Tag Archives: green

Growing List of Cities Requiring New Buildings to Include EV Parking

February 8, 2022 Melissa Rysak Leave a comment

Washington, D.C., has joined the growing list of cities that are requiring new buildings to include EV parking in their plans.

As reported by Smart Cities Dive, new and refurbished commercial and multi-unit buildings in Washington, D.C., that have at least three off-road parking spaces will be required to make at least 20% of those spaces available to accommodate electric vehicle (EV) charging infrastructure, under a new law that took effect this year.

The new requirement came in response to public concern that families in apartment buildings or without garages did not have access to EV chargers, a barrier to purchasing a car. The make-ready rule is part of the city’s goal to have at least 25% of new vehicles registered by 2035 be zero-emissions. Similar make-ready requirements have been adopted or introduced over the past year in cities including Orlando, Florida, Pittsburgh and Salt Lake City as part of a broad effort to increase EV access.

IPMI Blog, Resources

Making the Switch

April 23, 2020 Rachel Yoka Leave a comment

By Conor Burke

“This is not normal.” This quote has been used in many aspects of our lives the last few years, and COVID-19 has made sure this phrase will be with us in the foreseeable future.

As an industry, parking and mobility has been trending to be more green-friendly.

There are a multitude of ways these statements—being more sustainable and the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic—are coming together. One manner should be fairly obvious: cleaning our facilities. The recent focus on washing our hands for 20 seconds and disinfecting high-traffic areas should have all professionals looking at their stocks of supplies and thinking about the surfaces customers touch all the time. Switching to certified green-friendly cleaning products can be easy to implement into your facilities. The green certification on these products was earned by having the product tested and quantified from toxicity limits to the energy used to produce them.

Certified cleaning products can help combat the spread of germs and help keep our employees safe in a more eco-friendly way. Parking and mobility professionals should make the conscious switch to green-friendly cleaning products and turn these higher standards into the industry norm.

Conor Burke is operations manager with VPNE Parking Solutions. This post is part of a five-day series commemorating Earth Day 2020.

Parking & Mobility Article, Resources, Transportation & Mobility

The Green Standard: A Business Model for an Evolving Industry

September 1, 2019 Rachel Yoka Leave a comment

By Trevyr Meade

OUR INDUSTRY NOW STANDS AT A MAJOR INFLECTION POINT. In just a few short years, we’ve seen the foundation for a new mobility paradigm take shape, the emergence of climate-related risk, and people’s expectations for business’s role within society evolve. These changes have created a tremendous opportunity, but thriving in this more fluid and complex environment will require a new business model—one that enables organizations to be more nimble and better integrated within the ecosystems they operate. Luckily, such a model exists: corporate social responsibility.

Investopedia defines corporate social responsibility as a self-regulating business model that helps a company be socially accountable—to itself, its stakeholders, and the public. This framework provides a pathway for businesses to connect with and better understand the needs of all stakeholders who affect their business, whether customers, business partners, employees, policy-makers, technology innovators, the public, or the environment.

“Stakeholder engagement is absolutely critical to our operations,” says Scott Morrissey, senior director of sustainability at Denver International Airport in Colorado. “The airport community is so large and varied that we need to work with our airline and concessions partners and communicate with our employees and passengers to achieve our ambitious sustainability goals. Having as many conversations as we can, both with individuals and groups, ensures that we can be responsive to the needs of all community stakeholders.”

Broadening Focus
At its core, corporate social responsibility is about broadening an organization’s focus from the bottom line of an income statement to a holistic accounting of all its stakeholders’ needs. Businesses that embrace this model create feedback loops that increase awareness of emerging risks and opportunities. As the pace of change within our industry hastens, businesses that identify these risks and opportunities most quickly will be positioned to adapt and thrive.

The transportation evolution is just one example of how the business of parking and mobility is changing. In 2010, catching a ride in more than 700 cities by tapping your cellphone, choosing to commute via a shared electric scooter, or experiencing a fully autonomous vehicle was unthinkable. While these and other innovations have affected our industry, the true extent of the change these technologies will bring is yet to be realized. For example, by 2030, 125 million electric vehicles are projected to be on the road, and the shared micro-mobility market in the U.S. could grow to $300 billion.

“Installing mobility amenities such as bicycle parking and electric-vehicle charging stations has enabled us to lower our environmental impact while enhancing the tenant experience,” explains Edmée Knight, sustainability manager at Unico Properties. “It is important for us to stay abreast of new mobility solutions as they come online so we can understand their potential to augment our sustainability work and improve access to our buildings.”

Engaging with innovators and policy-makers who are shaping the future of emerging transportation technologies has become critically important to businesses operating in our industry.

The Real Risk
A broader trend that’s emerged in recent years is climate risk becoming real. In 2018, asset manager Schroders assessed 11,000 listed global companies and estimated that accounting for physical climate risk could, on average, reduce their value by 2 to 3 percent. Given this information, Moody’s recent purchase of a majority stake in Four Twenty Seven comes as no surprise. Four Twenty Seven evaluates physical risks associated with climate-related factors and other environmental issues. To date, the relatively young company has developed a data set that covers over 2,000 listed companies.

As the impacts of a changing climate become clearer, understanding your business’s relationship with the environment will become a basic requirement for success. Moving forward, those businesses that do not understand how resource constraints and severe weather events will impact their organization will harness substantial unknown risk.
Society is also now demanding more responsibility from corporations. The public no longer believes that merely limiting environmental harm constitutes responsible business. Eighty-one percent of respondents to The Conference Board’s Global Consumer Confidence Survey feel strongly that companies should help improve the environment. When seeking work, a similar trend is clear: 75 percent of millennials (30 percent of today’s workforce) are willing to take a pay cut to work for a socially responsible company. Meeting legal environmental standards is no longer sufficient. High-performing businesses today must understand how they affect society and the environment and demonstrate to their communities and employees that they are striving to improve that impact.

The transformation our industry is undergoing will create immense opportunity but will also bring about new risks. Engaging with all the stakeholders who impact your organization provides a clear path for managing what will be a dynamic future. Corporate social responsibility is a framework for managing stakeholder engagement that enables you to adapt to new opportunities and mitigate risks before others are aware they exist. Embracing this framework will enable your organization to thrive in what is quickly becoming a much more complex and fluid parking and mobility industry.

Read the article here.

TREVYR MEADE is certification program lead with Green Business Certification, Inc. and a member of IPMI’s Sustainability Committee. He can be reached at tmeade@gbci.org.

IPMI Blog, Resources

Transportation Key to Costa Rica’s Green New Deal

March 19, 2019 Kim Fernandez Leave a comment

By Paul Wessel

Costa Rica wants to be the little country that could by becoming fossil-fuel-free by 2050.

Its greatest challenge? Transportation.

Transportation is the largest single source of Costa Rica’s greenhouse gas emissions. The number of cars and motorcycles on the roads is growing fast, according to a survey by nongovernmental group State of the Nation. The average car in the country is 17 years old. Congestion is a huge problem; morning traffic in the San José metropolitan area moves at an average of less than 10 miles per hour. Afternoons are worse.

So we learn in the New York Times: Tiny Costa Rica Has a Green New Deal, Too. It Matters for the Whole Planet:

Revamping transportation is expensive and so it will require tackling things that have little direct connection to climate change — fixing the country’s fiscal health, for one, to be able to secure big foreign loans to fund such an ambitious project, and lowering unemployment, which is a pressing political demand. It also means addressing the aspirations of its upwardly mobile people.

The story goes on to describe the two-hour commute ordeal of a furniture company manager. Her goal to improve her quality of life? Save up enough to buy a used Suzuki subcompact.

It’s worth reading the full story, enjoy the wonderful photos, and chuckle at the first-world zinger at the very end.

Paul Wessel is director, market development at the U.S. Green Building Council.

IPMI Blog, Resources

Sustainable Garages in Wood

December 12, 2018 Kim Fernandez Leave a comment

When’s the last time you saw a parking garage that featured wood as a primary construction material? Thanks to advances in technology and research, it may be coming to a facility near you.

Engineered wood is strong, sequesters carbon, and produces significantly less greenhouse gas emissions during production and transport than more traditional garage materials, and it’s warm and inviting to boot. Cross-laminated timber (CLT) and glued-laminated lumber (glulam) can be effectively used for super-strong, sustainable parking facilities, and it’s a trend that’s catching on.

This month’s The Parking Professional features an in-depth look at engineered wood, including a look at a real garage being built with it. It’s a great story you won’t want to miss. Read it here and let us know–what do you think of wood in garages?

IPMI Blog, Resources

High-Emitting Vehicle? Pay More for Parking

August 22, 2018 Kim Fernandez Leave a comment

Drivers who park in London’s financial district may look to use transit or upgrade older vehicles thanks to a new regulation that has drivers of high-emitting vehicles paying an extra tax to park.

Because of the district’s adoption of an app that knows the difference between, say, a hybrid and a diesel vehicle, on-street parkers will pay different rates depending on how much their vehicle pollutes the air. It’s not a huge difference–about 11 cents (U.S.) per hour–but enough that the media, at least, is taking notice. Drivers who opt to pay in cash rather than using the cashless app will also pay the higher rates.

About 8,000 people live in the district and 400,000 work there. Read more here.

Parking & Mobility Article, Resources

Weathering the Storm

December 1, 2016 Rachel Yoka Leave a comment

Weathering the Storm

Simply put, life on Earth exists because of the presence of water. However, water is also a force of nature that can have incredible destructive capabilities. For that reason alone, it’s important for us as parking managers to understand how our operations affect our water resources, actively take steps to protect water quality and availability, and work to mitigate the damage water can inflict. That means paying attention to stormwater management.

Natural Ecosystems
In natural ecosystems, rain falls onto woodlands, wetlands, grasslands, or forests and percolates through soil and plant material to charge underwater aquifers or flow into streams and rivers. By percolating through the natural, organic materials, water is slowly absorbed and purified.

Through this process, the water’s speed and flow is tempered, and it is gradually reabsorbed into the earth. The soil itself holds the water, which reduces flooding and erosion. The amount of water that soaks into the soil is determined by the amount of organic material.

Urban Environments
In urban settings, the process that happens in natural ecosystems is interrupted. Permeable soil is covered by impermeable concrete and asphalt. Rain that falls on these hard surfaces quickly runs off the surface, carrying with it any oils or pollutants to streams and rivers. Depending on the chemical, pollutants can have deadly short- and long-term consequences for the natural environment and humans.

Because stormwater runoff moves quickly and with some force, it causes extensive erosion. Artificially channeling water increases erosion because it increases both the speed and volume of runoff. Erosion itself is a problem as it destroys natural habitats in streams and rivers.

There are other costs as well. Erosion can undermine the structural integrity of roads, parking lots, and buildings. For the parking industry, water can have large economic effects on an organization as the water can very quickly wash away the adhesive and waterproofing properties of asphalt and get into the pavement structure, allowing it to dry out, crack, and ravel. Erosion not only increases the amount of sediments carried by stormwater runoff, but sediment running off asphalt surfaces also has large amounts of petroleum products, corrosive chemicals, and fine metals. This affects plants and animals living in our streams and rivers.

Sediment also affects the surrounding water ecosystem in several ways by absorbing heat, blocking sunlight, and polluting the water. Sediments absorb heat, so a sediment-laden river will have a higher temperature than a clear river. Warmer waters hold less oxygen, which means fewer animals are able to survive.

Sediments in the water column block sunlight. Less light means less photosynthesis by algae and aquatic plants living on the streambed. This not only reduces the amount of oxygen in the water column, but also reduces the amount of food available to support the herbivores at the base of the food chain. This, in turn, means less food is available to their predators, such as fish, birds, and mammals.

Sediments sink to the floor of streams and rivers. This eliminates homes for aquatic invertebrates, an important food source for predatory fish. The sediments also smother algae and smaller aquatic plants.

Protecting the Water Supply
As discussed, impermeable concrete and asphalt alter the natural flow and quality of water in urban environments. Fortunately, there are steps that we in the parking industry can take to protect our water supply and our parking assets.

To begin with, we can address water quality issues by simply keeping our parking lots clean and asphalt assets well-maintained. Regularly sweeping our parking lots to remove trash and debris improves the quality of any stormwater running off the pavement. Promptly treating and cleaning fluids, such as oils and coolants, that leak from vehicles also reduces water pollution.

Parking lots and roads that are well-maintained at regular intervals can last for many years; maintenance offers significant cost savings as it is more cost efficient to maintain the asphalt than it is to build and rebuild. With a strong, durable surface, water will naturally flow off the surface as designed. However, damage to an asphalt surface will allow water to seep through, deteriorate the sub-structure, and compromise its ability to sustain the pressure of traffic loads. When the foundation beneath the asphalt is damaged, the surface is more susceptible to potholes, alligator cracking, and further water erosion.

In parking lot and roadway designs, we can funnel polluted stormwater into sewer systems so runoff is treated by the municipal water treatment plant. While this may be a convenient solution, it may not always be the most feasible one, especially if there is a large body of water such as a river or lake nearby. In several coastal states where sewers drain directly into the ocean, there are significant rules and regulations regarding stormwater management that mandate onsite mitigation and treatment of runoff.

Several landscaping and surface treatments can be used to reduce stormwater runoff, including incorporating the use of bioswales and permeable surfaces. Bioswales, such as rain gardens, are landscaping treatments used to slow, collect, infiltrate, filter, and store stormwater until it is reabsorbed into the ground. These drainage areas are often filled with native, water-loving plants that can tolerate being under water for short periods of time, but they can also simply be filled with rock.

In flatter areas, permeable surfaces, such as areas covered with pavers or permeable concrete, can be a good solution for stormwater. They allow water to penetrate below the surface and percolate through the soil below to recharge natural aquifers. However, permeable surfaces are susceptible to erosion as the speed of the water flow still plays a big role in runoff. Depending upon your water flow needs or landscaping plan design, you can slow down water and erosion damage by having it crash into larger rocks that are in the drainage channel where the water flows. The water expends some of its energy on the rocks instead of the surface treatment in the channel. If you slow down the water, it has less force, and with less force, there is less erosion and sediment.

While organizations can invest in alternative transportation programs and advances in technology that reduce parking demand, asphalt facilities to accommodate vehicle parking and travel will always exist. However, the need to address the political, environmental, and economic conditions created by stormwater will also continue to exist as the natural progression of the planet’s weather patterns continue. As parking operators, land developers, and planners, it is our obligation to ensure that we are aware of all of the options that exist to be able to understand what is at stake and appropriately allocate our limited resources and make the hard decisions for the future.

Irma Henderson, CAPP, is director of transportation services at the University of California Riverside. She can be reached at irma.henderson@ucr.edu.

Jennifer Tougas, CAPP, PhD, is director of parking and transportation services at Western Kentucky University. She can be reached at jennifer.tougas@wku.edu.

TPP 2016-12 WEATHERING THE STORM

Parking & Mobility Article, Resources

365 Days Big Green

December 1, 2016 Rachel Yoka Leave a comment

365 Days Big Green

by Megan Leinart, LEED AP BD+C

Another year has come and gone, and what a year it was. In the parking industry, we have continued to see the public and private sectors embrace the latest and greatest sustainability initiatives and technologies. A new partnership between the IPI and the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC) has brought these ideas even more to the mainstream, broadening the reach into an even greater audience. Further, a growing number of parking industry leaders continue to work to promote and advance the value of integrating sustainable parking planning, design, construction, management, and technology.

It’s been an exciting year on the parking front, and we continue to see groundbreaking success stories. Here, we present just a few of these stories and the effects they have had. They will also help to provide a blueprint for what continues to be possible in this constantly evolving part of our industry.

Stanford University Energy System Innovation
Stanford University continues to be a leader in innovation and progress, particularly through the implementation of cutting-edge sustainability initiatives. One such initiative is the Stanford Energy System Innovation (SESI), which has transformed how energy is delivered to the campus to heat and cool its buildings. By using electricity purchased from renewable sources, the university will reduce its carbon emissions by 68 percent.

Stanford’s Parking & Transportation Services, a division of Sustainability & Energy Management, is contributing to SESI with two cutting-edge projects: electrification of the Marguerite bus yard and fleet and solar panel installation on the Stock Farm Garage.

Stanford’s Marguerite shuttle program has been expanding its use of electric buses on campus since 2014. The successful performance of the program’s initial 13 buses has led the university to acquire an additional 10. The university converted a portion of its existing bus yard to serve as the charging and storage facility for all 23 electric buses. This project was the first of a phased approach to convert the entire bus yard and adjacent parking lot into an electric charging facility for an eventual all-electric Marguerite bus fleet. This project also facilitated the installation of electric vehicle chargers in the adjacent Stock Farm Garage, doubling the charging capacity of that facility.

In addition, the university has installed solar panels on large rooftops across Stanford’s campus, including the Stock Farm Garage. While challenging, the payoff for this project will help the university meet its goal of reducing carbon emissions, supporting the electric bus fleet, and shading vehicles parked on the roof.

It’s Always Sunny in Arizona!
Arizona State University (ASU) is taking solar to the next level. The university has integrated three major solar panel installations that help not only power the university but significantly reduce fossil fuel consumption and emissions as well.

The solar installation generates a total wattage of more than 24.1 megawatts (MWdc) at 89 locations across all four campuses and the ASU Research Park. These installations, located in parking lots and on garage rooftops, also provide valuable shade to more than 5,900 parking spaces and 828 stadium seats—that’s a benefit that is always appreciated in the overpowering heat of the Southwest.

During 2015 at the Carson Student Athletic Center, the solar power plants located on ASU’s Tempe Campus facilities generated approximately 26,568 megawatt hours (MWh)—equivalent to 14 percent of the electricity used at Tempe Campus facilities. Concurrently that year, on ASU’s West Campus, the Sparky 10 MW installation generated approximately 8,595 MWh in 2015; this amount of energy is equivalent to 71 percent of the total amount of electricity used at ASU’s West Campus facilities.

The integration of the solar panels at ASU’s campuses showcases the significant effect solar power can have on meeting the energy needs on a campus, reducing the associated costs, as well as fossil fuel consumption and emissions. However, this program is also a testament to the important role parking can play in complementing this valuable energy source, providing wide open spaces for large installations while helping provide shade for vehicles and people.

Cincinnati Zoo Becomes First Demonstrator Site
The Cincinnati Zoo and Botanical Garden has been named the first Green Parking Lot Demonstrator site under a new USGBC program aimed at recognizing surface lots that exhibit exceptional sustainable design. This is part of a nearly decade-long effort at the zoo to implement a number of progressive initiatives through sustainability.

Upon arrival at the zoo, guests are greeted with a sea of sleek solar panel canopy that keeps vehicles cool and reduces the heat-island effect. In addition, the solar panels generate 1,700 MWh of electricity, equivalent to 20 percent of their usage, and eliminate 1,775 tons of carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions, which is equivalent to the reduction of approximately 3 million vehicle miles travelled annually.

Another groundbreaking feature of the Cincinnati Zoo parking lot is the significance of the landscaping features. Two large rain gardens, native plantings, and large shade trees provide natural beauty and alleviate stormwater issues. An underground cistern retains and slowly dissipates stormwater, relieving pressure on an aging wastewater infrastructure.

Patrons can use one of seven electric vehicle (EV) charging stations, including one DC fast charger, and bikers can dismount at the appropriately themed snake-shaped bicycle rack or take advantage of the Cincinnati Red bike sharing kiosk. For visitors looking to avoid traffic but who are not up for biking, the Cincinnati Metro Transit Agency drops off right inside the parking lot. Finally, the zoo’s vehicle fleet consists of emissions-free electric golf carts while trucks and the mini-rail are powered with recycled biodiesel.

The Cincinnati Zoo and Botanical Garden is at the cutting edge of a groundbreaking new program to recognize the many sustainable design opportunities available for parking lots and will serve as a model for similar projects in the future. Leading the way, Director of Facilities and Sustainability Mark Fisher engaged his staff, the city, public utilities, and property owners to find innovative solutions to their most pressing environmental problems and creatively implement them to meet their biggest needs, while educating the community.

Medical Group Embraces Lightwells
How do you create an inviting patient experience in a subterranean parking structure while reducing energy benefits? The Camino Medical Group faced this question when the parking structure for its Mountain View campus involved a subterranean level. The answer? Lightwells.

Lighting is not only an important consideration in the functional design of a parking garage but also a critical factor in the user experience. Dark, cramped structures feel unsafe and do not attract patrons; open, well-lit structures with good ventilation feel safe and secure and invite users.

Achieving natural light and air in structured parking often requires provisions such as lightwells. Lightwells or air shafts are unroofed external spaces provided within the volume of a large building to allow light and air to reach what would otherwise be a dark and less-ventilated area.

In a below-grade parking structure, lightwells can sometimes be achieved by surrounding the structure with permanent shoring walls or by sloping back the soil around the structure. In addition to providing user experience and functional benefits, lightwells have both economic and environmental benefits of reducing overall energy demands, as was the case for the Camino Medical Group Parking Structure, which utilized landscaped lightwells in addition to extra high ceilings and brighter-than-average lighting to make patients feel safe and secure.

Emory University Upgrades Its Lighting
Always one to make its mark as an innovator in the medical world, Emory University isn’t limiting innovation to medical procedures alone. The university recently mandated a cutting-edge lighting fixture to illuminate its underground garage, which services the new state-of-the-art campus hospital expansion project.

The university’s lighting consultant created the ECO Mantis™ lighting fixture, which features linear remote phosphor LEDs specifically designed to support the parking industry. The remote phosphor LED features near zero light output depreciation over time. By locating the heat sensitive phosphor away from the heat-generating LED chips, the phosphor maintains near 100 percent output over the life of the fixture.

The garage will provide much-needed parking in an active campus and is expected to be open to the public by year’s end.

San Francisco Building Upgrades Ventilation
Located in San Francisco’s financial district, 475 Sansome Street is a 21-story, Class A office building with an underground parking facility requiring mechanical ventilation 15 hours a day Monday through Friday. To reduce energy costs, the facility operator recently installed a “variable flow” demand-control ventilation system, which fluctuates garage exhaust and supply fan motor speeds based on carbon monoxide (CO) concentrations in the garage.
Prior to the control system installation, the garage’s ventilation motors consumed nearly 60,000 kilowatt hours (kWh) each year at a cost of more than $8,800. The installation of a variable flow demand-control ventilation system significantly reduced total energy consumption and costs.

Post-installation data showed that the new ventilation control system reduced the garage fan motors’ kWh consumption by more than 57,500 per year—a 96.5 percent savings. Peak kWh demand was reduced by 14.73 percent, also a 96.5 percent savings. The project’s net present value of $84,000 is nearly four times greater than the cost of the variable flow control system installation.

Megan Leinart, LEED AP BD+C, is national director of corporate development for Propark. She can be reached at megan.leinart@propark.com.

TPP 2016-12 365 Days Big Green