Sustainable & Green Design
Sustainability and green design is the ability to achieve continuous economic prosperity while protecting the natural systems of the planet and providing a high quality of life for its people. A hot topic today, the pressure to incorporate sustainable elements into public and private projects is rapidly increasing. If you want your project to be “green” as well as feasible, you need a team that understands how to translate sustainable concepts into valuable engineering solutions.
The Kimley-Horn sustainable design advantage is the close coordination of all disciplines under one roof. Because an ecologically sound site design is a blend of engineering and natural sciences, our staff includes landscape architects and urban designers; civil, transportation, and systems engineers; environmental specialists; urban and land planners; and computer/systems specialists.
Creative, Sustainable Solutions
As a civil engineering, planning, landscape architecture, and environmental services firm, Kimley-Horn is well-versed in developing green building alternatives using the fundamentals of LEED and other sustainable certification programs; as business people, our staff understands market demands. Our creative approach to sustainable design seeks to succeed in both. As your partner, Kimley-Horn’s LEED certified professionals can help make informed choices that enable you to determine the appropriate balance between environmental and economic needs, and implement creative solutions while achieving a high degree of sustainability. As a result, our staff strives to accomplish the following goals, compatible with LEED requirements, on each of their projects:
- Reduction in the use of nonrenewable natural resources
- Incorporation of systems and materials that are easily recyclable in the future and/or have recycled content
- Facilitation of the use of recycled materials during construction and operation of the facility
- Alternative and low emission transportation planning and design
- Reduction in heat-island effects by innovative design
- Water reduction through the use of rainwater harvesting and water reuse
- Greywater and innovative wastewater design
- Alternative and low emission transportation planning and design
Green Streets
Our sustainable street design alternatives, or Green Streets, combine multiple elements that allow a roadway to be an extension of the sustainable environment. This method of sustainable roadway design can incorporate stormwater management elements such as permeable pavements, vegetated water quality facilities, and open spaces that reduce runoff and strive to duplicate hydrology. Heat island effects can be reduced using reflective pavements and the incorporation of street trees, and our designs are often supplemented with energy reduction technologies such as LED lighting and signals. Green Streets can also be designed with “Complete Streets” principles that encourage alternate modes of transportation. This is not a new discipline for Kimley-Horn, simply a recognition of how we can seamlessly blend sustainability and roadway design.
Our record of sustainable design is one reason that Engineering News-Record ranks Kimley-Horn as one of the top “green” design firms in the U.S. So, when you decide to “go green,” Kimley-Horn can show you the way.