ABSTRACT
A resilient city includes multiple energy carriers, high-efficiency infrastructure, lower resource demand to decarbonize and sustain the urban system in accordance with the Paris Agreement, the United Nations 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, and the various recovery plans following the COVID-19 pandemic period. To achieve these goals, a key role is played by all urban sectors, which can reduce environmental impacts and accelerate the green transition at larger scale. Intervening on a district scale obviously requires the evaluation of different aspects, taking into account both economic and non-economic criteria, as well as different points of view, involving all stakeholders. This paper proposes a multi-step evaluation procedure that extends the European manual-based Cost-Benefit Analysis (CBA) to include the extra-economic benefits and the stakeholders' opinion in the evaluation, according to the COmpoSIte Model for Assessment (COSIMA) method. This is the first application of COSIMA in the urban design sectors (i.e. buildings, water, public lighting, transportation and waste management) where different sustainable measures for a real case study located in Turin (Italy) were compared to define the most suitable transformation scenario according to multiple criteria. The results have shown how invasive scenarios allow achieving the greatest benefits, despite the huge initial costs of realization. © 2022 Elsevier Ltd
ABSTRACT
A resilient, diversified, and efficient energy system, comprising multiple energy carriers and high-efficiency infrastructure, is the way to decarbonise the European economy in line with the Paris Agreement, the UN 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, and the various recovery plans after the COVID-19 pandemic period. To achieve these goals, a key role is played by the private construction sector, which can reduce economic and environmental impacts and accelerate the green transition. Nevertheless, while traditionally decision-making problems in large urban transformations were supported by economic assessment based on Life Cycle Thinking and Cost-Benefit Analysis (CBA) approaches, these are now obsolete. Indeed, the sustainable neighbourhood paradigm requires the assessment of different aspects, considering both economic and extra-economic criteria, as well as different points of view, involving all stakeholders. In this context, the paper proposes a multi-stage assessment procedure that first investigates the energy performance, through a dynamic simulation model, and then the socio-economic performance of regeneration operations at the neighbourhood scale, through a Multi-Criteria Decision Analysis (MCDA). The model based on the proposed Preference Ranking Organisation Method for Enrichment Evaluations II (PROMETHEE II) aims to support local decision makers (DMs) in choosing which retrofit operations to implement and finance. The methodology was applied to a real-world case study in Turin (Italy), where various sustainable measures were ranked using multiple criteria to determine the best transformation scenario.
ABSTRACT
Nowadays, due to the constant increase of outdoor air pollution, the impact on people’s health is alarming. Moreover, in the current vulnerable and crucial historical period during which society is experiencing and dealing with the COVID-19 pandemic consequences, this issue is becoming even more important. In line with this, there is an urgent need to provide scientific input to decision-makers to include the assessment of the health-related benefits and costs into urban planning processes. Special attention is devoted to the building sector since the heating service is considered among the main sources of air pollution in the urban environment. In the light of this, the paper aims to estimate the social costs associated with the thermal uses of the residential buildings in Turin (Northern Italy), integrating the energy assessment of the residential building stock, taking advantage of the Reference Building approach for the stock characterization, and the economic quantification and monetization of the air pollution health impacts, using the Cost of Illness (COI) method. Starting from the current situation, different retrofit scenarios for the residential buildings of Turin are hypothesized, to evaluate their capability in reducing the environmental impact of the sector, as well as to increase the social benefits they can guarantee. © 2021, Springer Nature Switzerland AG.
ABSTRACT
The COVID-19 pandemic in Italy, as in many countries around the world, has imposed rigid restrictions on outdoor activities, resulting in forced confinement. The new condition requires an analysis and a rethinking of the way of life and of the new pre- and post-pandemic needs related to the use of domestic spaces, necessary to work, study or carry out other daily activities. Politecnico di Milano and Politecnico di Torino, with the collaboration of the institute of studies and research Scenari Immobiliari, have launched a survey for exploring the new needs and preferences of residents. These needs, which arose in conjunction with the pandemic, concern not only the desire to readapt their homes, but also to change them. In order to investigate these preferences, a questionnaire was developed using the Best to Worst Scaling (BWS). The items consider both modifications of the internal distribution and interventions on the efficiency of domestic appliances and systems components. The study aims to highlight how the spread of the pandemic has changed housing needs and how physical space affects people’s well-being. © 2021, Springer Nature Switzerland AG.
ABSTRACT
Cultural heritage can play a strategic role in developing a sustainable built environment, contributing to the improvement of the economic, social, and environmental productivity of a city. Human activities are constantly affecting the quality of the environment and altering the ecosystems, which produce negative consequences also on human wellbeing. Within this context, it has been much discussed how cities and the built environment can counteract this process by supporting more sustainable development. Adaptive reuse is defined as “a process that changes a disused or ineffective item into a new item that can be used for a different purpose”, which strongly triggers the sustainable development of cities. It can be recognized as a promoter of economic growth, social wellbeing, and environmental preservation, given its capability of both preserving past values and creating new ones. The adaptive reuse matches the main points of the circular economy, seen as the sustainable economy, which is aimed at the reduction of natural resource extraction and environmental impact by extending the useful life of materials and promoting recovery, reuse, and regeneration processes. Given these premises, the current contribution aimed to evaluate alternative scenarios for reuse in Castello Visconteo in Cusago, located in the Lombardy region (Italy), and understanding how adaptive reuse could contribute to generating new values within a circular economy perspective. In detail, four alternative scenarios were proposed to face the new needs born during the COVID‐19 pandemic period. Since both intangible and tangible values must be considered, a multicriteria decision analysis (MCDA) has been applied by combining economic and qualitative indicators to define the most suitable function for its adaptive reuse. In detail, the Novel Approach to Imprecise Assessment and Decision Environments (NAIADE) was used to identify the best alternative solution based on the opinions of conflicting stakeholders. The innovativeness of the contribution is given by the combination of different methodologies, the preservation of the memory and the generation of new values, and the consideration of adaptive reuse as a strategy for the achievement of sustainable development within a circular economy perspective. © 2021 by the authors. Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland.