WEEK 3
Wk 3 9/09-9/13/2019
Top of Form
Bottom of Form
·
Learning Objectives
Learning Objectives
At the end of this week, learners will be able to :
· Describe a LEED Sustainable Site
Learning Activities
· Participation--Blackboard Discussion Board
· Readings:
Book chapters:
Shedroff, N (2009). Design is the Problem Chapter 4,5,10
LEED 2017 for New Building and Construction/LEED Version 4 Click on Tab to get this document.
Bottom of Form
DISCUSSION BOARD ASSIGNMENT: I have ALAREADY COMPLETED THIS PORTION!!!
1. Is climate change proven?
2. Compare two approaches to sustainability, can either approach mitigate the effects of climate change?
3. Are hybrid cars really better than the traditional car?
Tip: Please remember to add a subject line to your post. Use descriptive subject lines for your posts; some find it easier to write the subject line after writing the post.
Submit your response to the discussion board in a 300-500 word narrative. Your response should clearly relate to the aspect of both questions and an understanding of the required readings. Be sure to apply the concepts you've learned in a meaningful way.
Afterwards, submit two-three 100-200 word responses to your classmates’ postings. Your response should explore ideas and provide constructive responses. Be sure to interact with all of your classmates during the term.
In total, you should have a minimum of 3 posts for the week.
Due dates: DONE!
PLEASE ONLY RESPONSE 3 POSTS BELOW:
POST 1:
Approaches to Sustainability
Top of Form
Climate change is a fact that has been discussed for many years and people were warned of the damage to the environment from the rising temperatures. Greatest contributor of climate change is the burning of fossil fuels that have led to increased levels of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases in the atmosphere. As this issue is occuring, we may not see the immediate effects of it on our daily lives. However, it is affecting our future generations. Global warming will lead to substantial changes in the climate and create great impact on the future life of humans.
Some ways to reduce energy use in the building sector to increase sustainability include use of more energy efficient construction ideas. One way to reduce the loss of energy for heating and cooling is the use of thermal insulating walls. Utilization of heavy external walls can prevent the conduction of heat from outside to inside. On a hot summer day, the heat on the outside is able to transition its way to the inside of the house. By creating walls that delay the heat transfer, it can allow the inside of the house to stay cooler longer. At night time, as the outdoor heat reduces, these walls can be naturally ventilated to allow cooling to be maintained. This issue has a limitation though when it comes to windows and the inability of glass to create the same effect.
Another way to reduce energy use in the building can be by changing the lighting time and patterns. By switching lights off when sufficient daylight is available, there can be a reduction in the use of electricity and also the heat generated from the lights. I have seen this trend in many Walmarts and Sam’s Clubs that utilize sky lights through the roof to keep the interior of the store bright during the daytime. This also works well in many homes and office buildings. However, it is difficult to enforce it. This can be better implemented by using light sensitive switches, having light sources closed to the windows to have sensors built in, and having occupant sensitive light switches.
Both of the above mentioned systems can help reduce the energy usage. However, it is not as significant of a change to reduce the effects of climate change. These building techniques would be nice as they would save people money on their monthly electricity bill. However, it is only possible to occur in new constructions and not many would be able to afford the extra cost. Therefore, I do not believe either system can mitigate the effects of climate change. This is comparable to the promotion of hybrid cars. These vehicles work very well inside of a city to increase vehicle efficiency and reduce consumption of fossil fuels. However, the vehicle is not independent from fossil fuel usage and outside of a city it works the same as a traditional vehicle. There has been an increase in production of electric vehicles as well. Some still rely on a gasoline engine, but all of these vehicles rely on a battery that is made from earth metals. Mining for these metals leads to more severe environmental effects. Therefore, it may help to reduce the use of fossil fuels, but they still have a negative effect on the environment.
Bottom of Form
YOUR RESPONSE TO POST 1:
POST 2:
Yes, Climate Change is Proven—Now What Should We Do About It?
Top of Form
“There is overwhelming evidence of climate change, leaving no doubt the climate isn’t what it used to be.” (Shedroff, 2009). Last July was the warmest month ever recorded. And according to Climate Central, the last five years have been the five hottest year; and the top twenty hottest years have all been in the last twenty-two years. And this is just since humans have been recording temperatures. The famous “Hockey Stick Graph” was produced in the late 1990’s by Michael E. Mann, Raymond S. Bradley and Malcolm K. Hughes. This graph was of the mean temperatures going back 1000 years. The graph was relatively flat at first (the handle) until it jumped up sharply in the 1900s (the blade). Several studies have reproduced the same results.
And it’s not just “global warming.” Climate change causes all kinds of extreme weather conditions: stronger, slower hurricanes, more tornadoes, draught (combined with the extreme heat also produces more wildfires), flooding, and more. If you think back, and it seems like weather has gotten worse, it’s because it has. Not many people are arguing that. The disagreement that “climate change deniers” have is whether these observed changes are manmade or a just an upswing we are going through that will go back the other way eventually. However, the majority of scientist believe in climate change and that it is caused by humans. Most non-believers just happen to be big producers of CO2 emissions, like the fossil fuel industry.
What can as individuals do to reduce our carbon footprint and not contribute to climate change? There are many options: keep our thermostats lower in the winter and higher in the summer, fly commercially instead of chartering a jet, shop locally instead of making online purchases that have to be shipped long distances to us, compost our food waste, or buy a hybrid car. But, actually, are all of these things better? Maybe not, according to our textbook.
Nathan Shedroff does a comparison between a Prius and a Hummer H2 (2009, pp.73-77). My first thought was that obviously the Prius is better—no question about it! And if you are only comparing fuel economy, that is correct. But the point of his book is that sustainable design needs to considering a product’s entire lifecycle—from manufacture, through use, to where it ends up. Other than burning lots more gasoline, the H2 seems to be better for the environment than the Prius. It is made in the US instead of being shipped here from Japan, like the Prius. The Hummer only has one battery, as opposed to the Prius which has many “which are highly toxic and require a lot of platinum and other metals (Shedroff, 2009, pp.75). The part I never even considered was the disposal because the Prius—supposedly the “environmental car”—has more toxic materials to get rid of.
Bottom of Form
YOUR RESPONSE TO POST 2:
POST 3:
Climate Change and Sustainability
Top of Form
To ask if climate change is proven is like asking if we really sent a man to the moon. There are photos and videos all across the Internet, but there are still some conspiracy theorists that deny we had the technology and know-how to accomplish such a feat. Same can be said for climate change. We feel the changes around the world, from rising temperatures to increased seismic activity and the ferocity of natural disasters. There are enumerable studies, books, and documentaries discussing the how and why of climate change, and what we should do to mitigate the damage. But despite all of the obvious evidence, much like flat-Earthers who want to argue the roundness of the globe, they refuse to acknowledge the glaring problem in front of them.
In order for sustainable development to remain sustainable, there are 3 key factors that must work in tandem: 1. social progress 2. economic development 3. climate & environment
It would be silly of us to think that we could continue living just through socio-economic development. We would eventually eat through all of the Earth's natural resources just due to the size of our growing population. While some resources are self-renewing many are not, such as oils and fossil fuels. If we can cohesively convert everyone to solar or wind energy, we would be able to greatly reduce our dependence on gas and thus, be able to lessen our footprint on the environment.
But renewable energy isn't our only means of sustainability. Using cleaner energy, recycling and reusing products will also help minimize impact because we will have less need for landfills. This would, in turn, also afford us more land for farming and other sorts of land development. I believe the key to reaching a net-zero future lies in us using every means of sustainability at our disposal. While I don't think this will completely undo all of the harm we've caused to our environment, I do believe it would mitigate the damage. We can do this by planting more trees where we've previously torn them down and leaving them untouched. Teaching everyone about urban agriculture so everyone can grow their own fresh produce. This could help cut down on processed foods, as well as supermarkets who regularly have to toss rotting produce because it's picked too early and traveled a large distance. The need for fewer supermarkets would also mean less electric energy needed in areas. So on and so forth.
As for hybrid cars versus traditional cars, they both have good and bad qualities. I feel that cars are a necessary evil. Until we can figure out how to manipulate time and space, and teleport places, we need vehicles. We are in an age of development and exploration. There is a great demand to be able to get from point A to point B in a timely fashion. Many of us rely on cars to get to work, school, etc. and public transportation isn't always an option. While hybrid cars do cut down on gas consumption, many of them are using electricity generated by burning coal so... Is that really much better?! And, unfortunately, hybrid and electric cars are harder on the environment to produce than traditional vehicles because of the batteries that must be manufactured. On the flip side, however, they do have a lower environmental impact in the long run; at least from the studies that have been done so far. We won't truly know until they've been out and tested for a couple of generations.
All in all, I think we need to continue with the sustainable means and methods we've been using, while also trying for new, innovative ideas. We cannot what kind of positive impact we can have if we don't try.
Bottom of Form
YOUR RESPONSE TO POST 3: