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Site & Water Guidelines
Intent
Building construction transforms land that provides valuable ecological services. Society has only recently begun to understand that these services have a quantifiable economic value. For example, the City of Minneapolis has recently developed a stormwater management fee that better reflects the true costs of stormwater runoff and that provides more economic incentive for improved stormwater performance. Site selection and design affect transportation and energy use, which lead to ground-level ozone, acid rain, smog, and global climate change. Current development practices on the land can lead to uncontrolled stormwater runoff, degraded water and soil quality, depletion of water, soil, and valuable vegetated areas, and destruction of habitat. The B3 Guidelines seek to design and maintain sites that have soil and water quality capable of supporting healthy, biodiverse plant, animal, and human communities, which reduce water and energy consumption, improve the rate, quantity, and quality of stormwater runoff, and minimize pollutant contributions related to transportation requirements.
| Site and Water Guidelines | New Buildings | Major Renovations |
|---|---|---|
| S.1 Identification and Avoidance of Critical Sites | Required | Documentation Required |
| S.2 Stormwater Management | Required | Required for Minimum Site Scope (See Guideline) |
| S.3 Soil Management | Required | Required for Minimum Site Scope (See Guideline) |
| S.4 Sustainable Vegetation Design | Required | Required for Minimum Site Scope (See Guideline) |
| S.5 Light Pollution Reduction | Required | Required for Exterior Lighting Scope |
| S.6 Erosion and Sedimentation Control during Construction | Required | Required for Any Site Scope |
| S.7 Landscape Water Efficiency | Required | Required for Minimum Site Scope (See Guideline) |
| S.8 Building Water Efficiency | Required | Required if Plumbing Scope (See Guideline) |
| S.9 Bird Safe Building | Required | Required if Glazing in Scope |
| S.10 Appropriate Location and Development Pattern | Recommended | Not Applicable |
| S.11 Brownfield Redevelopment | Recommended | Not Applicable |
| S.12 Heat Island Reduction | Recommended | Recommended if Roof or Site Scope |
| S.13 Transportation Impacts Reduction | Recommended | Recommended |
| S.14 Wastewater Management | Recommended | Recommended if Plumbing or Site Scope |
Objectives
- To improve the ability of the soil to maintain its structure against adverse impacts.
- To restore/improve the hydrologic cycle of water on the site to avoid adverse impacts onsite and downstream.
- To reduce consumption of potable water.
- To improve the biodiversity of the site by introducing flora and fauna which will help contribute to the sustainability of the site over time.
- To reduce energy consumption and pollution contributions to air and water related to site location and associated transportation requirements.
- To restore/improve the outdoor environmental quality (OEQ) of the site to enhance occupant productivity, building performance, and community benefits.
General Site and Water Information
The following information is collected in the Site and Water Section of the B3 Guidelines Tracking Tool, Section S.0:
Predesign:
- Site information – existing site areas of various conditions (e.g., wetland, building footprint, woodland).
Design:
- Updated site information – existing and proposed site areas of various conditions (e.g., wetland, building footprint, woodland).
Final Design:
- Updated site information – existing and proposed site areas of various conditions (e.g., wetland, building footprint, woodland).
- Site and water strategies used, including narrative.
Closeout:
- Updated site information – existing and proposed site areas of various conditions (e.g., wetland, building footprint, woodland)
- Updated Site and water strategies used, including narrative.