Britons are less divided than you might think, but we need to start listening to each other

Britons are emerging from the pandemic with fewer divisions than before, says Tim Dixon (More in Common). But while the country is not fiercely divided along cultural or political lines, we need to do a much better job of listening to each other and breaking out of like-minded communities

Using urban foresight techniques in city visioning: lessons from the Reading 2050 vision

The emergence of urban (or city) foresight techniques focuses on the need to create coherent city visions to plan and manage for future long-term change and create opportunities for new investment into the local urban economy. This paper reviews the concepts of ‘co-created’ city visioning and urban foresight, setting this in the context of new and emerging practice and policy in the UK, and elsewhere. The paper critically reviews the development of the vision for a small city (the ‘Reading 2050’ project, linked to the UK Future of Cities Foresight Programme), and the lessons it holds for visioning, foresight and planning, using the ‘quadruple helix’ framework as a conceptual lens for analysis

Session B3: Alden Fish-Friendly Hydropower Turbine: History and Development Status

Abstract: An innovative technology that has potential to contribute to renewable energy development with reduced impacts on downstream fish passage is the Alden turbine, originally developed by the U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE) more recently enhanced by the Electric Power Research Institute (EPRI). This turbine is designed to allow the safe passage of fish through the turbine eliminating the need for expensive screens and bypasses and loss of generation via spillage for fish passage. The turbine features a helical-shaped runner with only three blades. Pilot-scale tests demonstrated that fish survival, when scaled to a full-size field installation, would be in excess of 98% for many fish species. EPRI, with DOE support, funded Alden and Voith Hydro to enhance the turbine’s conceptual design performance through modification of the hydraulic passageways, including the spiral case, distributor, runner and draft tube. The final stage of the Alden turbine design effort included a model test at Voith Hydro’s hydraulic laboratory in York, PA, in addition to the updated mechanical and balance of plant equipment sizing necessary for an actual field installation. Model testing indicated a maximum calculated prototype efficiency of almost 94% at conditions corresponding to a prototype net head and flow of 92.0 ft and 1,504 cfs, respectively. The next stage in developing the Alden turbine is a field demonstration project. While EPRI had two field demonstration projects in development, both have been cancelled because of economic reasons unrelated t the cost of the turbine. EPRI is now actively seeking a new demonstration site. The conference presentation will review the detailed results of the mechanical, hydraulic and efficiency performance of the model Alden turbine and its predicted field performance and relative cost compared to conventional Kaplan and Francis turbine designs

Embedding green infrastructure evaluation in neighbourhood masterplans – does BREEAM Communities change anything?

Green Infrastructure (GI) evaluation is reported to improve the sustainability of neighbourhood masterplans, but there has been little research examining the links between GI evaluation and masterplan decision-making. A study of six English masterplanned sites was carried out, with paired case studies reflecting three types of neighbourhood development (estate regeneration, urban infill, rural-urban extension) to examine whether the sustainable neighbourhood standard, BREEAM Communities (BC) affected GI evaluation and masterplan decisions. In each of three pairs, one site had adopted BC and one had not. Strategy-asPractice provided a conceptual framework to analyse 13 evaluative episodes, based on 48 interviews and public documents. The analysis revealed that GI-related recommendations were typically deprioritised at later masterplan stages, despite earlier decisions or the application of BC. Potential ways to enhance the embeddedness of GI evaluative practice include improving practitioners’ understanding of GI and increasing accountability at later masterplan stages, such as through sustainability reporting

Investigating the level of awareness of building assessment tools in the construction industry of Botswana

Environmental building assessment tools have been developed to measure how well or poorly a building is performing, or likely to perform, against a declared set of criteria, or environmental considerations, in order to achieve sustainability principles. Knowledge of environmental building assessment tools is therefore important for successful design and construction of environmentally friendly buildings for countries. The purpose of the research is to investigate the knowledge and level of awareness of environmental building assessment tools among industry practitioners in Botswana. One hundred and seven paper-based questionnaires were delivered to industry practitioners, including architects, engineers, quantity surveyors, real estate developers and academics. Users were asked what they know about building assessment, whether they have used any building assessment tool in the past, and what they perceive as possible barriers to the implementation of environmental building assessment tools in Botswana. Sixty five were returned and statistical analysis, using IBM SPSS V19 software, was used for analysis. Almost 85 per cent of respondents indicate that they are extremely or moderately aware of environmental design. Furthermore, the results indicate that 32 per cent of respondents have gone through formal training, which suggests ‘reasonable knowledge’. This however does not correspond with the use of the tools on the ground as 69 per cent of practitioners report never to have used any environmental building assessment tool in any project. The study highlights the need to develop an assessment tool for Botswana to enhance knowledge and further improve the level of awareness of environmental issues relating to building design and construction