Envision, Project, Evaluate and Illustrate
Introduction
Imagine, Inspire and Implement are common themes when describing the process of land use planning and design. In reality, land use planning is a five-step process, which includes:
- Envision—the potential in the existing situation
- Project—where and how change may occur
- Evaluate—the good and bad effects of change
- Illustrate—so that everyone observes the same vision
- Monitor— to ensure change occurs as promised
Building on stories, narratives and voices, landscape architects and planners first investigate the potential in the existing situation, by carefully examining related situations and scenarios. By studying the known, we can carefully envision changes on a broader scale, both temporally and spatially. For example, Unconventional Wells Drilled by Year is an animation of the location and number of unconventional wells installed in Pennsylvania, West Virginia, and Ohio drilled up through 2017.
Collectively these wells all have a footprint that can significantly impact the landscape. Studying such patterns allow planners and landscape architects to understand the types of impacts that may occur in the short- and long-term. Being able to predict where these wells may go in advance would be even more effective in helping manage landscape impacts. The Nature Conservancy looked at potential impacts from both wind and shale energy development as summarized in the report below. Read this study to get a sense of the predicted impacts and how those projections were derived. This reading will be used as part of your homework assignment.