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Infrastructure plays an instrumental role in the shaping of the landscape across many scales and is a critical human component within the landscape, yet these systems have tended to ignore the function of appearance and aesthetics in their design. Consequently, the relationship between our infrastructure, the environment, and us has become increasingly opaque. The majority of the vast infrastructure systems that weave throughout the landscape promote a mono-functional agenda which is relegated to the background of our everyday experiences. By investigating the traditional methods of designing infrastructure, we can begin to understand how to integrate aesthetics into the design of infrastructure. This is explored through one of the largest infrastructure systems in the United States; flood control. Flood control infrastructure in is an extensive system that has formed a protective barrier between human and natural processes for over 200 years. Its largest component, the levee, is an elegantly simple structure that contains many layers of significant cultural and historic aesthetic narratives. This thesis focuses on the levee as an infrastructure that mediates between natural processes and human development and studies how it can perform aesthetically to convey new meaning and value. What is the potential of the levee to become expressive in our lives, and be designed in such a way to move us? This new infrastructural paradigm explores the implications of utilizing aesthetics as an expressive and significant function of levee design that can inform and inspire the public and define a new dialogue between man, nature, and technology. / Master of Landscape Architecture

"Creative Thinking about the future requires tension -- the tension of holding both the need and the possible in our awareness at the same time." Milenko Matanovic Constructing concrete open channels can provide a quick, efficient solution to help prevent an area from flash floods and water accumulation. However, such a solution does not take into consideration the increased land needs for housing and public open spaces, in addition to missing the opportunity for benefitting from rainwater and reusing the municipal water of cities in greening sustainable stormwater channels. The United Nations (2014) reported that 54% of the world's population is living in urban areas, and it is predicted to increase to 66% by 2050. Jeddah City, Saudi Arabia already struggles from both lack of open spaces while consuming spaces in constructing concrete open channels, only made worse by the rapid growth of population and urbanism. Although the rate of precipitation in arid regions is low, studies and evidence show that even in arid regions turning the majority of urban areas into impervious surfaces is restrictive and the result of doing so is devastating. This thesis aims to find an environmental alternative solution for an open drainage channel designed to function as a stormwater management facility as well as a central green finger for Jeddah City. It will take into consideration international and regional precedent design and future development of green channel case studies, to provide efficient design recommendations to planners and designers, who aim to redevelop constructed or proposed stormwater channels using sustainable green infrastructure practices to improve a city's livability. / Master of Landscape Architecture

Living shorelines and other nature-based solutions have become more widely accepted as a cost-effective, multi-functional, and sustainable approach to coastal resilience. However, in spite of growing stakeholder support, a planning-level understanding of the hydrodynamic impact of living shorelines is not well-developed. Not only do these features vary in size, shape, and structural characteristics, but the wave environment in which they exist can be quiescent or extreme. The work presented in this paper explores the hydrodynamic effects of living shoreline features in such a way that can be generalized across a range of varying physical environments. In a series of Simulation WAves Nearshore (SWAN) simulations, we investigate the effect of wave period, wave height, bed slope, living shoreline feature length in the cross-shore direction, and feature friction coefficient on wave attenuation. Results showed that higher wave period, higher wave height, milder slopes, longer feature lengths, and higher feature roughness largely correlated with higher wave attenuation. However, only on mild slopes did additional feature lengths result in appreciable additional attenuation. Characteristic lengths were thus computed to better illustrate the cost-effectiveness of additional feature lengths given a particular wave environment. These characteristic lengths provide one way to evaluate the hydraulic efficacy of proposed living shoreline projects. In this way, regardless of the particularities of individual project sites, we aim to help planners screen potential living shoreline projects before pursuing more detailed, costly analyses. / Master of Science / Living shorelines and other nature-based solutions have become more widely accepted as a cost-effective, multi-functional, and sustainable approach to coastal resilience. However, in spite of growing stakeholder support, a planning-level understanding of the hydrodynamic impact of living shorelines is not well-developed. Not only do these features vary in size, shape, and structural characteristics, but the wave environment in which they exist can be quiescent or extreme. The work presented in this paper explores the hydrodynamic effects of living shoreline features in such a way that can be generalized across a range of varying physical environments. In a series of Simulation WAves Nearshore (SWAN) simulations, we investigate the effect of wave period, wave height, bed slope, living shoreline feature length in the cross-shore direction, and feature friction coefficient on wave attenuation. Results showed that higher wave period, higher wave height, milder slopes, longer feature lengths, and higher feature roughness largely correlated with higher wave attenuation. However, only on mild slopes did additional feature lengths result in appreciable additional attenuation. Characteristic lengths were thus computed to better illustrate the cost-effectiveness of additional feature lengths given a particular wave environment. These characteristic lengths provide one way to evaluate the hydraulic efficacy of proposed living shoreline projects. In this way, regardless of the particularities of individual project sites, we aim to help planners screen potential living shoreline projects before pursuing more detailed, costly analyses.

As urban land expands across the globe and impervious surfaces continue to be used for constructing urban infrastructure, stormwater treatment costs and environmental damage from untreated stormwater will rise. Well designed urban landscapes can employ trees and soils to reduce stormwater runoff flowing to streams and treatment facilities. Typical urban soil, however, is compacted and restricts tree growth via high soil strength and inadequate gas exchange. A site preparation method that deeply incorporates compost and includes trees for long term carbon input and pore development was evaluated in the urban setting of Arlington, Virginia. Three species were used in that study of 25 streetside plantings. The site preparation affected soil at 15 30 cm by lowering soil bulk density by 13.3%, and increasing macro-aggregate-associated carbon by 151% compared to control plots, and resulted in 77% greater tree growth during the first year after transplant. In a second experiment, rainfall simulations were used to evaluate common landscape mulch materials for their ability to prevent compaction from traffic as well their affect on surface runoff before and after traffic. When plots were subjected to heavy rainfall, (>97 mm/h) mulches were found to reduce sediment loss 82% and 73% before and after traffic, respectively. Runoff rates from wood chips were only 0.19 ml/s faster after traffic while rates from bare soil and marble gravel with geotextile increased 2.28 and 2.56 ml/s, respectively. Management of soils, trees and landscapes for stormwater benefit could reduce cost of wastewater treatment for municipalities and can prevent environmental degradation. / Master of Science

Climate change is expected to lead to more intense and severe rainfall events in the future, significantly increasing the risk of urban flooding. This change, characterized by spatial and temporal shifts in precipitation patterns, presents a challenge to the capacity of existing urban drainage systems, which may lead to higher runoff volumes than they were initially designed to handle. Relying solely on enlarging stormwater infrastructure to tackle this issue could be expensive and may transfer the flooding risk downstream, rather than effectively resolving it. Furthermore, climate change may also lead to prolonged dry spells, potentially resulting in soil compaction and diminished soil infiltration rates. Given these considerations, it is essential to ensure urban drainage systems are both adaptable and space-efficient, with an enhanced capacity to manage the heightened rainfall caused by climate change.   As awareness of the hydrological and environmental impacts of urbanization on catchments grows, there has been a paradigm shift toward adopting green infrastructure solutions. These approaches diverge from traditional 'end-of-pipe' strategies, emphasizing more holistic and sustainable methods. The overall aim of this thesis is to investigate the implications of climatic conditions and geographic location on the retention and detention capacity of three types of infiltration-based facilities: a biofilter cell, a green roof, and a grass swale. A rainfall-runoff model of a biofilter cell and a green roof, combined with swale irrigation experiments, was used to evaluate the capacity of these facilities to reduce runoff volumes and attenuate peak flows. The analysis was conducted in four urban areas representing oceanic (Cfc), humid continental (Dfb), and subarctic (Dfc) climatic zones. The assessment also includes the effect of temporal and spatial variation of saturated hydraulic conductivities (ksat). Swale irrigation experiments were conducted to evaluate the effect of outflow controls on swale retention and detention capacities, under high soil moisture conditions.   Results for biofilter cells and green roofs showed that retention capacities were influenced by the combined effect of antecedent wetness, the extent of winter periods, and the frequency and intensity of rainfall events. Conversely, green roofs were found to have a higher sensitivity to initial soil conditions and antecedent dry weather periods, which was observed through a spread distribution of runoff volume reductions. Grass swales exhibited a large spatial distribution of hydraulic conductivity (ksat) values, with lower values at the swale bottom and higher values at the slope on the right side. Results from a full-scale infiltration test showed that overall, grass swale infiltration capacities are representative of the measured ksat values at the swale bottom. Finally, the presence of outflow controls was observed to enhance the retention and detention capacities of grass swales, even under high levels of soil moisture content. This increase in swale hydrological functionality was influenced by swale outflow controls, leading to greater utilization of the grass swale surface area. Differences between swales with outflow controls and those without were noted due to the effect of the additional storage capacity provided by an outlet control weir. Conversely, it was shown that swales without outflow controls experienced limited retention under high soil moisture content, restricted by the finite capacity of surface depression storage.

One of today’s most important public health issues is inferior air quality which causes many years of healthy life lost due to disability primarily due to respiratory-, heart- and cardiovascular diseases. A major cause is vehicle emissions such as particles or nitrogen oxides. To protect both environment and people from being harmed there are environmental quality standards that every township must follow. The aim of this report is to investigate residents in Piteå’s attitudes and motivations, significant differences in willingness to change behavior and what Piteå municipality can do to influence their residents to make sustainable choices. This study’s data was collected through a survey distributed towards people with a motor vehicle in Piteå. The results show that the resident’s most important motivations to change their behavior are health benefits and their climate moral. The willingness to change is lower the further from the city the resident’s live and the study showed a significant difference between people living closer than 5 kilometers from the city center compared to people with 10 kilometers or more. The report also showed that Piteå community must work with different types of information sources and methods to make people change their behavior. In conclusion, many residents in Piteå are willing to change their behavior, however accessibility for public transportation needs to be improved. To increase motivation, Piteå municipality must work broadly with many methods.

Increased human-centric requirements could turn the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design program (LEED) into a sustainable development tool for cities through mitigation of gentrification. Green building rating systems, like LEED, were designed with environmental sustainability in mind. Sustainability holistically however is about preserving the environment, economics, and equity. A scoping literature review confirmed that LEED is used for energy efficiency and greening developments (preserving the environment). However, research also revealed that LEED has potential to mitigate gentrification (preserving economics and equity) if credits were adjusted, or the program was paired with policy, to have increased focus on affordability, maintaining local culture, and preventing resident displacement. Further conclusions based on literature could not be made due to a gap in research surrounding LEED programs and gentrification. Gentrification is a contemporary event that occurs from any type of land development; but more quantitative research surrounding gentrification-related variables could help guide LEED and policies towards what metrics would likely help reduce resident displacement. A longitudinal case study of Arlington County, Virginia paired with spatial modeling was performed with census-level data. The results demonstrated how LEED impacts onto gentrification-related variables could be measured. Accompanying census-level data with localized surveys in future studies could then provide more context to how gentrification impacts specific neighborhoods. This research establishes a methodological foundation for future studies to analyze these complex relationships between third-party green certification programs and gentrification. The code and related datasets for this study were uploaded to the Open Science Framework (OSF) (DOI 10.17605/OSF.IO/G3HCV) to help foster those next steps for not just other researchers in this space, but also localities. Localities, which currently utilize LEED and related programs in their development policies, could adapt this framework to help establish social and economic assistance programs to aid in making a more sustainable environment for residents without adjusting LEED itself. / Master of Science / The Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design program (LEED) was developed to help the environment, but with some changes it may also be used to try and reduce gentrification in cities. Gentrification is a contemporary event that occurs from any type of land development. Gentrification is when people with lower-than-average incomes can no longer afford to live in an area and are replaced by those with significantly higher incomes. The push out of these areas comes in many forms, but most commonly is seen as a steep rise in rent increases. Existing research had not been able to easily measure gentrification, making it difficult to tell what causes it aside from developing areas; but more research into LEED may have shed some light on how cities can develop in a more people-centric way. LEED, and similar green building certifications, are used as guidelines for developing land (e.g., homes, offices, schools, factories) to be more environmentally friendly. However, just because a project is green, doesn't mean that it's sustainable or immune from common problems that can arise from land development projects – such as gentrification. With adjustments, the LEED program could achieve more sustainable metrics which could help mitigate resultant gentrification. In the first stage of this research, a broader selection of previously published research was investigated to understand the relationship between LEED-certified green infrastructure and gentrification. Through this investigation, the gap in the research was found to be larger than anticipated. The gap also points out how LEED would need to be adjusted or paired with policy changes to reach sustainability. However, how can we tell what changes need to be made? This research created models for Arlington County, Virginia that demonstrated how LEED impacts on gentrification-related variables could be studied; this is something that will need to be investigated further prior to informing policy as it is unique to each location. Focusing on gentrification-related variables by pairing census-level data with localized surveys would enable a broader understanding of the impact of a LEED project on the community in which it's located. This deeper dive would then assist in creating that policy for Arlington County to pair with LEED in efforts to create sustainable developments. Each city is unique in how they grow, which is why it is important that we figure out how these cities gentrify and create policies tailored to each of them. This research establishes a methodological foundation for future studies in other localities, with the code and datasets being publicly available on the Open Science Framework (OSF) (DOI 10.17605/OSF.IO/G3HCV). OSF provides researchers a platform to continue developing the methods analyzing these complex relationships between third-party green certification programs and gentrification, whether it be in a small town or a larger city. Localities, which utilize LEED and related programs in their development policies, could establish social and economic assistance programs to aid in making a more sustainable environment for residents without adjusting LEED itself.