During the tour to the Frick Environmental Center in Pittsburgh
I realized that there is a wide variety of environmental sustainable strategies that can be adopted by man. However, a noteworthy sustainable strategy was the Solar Energy PV Array at Parking Canopy.
This sustainable strategy entails masking up the parking lot with many solar panels that are elevated on pinnacle of the roof of the parking lot and the cars park under the color of the photovoltaic canopy. Solar canopies, in practice, are the same as solar carports. They provide options to the rooftop solar. Using this strategy, one can produce a lot power that can be used for charging electric automobiles in the park or even light homes. The environmental impact of this sustainable strategy is that it efficiently utilizes space. When a solar canopy is constructed, more uses of the same square footage are added, implying that an additional space is not required. In addition, this strategy contributes to car fuel efficiency since it saves one from having to cool the car (Roberts & Guariento, 2009).
The rainwater storage using underground water harvesting tank
is another sustainable strategy that I learned of its use during the Frick Environmental Center. Rainwater harvesting is actually a collection of rainwater that freely falls from the sky as an alternative to the potable water (Cheremisinoff, n.d.). Under this sustainable strategy, the water is collected from the building roofs after which it is diverted to the underground storage tank. The rainwater storage using underground water harvesting tank utilizes limited space, and this ensures that no additional space is used for harvesting water. Moreover, the underground tanks are safeguarded from vandalism and any form of tampering as well as fires and natural disasters like hurricanes.
Personally, I found the Frick Environmental Centre building noteworthy
since this building restores and compliments the historical and ecological landscape of the park. Also, this building is designed in such a way that it meets the standards of the LEED Platinum and Living Building Challenge for energy efficiency because it supports its own energy and water needs (Parks, 2017).
References
Cheremisinoff, P. Underground storage tanks handbook. Matawan, NJ: SciTech Publishers.
Parks, P. (2017). Frick Environmental Center. Pittsburghparks.org. Retrieved 8 November 2017, from https://www.pittsburghparks.org/projects/frick-environmental-center
Roberts, S., & Guariento, N. (2009). Building integrated photovoltaics. Basel: Birkhäuser Verlag AG.
