Article: Developing Sustainable Infrastructure in New Cities by Heidi Cho
In the article, “Developing Sustainable Infrastructure in New Cities”, Cho (2014) states that sustainability needs to be ranked first to adapt to the extreme urban context in the 21st century. The author mentions that the “Envision Sustainability Rating System” is designed to monitor the performance of an infrastructure through the ability, flexibility and the usefulness to last in the long run. The writer states that both Mexico and Peru have used the “Envision Rating System” to construct their highways, which has served the community well by overcoming challenges resulting from “rising energy prices, water shortages, traffic congestions” and other factors etc, in rapid urbanization. The author hopes to provide a holistic vision from the King Abdullah Economic City (KAEC) and that new city around the world to use these guidelines to strategize their new infrastructures. I agree with the author that the importance of achieving sustainable infrastructure and prioritizing infrastructures such as transport accessibility is the key in helping cities to be globally competitive. However, I find that other alternatives in other rating systems available was not explained and how “Envision Rating System” differs from other systems or how it has supported or benefited projects greatly in monitoring the performance of sustainable infrastructure developments.
I feel that the article shows good details in telling readers about the needs of sustainable infrastructures to ensure continuity of use. As rapid urbanization is taking place, sustainability carries an important role in ensuring that the wellbeing of the citizens and goals for improving environmental challenges and economic growth for a country such as China, will be met. World leaders or city planners who wish to take reference from the “King Abdullah Economic City (KAEC) fellowship” will be able to analyze the effectiveness of the project results at a wider view, before committing to new developments. With the “Envision” rating system, city planners or building performance assessors will also be able to monitor the “resilience and the performance” of their infrastructures and also competitiveness at a global level.
I agree with the author’s stand that the “new accreditation system that prioritizes the sustainability of infrastructure…” looks appropriate and is needed as it reflects the quality of such infrastructure; the system might also encourage cities to improve on their transportation infrastructure.* In addition, I believe that any municipal government working towards constructing a sustainable new city should also concentrate on other infrastructures such as energy efficient buildings and eco-friendly systems, although an effective transport system is the backbone to every modern economy. With many modern countries working towards developing new smart cities, sustainable infrastructure is also seen as one of the “economic motivators” and part of a “new economic model adopted around the world”(GIZ, n.d). Countries are seen to be more competitive, attracting more investors to their cities and recognized as a role model for their efforts of having greener infrastructures.
There are other possible rating systems available such as “Leadership in Energy And Environmental Design (LEED)” or “Green Mark Rating (by Building Construction Authority Singapore)” as an alternative or a guide, which may assist city leaders or planners to assess the physical performance of an infrastructure more efficiently (Tare.M, 2014). For a city to be able to provide a sustainable infrastructure, overall efficiency and benefits of a project should be studied. According to World Bank Group (2013), sustainability efforts by the leaders must “ figure out how they will provide affordable homes, transportation, jobs, basic infrastructure and services necessary to support the ballooning urban populations”. City leaders need to be aware of how they can improve their cities through different rating systems available that may benefit the city or the system of “organizing principles for sustainability development” as well as the needs of sustainability. World leaders or city planners expressing interest in this approach may also reckon with the ways to finance their infrastructures of their projects in areas such as performance monitoring and requirements in system maintenance in their projects.
In conclusion, developing sustainable infrastructures in new cities connects cities and the community altogether. Transport accessibility helps cities to be globally competitive through developing sustainable infrastructures from careful planning in the targeted project. Although “Envision Rating System” provides an alternative for other cities to model after or follow, city leaders or planners of new developing cities need to weigh the potential benefits that they want to achieve from the different ratings available that are relatable to their projects. In order for city leaders or planners to fully benefit from the objectives set in the sustainable infrastructure projects, further studies will have to be conducted to integrate sustainable techniques in design and construction to monitor the performance and how it can support the long-term goals in continuity of use to address the entire lifecycle of the projects (Tare.M, 2014).
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Deutsche Gessellschaft fur Internationale Zussammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH (n.d)Sustainable Infrastructure. Retrieved from: https://www.giz.de/en/ourservices/sustainable_infrastructure.html
Tare, M. (2014) Envisioning Smart Cities through Sustainable Infrastructure. Retrieved from:
http://cityminded.org/envisioning-smart-cities-sustainable-infrastructure-10385
The World Bank. (2013) What City Leaders Need to Know as Countries Rapidly Urbanize. Retrieved from: http://web.worldbank.org/WBSITE/EXTERNAL/TOPICS/EXTSDNET/0,,contentMDK:23342828~menuPK:64885113~pagePK:7278667~piPK:64911824~theSitePK:5929282,00.html
Wikipedia (2015). Sustainability. Retrieved from:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sustainability
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