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All About Greenroads. Sasobit Warm Mix Asphalt I-90 near George, WA 23 June 2008. What is the Greenroads performance metric?
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Sasobit Warm Mix Asphalt I-90 near George, WA 23 June 2008 What is the Greenroads performance metric? A performance metric for roadway design and construction that awards points for more sustainable practices. Greenroads helps quantify the sustainable attributes of a roadway project. Who is developing Greenroads? Greenroads is being developed jointly by the University of Washington (UW) and CH2M HILL. Importantly, although UW and CH2M HILL are developing this system, the brand associated with any pilot project or rated project will only be the Greenroads brand.
Sasobit Warm Mix Asphalt I-90 near George, WA 23 June 2008 • What can Greenroads do? • Define what project attributes contribute to roadway sustainability. • Provide a sustainability accounting tool for roadway projects. • Communicate sustainable project attributes to stakeholders. • Manage and improve roadway sustainability. • Stimulate the market for sustainable practices and products • Save money Overall goal: improve roadway sustainability
Quiet Pavement SR 520 Near Bellevue, WA 14 July 2007 Greenroads is a project-oriented system It does not deal with planning and it does not deal with operations.
Sustainability is a system characteristic which refers to the system’s capacity to support natural laws & human values. • Natural laws = Ecology • Rule: Don’t break the earth • How we do this: • Do not take stuff out of the earth faster than it will go back in. • Do not produce stuff (e.g., pollution) faster than it can be broken down and integrated back into nature. • Do not diminish nature’s productivity or diversity or we will affect nature’s ability to process stuff that we create or use. • Human values = equity and economy • Equity rule: Seek quality of life for all • Economy rule: Manage resources wisely • Resources = human, natural, manufactured and financial capital
warm mix asphalt life cycle cost analysis env. mgmt. sys. long-lasting pavement scenic views local material natural cut slope LID stormwater recycled materials quality construction
art ped./bicycle access fewer emissions recycled materials bus rapid transit CSS LID stormwater regional material native vegetation quality construction
EPA Tier 4 standards reduced paving emissions warm mix asphalt noise mitigation plan quality construction worker training biofuels ISO certifications
We have done well recycling hot mix asphalt and portland cement concrete as part of road construction. Waste in Washington State Asphalt and Concrete Recycled 1999 to 2004 HMA/PCC recycling = 30% of diverted waste Graph from Washington State Department of Ecology data
We can do better. We can reduce the amount to landfills, and increase the amount to high-value surfacings. Destination of Recovered HMA Destination of Recovered PCC Data from the USGS
Seattle-to-Bremerton ferry tunnel, Bremerton end. Do we, as humans, NEED art?
An ethnological view would say that art has value and can contribute to sustainability. From the work of Ellen Dissanayake (Affiliate Professor, School of Music, University of Washington) • Art is the ability to “make special.”Art recognizes or confers ‘specialness,’ a level or order different from everyday. Equally important is the behavior of appreciating that some things are special. These ideas are fundamental and universal. • The behavior of art is a common behavior to all human beings, not just artists. It’s important to note that “art” does not mean “good art.” • Art has selective value , i.e., in some way it enhances the survival of the species.Art would not exist universally if it did not have selective value. It’s not, as the modern view goes “for its own sake” (i.e., no practical value). • Art is valuable because it gives meaning and embellishes life. As humans, we simply cannot bear senselessness or lack of meaning. Dissanayake, E. (1980). Art as a Human Behavior: Toward an Ethological View of Art. Journal of Aesthetics and Art Criticism 38(4), 397-406. Read it at: http://ellendissanayake.com/publications/pdf/EllenDissanayake_5624714.pdf
Example: art included in wall fascia Art incorporated into the fascia for an I-5 freeway wall associated with an expansion project on I-5 near its intersection with SR 16 in Tacoma, WA.
Under the freeway at the intersection of I-10 and US 54 Photo from “bobb” Picasa web album
Road wall art at Marigold Elementary School, City of Chico, CA Lead artist: Meridith L. Timpson Native fish mosaic artists: Robin Indar and Christen Derr
Caigieburn Bypass, Hume Highway, Melbourne, Australia Taylor Cullity Lethlean and Robert Owen
James Angus: Ellipsoidal Freeway Sculpture (2008) Eastlink freeway: Nunawading to Frankston, Melbourne
Certification Levels Version 1.0: 108 Voluntary Credit Points 32-42 points 43-54 points 55-63 points 64+ points PR + 30% VC PR + 40% VC PR + 50% VC PR + 60% VC
Why bother with a performance metric? • More sustainable roads • Specific benefits: • Defines basic roadway sustainability attributes • Greater participation in roadway sustainability • Better evaluation of tradeoffs and decisions • Provide means for sustainability assessment • Allows innovation because it is end-result oriented • Confer marketable recognition on projects
What makes a roadway more/less sustainable and how do you translate these qualities into actionable items on your project? A Convenient List • Researched and backed with empirical evidence • Weighted based on impact • Each item is directly actionable on a project level • Each item referenced to sustainability components
If improving sustainability is an agency/company goal, how do you assess your performance? Some examples from LEED: City of Seattle: Sustainable Building Policy All City construction projects over 5,000 ft2 must meet LEED Silver rating level. LEED Pilot program provides small grants to help. King County Highest LEED level achievable based on life-cycle cost analysis and funding. Applies to all new construction and renovation over $250,000. Washington State All State funded projects over 5,000 ft2 have a goal of LEED silver.
If improving sustainability is an agency/company goal, how do you assess your performance? Some examples from LEED: Honolulu (Ordinance #06-06 and Bill #69) since 2006 New city facilities over 5,000 ft2 must achieve LEED Silver. 1 year exemption from real property taxes on buildings achieving LEED Certification. Maui County Energy efficiency and conservation working group recommends requiring LEED Certification for all new County facilities . Chair Robert Hoonan from the Grand Wailea Resort Hotel and Spa. Hawaii (HB #2175) All State agency buildings over 5,000 ft2 must attain LEED Silver certification. Priority permit processing for all construction going for LEED Silver or higher.
If improving sustainability is an agency/company goal, how do you assess your performance? Some examples from LEED: Phoenix All new municipal buildings to be LEED certified (2005). City Building Standards revised to include additional efficiency measures, requiring LEED AP to be on design team. Scottsdale (Resolution #6644) All new city buildings of any size to achieve LEED Gold and strive for highest certification level. First City in U.S. to have Gold policy. Arizona (Executive Order #2005-05) All State funded buildings must achieve LEED silver. Also includes mandatory use of renewable energy.
How should a road agency view Greenroads? It addresses your big impact items, including construction. An example: WSDOT’s 2009-2011 budget Washington has a LEED requirement Of this budget, $4.8 million (0.08%) is dedicated to “buildings and other support facilities” that could be addressed by this requirement. There is no roadway metric Of this budget, $4.38 billion (75%) could be addressed by Greenroads. How do you communicate what you are doing in your impact areas? Stories are not enough.
Why should a contractor care? Because there is money to be made. From the Turner Construction website: “Turner has extensive experience across a wide variety of sustainable construction projects, enabling us to create a detailed databank of cost-effective Green materials, processes and suppliers to assist our clients. From our experience, the costs associated with these projects can be contained to a level comparable to traditionally constructed buildings.” Green projects are: 30% of 2008 revenue 40% of backlog 50% of new sales One example…
Roads should be on the sustainability map. Right now they are not. • Quick Statistics • $38.69 billion 2008 revenue • Up 70% from 2007 • 26.2% of total revenue Tulacz, G. (2009). The Top 100 Green Contractors, ENR, 14 September 2009.
Greenroads right now…(2 April 2014) • Who are the developers? • University of Washington and CH2M HILL • Who is funding Greenroads so far? • TransNow (DOT Region 10 University Transportation Center) • State Pavement Technology Consortium (WA, CA, MN, TX) • Western Federal Lands Highway Division (FLHD) • Oregon Department of Transportation (ODOT) • What is the status right now? • Online: www.greenroads.us • Version 1.0 is available for download now • Want to review and comment on Greenroads? • Contact us now through www.greenroads.us • Want to participate in Greenroads as a pilot project? • Contact us now at www.greenroads.us
Sustainability is the next great game in transportation. The game becomes serious when you keep score. Greenroads keeps score.
