urban climate, air, noise

Aim: to assure and to re-establish a bio-climatic situation favourable for men's health an well-being, to minimise the noise pollution, to improve the air quality
Fields and Measures:
>> Urban Climate
>> Urban Ventilation
>> Local Ventilation, bio-climatic well-balanced parts
>> Air Quality
>> Noise Control
>> Electromagnetic Radiation
>> Examples
>> Links to Further Information
>> Sources and Literature
   



   
         
    Fields and Measures    
         
    Urban Climate    
         
  Urban Ventilation

Analysis of the urban climate situation (existing climatic phenomena, climatic disadvantages, climatic influence estimation of new buildings and users, symbiosis of different users)

> influence / responsibility: local climate, air pollution restriction plans, studies about air exchange processes
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Conservation of free spaces in general (limitation of new constructions) and creation of new free spaces;
maintenance and conservation of green spaces and water plans  (greens, parks, planted protection lanes, etc.);
maintenance and conservation of climatic important areas – areas that cool down by night or areas in a special topographic situation which cause an important air circulation (classification of planted areas and forests as "climate protection forest", to assure compensation surfaces for new build constructions, massive new plantings);
maintenance and conservation of cold air source areas (meadows, fields, gardens, fallow lands);
to assure cold air corridors: maintenance and development of connected open space patterns for cold air corridors (major corridors of at least 200 m, secondary corridors 30 to 50 m, to assure that cold air reach the core area in the  town centre, support and development of parks and large free spaces, inshore waters and running waters, arterial roads, rail way tracks);
setting a limit of 1,5 km parallel and 2,5 km perpendicular
to the main wind direction for the spatial expansion of settlement areas, suburbs and villages around the city centre;

> influence / responsibility: comprehensive community development plan, development plan, land politics, masterplan, definition of restriction-, protection- and pollution areas, compensation surfaces

>> influence also on: Town Structure, Development Sites, Division of Space, Heights of Buildings, Density of Development, Types of Mixed Use, landscape planing
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Measures for the structuring of the green open space (to enlarge the green volume)

> influence / responsibility: green open space structure plan

>> influence also on: Improvement of Climate, Sealing of Soil, Natural Elements
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Choice of climatic favourable forms for green spaces and buildings; to avoid barriers in cold air corridors ( noise protection walls, groups of trees, large building or very dense settlement structures); to avoid industry and highly polluting roads

> influence / responsibility: development plan

>> influence / responsibility: Town Structure, Development Sites, Division of Space, Heights of Buildings, Public Transit Concept, traffic planning
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  Local Ventilation, bio-climatic well-balanced parts

Conservation and creation of planting areas and areas that allow water to seep away (conservation of green free spaces and water plans, wooden areas; to enlarge the green volume in general; planting of trees; green roofs and facades; use of materials permeable to air and water, for ex. parking)

> influence / responsibility: development plan, green open space structure plan

>> influence also on: Improvement of the Climate, Sealing of the Soil, Natural Elements, Density of Development, Water Concepts
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Conservation and creation of the air streams between un-sealed free spaces (to consider the urban climate in the planing of free space: a system, a pattern of small green spaces, free spaces with an active influence on the urban climate, to fix the direction and the minimum section of roads in a dense development, orientation of the buildings after existing air streams)

> influence / responsibility: local climate, green open space structure plan, development plan

>> influence also on: Improvement of the Climate, Natural Elements, Division of Space
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to optimise the height and the placement of buildings; conservation and creation of ventilation gaps (courtyard greens actively influence on the urban climate, air circulation by free spaces between buildings, open gateways, sparse and loose trees in the courts to reach a cooling effect without obstruction of the cold air exchange); to avoid and reduce wind turbulence, for ex. around high buildings

> influence / responsibility: development plan, architect

>> influence also on: Improvement of the Climate, Division of Space, Heights of Buildings
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Conservation and planting of trees for the shading of streets and green space and for a positive development of the green volume in general (dense and diversified plantings on places and streets in inner-city areas, new plantings)

> influence / responsibility: development plan, green open space structure plan

>> influence also on: Natural Elements
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Use of building materials with a low degree of heat absorption in new construction and renovation (choice of such kind of materials, vegetation cover on facades and roofs)

> influence / responsibility: development plan, architect
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No new ecologically problematic industrial facilities in already polluted areas

> influence / responsibility: comprehensive community development plan, development plan
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To avoid a high emission of heat and humidity from industrial facilities, that could be unfavourable to the urban climate

> influence / responsibility: architect

>> influence also on: Energy
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On the building's level: to support the inside climate constellation (for ex. with water plans), natural climate concepts (for ex. atriums), could air source areas (for ex. north-oriented climate yards, passive air cooling system with earth channels)

> influence / responsibility: architect

>> influence also on: Ventilation (work), Water Concepts, Energy
   
         
    Noise Control    
         
 

To take all possible measures to insure good noise protection; through technical solutions, in the planning process but also by an influence on personal habits; active measures against noise emission "at the source" by the use of less noisy processes (to avoid noise is better than to control the noise afterwards)

> influence / responsibility: community, information campaign
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Noise control in traffic planing (road, railroad and air traffic noise): to reduce the noise emission of motor traffic by measures directly "at the source" (for ex. technical measures on vehicles, road surfaces, traffic concepts to reduce the automobile traffic, to avoid motor traffic, strategies for a better partition of traffic, measures to subside the traffic, road traffic laws such as speed limits)

> influence / responsibility: air pollution restriction plans

>> influence also on: Public Transit Concepts, Motor Traffic Concepts, Parking Concepts, Car-Free Areas
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To avoid / to reduce the noise emission of commercial enterprises in housing areas (structuring of the development area, to keep sufficient distances), creation and conservation of large connected free space patterns as "silent zones" (change of the site's function, noise protection walls, protection plantings)
planning measures: sound expansion has to be considered when defining sites for commercial uses (wind direction,
slope, topography, vegetal and built shields)

> influence / responsibility: development plan, comprehensive community development plan

>> influence also on: Natural Elements, Types of Mixed Use, Potential of Mixed Use
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To reduce the emission by the implantation of sports facilities as buffers (necessary distances, temporary restrictions)

> influence / responsibility: development plan, community
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Noise control on the construction site: to reduce the noise emission produced by the different professions (less noisy processes, information campaign in the neighbourhood)

> influence / responsibility: law restricting the noise of machines in the construction
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    To reduce vibrations
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Passive measures for noise control around the building (noise protections covered with plants, for ex. walls or embankments, design of the roads' section and roadsides, noise control through the use of vegetation)

> influence / responsibility: green open space structure plan

>> influence also on: Natural Elements
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Built passive measures for noise control (building forms with silent zones in the inside, formation of buildings, closed housing blocks not only in inner-city areas, noise control through the heights of buildings)

> influence / responsibility: development plan, architect

>> influence also on: Division of Space, Potential of Mixed Use
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Passive measures for noise control on buildings (ground plan of the building (apartment,...), noise protecting windows, winter-gardens, vegetation on the facades, to avoid sound rejection on the facades by the choice of forms and materials, sound absorbing free spaces)

> influence / responsibility: development plan, architect
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Administrative measures: to control the acceptance of allowed limits, to create restriction areas, temporary limitation of heavy noise sources

> influence / responsibility: community

>> influence also on:
Motor Traffic Concept, Potential of Mixed Use
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    Air Quality    
         
 

Reduction of emission in general, first of all by the producer him self

> influence / responsibility: community
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To assure a sufficient emission protection for sensible uses through distance areas and a reasonable mixed use

> influence / responsibility: masterplan, comprehensive community development plan

>> influence also on: Natural Elements, Types of Mixed Use, Potential of Mixed Use
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Conservation and amelioration of a sustainable mixed use and service enterprises (mixed use, infill development, etc.)

> influence / responsibility: development plan
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Spatial division or evacuation of polluting enterprises or installations, to improve the air quality by a better ventilation (forbidding certain of certain energy sources, motor traffic restrictions, etc.)

influence / responsibility: development plan

>> influence also on: Heat Supply (housing), Heat Supply (work), Potential of Mixed Use


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The local air quality as well as the expected emission or emission sensibility has to be considered when defining sites for the different uses – to avoid new conflicts (green distance areas, no industries in the main wind direction)

> influence / responsibility: masterplan, development plan, comprehensive community development plan

>> influence also on: Natural Elements, Potential of Mixed Use
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Built emission protections are better than space intensive distance areas, if they have the same positive effect

> influence / responsibility: development plan

>> influence also on: Natural Elements
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To reduce emissions from power stations (technique protection, use of produced heat)

> influence / responsibility: development plan

>> influence also on: Heat Supply (housing), Heat Supply (work)
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To reduce emissions from motor traffic (to reduce the motor traffic in general, speed limits, etc.)

> influence / responsibility: development plan

>> influence also on:
Public Transit Concept, Motor Traffic Concept, Parking Concept, Car-Free Areas
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To reduce emissions from households (interdiction to burn certain materials in some areas, to fix or to change the heating system to a specific type, to fix emission limits, better controls)

> influence / responsibility: development plan, community

>> influence also on:
Heat Supply (housing)
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to reduce emissions from trade and industry (see households, additional reduction of emissions from certain industrial processes, special technical measures, heat recovery, use of the produced heat in other parts of the enterprise, site specific measures – topographic and climatic situation; new developments: eventual use of produced heat for other purposes and construction of railway connections)

> influence / responsibility: development plan, community, comprehensive community development plan

>> influence also on: Heat Supply (offices)
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    To avoid nuisance from agriculture
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    To avoid nuisance from sewage purification
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Improvement of the air quality by binding harmful substances (massive new plantings)

> influence / responsibility: green open space structure plan

>> influence also on: Improvement of the Climate, Natural Elements
 
         
    Elektromagnetic Radiation    
         
   

To assure large distance areas

> influence / responsibility: development plan

>> influence also on: Types of Mixed Use, Potential of Mixed Use
   
         
    Examples
   
         
       
         
    Sources and Literature
  • Adam, Klaus: Stadtökologie in Stichworten, Hirt 1988
  • Bodamer, Achim: Diplomarbeit Ökologie und Städtebau am ILPÖ der Universität Stuttgart, Prof. Kaule 1996
  • Bunzel, Arno: Umweltschutz in der Bebauungsplanung, Hrsg.: Umweltbundesamt, Bauverlag 1997
  • Höschele, K.; Moriyama, M.; Zimmermann, H. (Hrsg.): "Klimaanlyse für die Stadtplanung", Institut für Meteorologie und Klimaforschung, Forschungszentrum Karlsruhe 1995
  • König, Herbert L.: Elektrischer Strom als Umweltfaktor, Richard Pflaum Verlag 1992
  • Schön, Jürgen: "Klimabeeinflußende Bebauung" in: DBZ Nr.5 1997
  • Stich, Rudolf: Stadtökologie in Bebauungsplänen, Bauverlag 1992
  • Umweltbundesamt (Hrsg.): Was sie schon immer über Lärmschutz wissen wollten, Kohlhammer 1997
  • Wirtschaftsministerium Baden-Württemberg (Hrsg.): Städtebauliche Klimafibel , Band 2 1995
  • Wirtschaftsministerium Baden-Württemberg (Hrsg.): Städtebauliche Lärmfibel , 1994
  • Wuppertal-Institut für Klima, Energie, Umwelt GmbH, BUND, Misereor (Hrsg.): Zukunftsfähiges Deutschland, Birkhäuser 1997