes they pay, their daily commute, the natural environment around them, economic growth in their community, and opportunities to achieve their dreams and goals. What, where, and how communities build will affect their residents’ lives for generations to come.

Communities of all sizes across the country are using creative strategies to develop in ways that preserve natural lands and critical environmental areas, protect water and air quality, and reuse already-developed land”

Source: https://www.epa.gov/smartgrowth/about-smart-growth

Task

Using the map provided, and what you know about urban sprawl and smart growth, develop a plan for the undeveloped (Area A) using smart growth concepts to plan the development. Decide which smart growth features will be included in each area and describe the type of development as well as the volume/number of items you will include.

Examples of development features include but are not limited to: business retail stores, offices, roads, sidewalks, bike trails, pedestrian walking trails, high rise or low rise apartment buildings, other types of living complexes (such as assisted living), outdoor spaces such as parks, recreation areas, etc.

Use the prompts provided to report on and describe the features that you would plan and also explain your rationale for the planning characteristics.

**This map is also linked as an attachment below, if you want to print it out for yourself.

Prompts:

· List the features (minimum of 4) that you will include in the development of Area A

· For each feature include the following information:

· Type

· Size or number and relative placement within Area A

· Justification of how that feature encourages smart growth or is a part of the smart growth plan to work against urban sprawl

· The following website (and others that you may find) can be used as a resource to generate ideas about the proposed development of your land: https://www.epa.gov/smartgrowth/about-smart-growth (DO NOT copy/paste ideas directly from this website or any other!)