Scenario Planning for Energy Efficient City based on Geodesign Methods

Keywords: Clean Energy, Scenarios, Solar, Ames
Abstract Type: Paper Abstract

Abstract

This project explores ways in which renewable energy can be implemented in a vision for the city's future. The goal is to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and explore how geoprocessing tools and Geodesign methods can be used in planning for an energy-efficient city of the future. The City of Ames, a small college town in Midwest Iowa, was selected as a case study. Three main questions drive this research: how to use geospatial tools to create scenarios for a sustainable future of the cities; how can a combination of renewable energies be implemented for a sustainable future of a city; and can transportation and housing be adapted to help eliminate greenhouse gas emissions? The research methodology is based on scenario planning (Avin, 2007) and the Geodesign framework (Steinitz, 2012) and together provided the framework in which the stakeholder values, driving forces, and key features of the scenarios were identified. This began with the representation and process model in which the geospatial data was collected and analyzed. Two energy-efficient scenarios, 2035 and 2050, were developed for the City of Ames based on the evaluation models. These scenarios include solar farms that can provide electricity to additional houses in Ames, solar bike lanes, solar-run bike shelters, greenways that connect the parks in Ames, permeable sidewalks, and identification of housing based on year built that would need retrofitting. Future work will explore other energy alternatives and provide ideas for impact assessments of the innovations included in the design and development of the scenarios.