ECOLOGICAL

CONSIDERATION OF THE SITE

PLANNING 01
CONTENT
I. GROUND FORM
II. SOIL AND GEOLOGY
III. WATER RESOURCES
IV. MICROCLIMATE
V. ORIENTAION
INTRODUCTION
• An ecosystem is a complex system with many parts, both living and non-living. All
parts of the system are important. If one part of the system is removed, lots of other
parts can be affected.
• An ecosystem, with a part of it missing may continuefor a while but in time would
start falling apart.
• All of the parts of the ecosystem work together. If you do not think about how your
work will affect the land, water or air where you are working, you could damage
that ‘ecosystem’ by poisoning the land or water, removing plants and trees or killing
the fish, insects, birds and animals that live there.
GROUND FORM
• A formation or geologicalformation is the fundamental unit of lithostratigraphy. A formation
consists of a certain number of rock strata C that have a comparable lithology, facies or other
similar properties. Formations are not defined on the thickness of different formations can
therefore vary widely.
• The concept of formally defined layers or strata is central to the geologic discipline of
stratigraphy. Formations can be divided into members and are themselves frequently
parcelled together in groups.
• Ground formation is to be considered in site selection or regarding the development of any
site. The surface features of a plot of land, which influences where and how to build a
development site.
• To study the response of a building design to the topography of a site sections or a site, we can
use a series if site selection or a site plan with contour lines.
SOIL

Soil is the mixture of minerals, gases, liquids, and the myriad of organisms that together support
plant life.
SOIL
• Soil serves a foundation for most constuction
projects.
• Soil is intimately tied to our urgent need to
provide food for ourselves and forage for our
animals.
TYPES OF SOIL
• SAND, SILT, CLAY, AND LOAM
 Soil is made up of ditinct horizontal layers, if you could take an elevator ride through the earth’s surface you would pass
several distinct layers.

• The humus is the topmost layer of soil. It contains quite a bit of living materials, plants,
decaying leaves, needles, mosss, and more. This layer is thin and very dark in color.
• The topsoil is the next layer down. It is made mostly of minerals, and most plant roots
live here. This layer is also dark in color due to the amount of decaying plant and animal
matter.
• The subsoil layer is next. It is made of sand, silt and clay that have not been broken all
the way, soil usually has less organic material in it. It is also lighter in color.
• The parent material is the next layer down. It is mostly rock that has been slightly
weathered. Not many things live down here, except for the biggest tree roots.
• The bedrock is the lowest layer of soil. It is a solid rock layer.
GEOLOGY
• Geology is an earth science comprising the study of solid earth, the rocks of which it
is composed, and the processes by which they change.
• Geology can also refer generally to the study of the solid features of any celestial
body ( such as the geology of the moon and mars).
• Geology gives insight into the history of the earth by providing the the primary
evidence for plate tectonics, the evolutionary history of life, and past climates.
• Geology is important for mineral and hydrocarbon exploration and exploitation,
evaluating water resources, understanding of natural hazards, the remediation of
environmental problems, and for providing insights into past climate change.
 GEOLOGY IS THE STUDY OF THE EARTH:

• The materials of which it is made,

• The structures of those materials,
• The processes acting upon them,
• The study of organisms that have inhabited our planet,
• An important part of geology is the study of how earth’s materials,
structures, processes and organisms have changed over time.
GEOLOGIC MATERIALS
-ROCKS
Three major parts of rocks:
● Igneous
● Sedimentary
● Metamorphic
WATER RESOURCES
- WATER
• Water is a combination of two elementary substances
hydrogen and oxygen.
• It appears in its natural state as liquid--- 830 times heavier
than air, solid– ice, gas—vapor or steam 133 times lighter
than air.
• The weight of the water in liquid form 3.778 kg.per U.S
gallon and 1.000kg.per cubic meter.
THERE ARE THREE SOURCE OF WATER

• Rainwater or Rainfall.
Surface of water – a mixture of surface run-off and ground water
includes rivers, pond , natural surface and undergroun surface.
• Well – are holes in the earth from which a fluid may be withdraw
using manual or mechanical means such as draw bucket, pump, etc.
• Under river flow
Methods of Purificaion and Treatment of
Water
• SEDIMENTATION- article of matters that are suspended in the water are allowed to stay in a
container so that they will settle in sediments in the container.
• CHEMICAL TREATMENTS- water are given chemical treatments to kill the harmful
bacteria’s present and to cure turbid taste or mud taste, remove clay, salts, iron etc. Commonly
used chemical is chlorine.
• FILTRATION- water are filtered on various processes, so as to remove the particles of
vegetable matter, mud, and other particles of matter present in the water, most commonly used
materials are sand and gravel.
• AERATION- raw materials is made to pass on pipes of tiny sieves and exposed to air of fine
mist.
MICROCLIMATE
• Micriclimate refers to very localised weather conditions around buildins or small neighbourhood clusters.
• A microclimate is a local atmospheric zone where the climate differs from the surrounding area.
• Microclimatic phenomena are localised at the scale of the building or building cluster and include air
movement, precipition, and temperature.
• Building location and geometry can affect microclimate especially in dense in urban areas where air movement
can be distorted to form and downwash phenomena that reduce the liveability of external space.
• Tall buildings create their own microclimate, both by overshadowing large areas and by channelling strong
winds to ground level. Wind effects around tall buildings are assessed as part of a microclimatic study.
• The type of soil found in an area can also affect microclimates. For example, soils heavy in clay can act like
pavement, moderating the near ground temperature. On the other hand; if soil has many air pockets, then the
heat could be trapped underneath the topsoil, resulting in the increased possibility of frost at ground level.
Why use Microclimate Design?
• A well-considered microclimatic strategy in the design of buildings and urban space,
help reduce exposure and to contribute to the success of well used external space.
Careful attention to building form can ensure the potentially harmful wind effects are
mitigated around tall bildings.
• The use of shelter belts, both natural and constructed reduce exposure to the faces of
buildings therfore reducing excessive heat loss and protecting external finishes from
premature deterioration.
• Microclimate is a critical design issue for both architecture and landscape
architecture disciplines and a shared sensibility encourages sffective transdisciplinary
and crossdisciplinary collaboration.
 WHEN TO USE A MICROCLIMATIC
STRATEGY?

• Designing for microclimatic is relevant particularly

in despersed, low density settlements. Conversely, it
is also vital to consider in dense urban areas with a
wide variety of building plan form and height.
Proposals that include external amenity and
recreational space are relevant.
ORIENTATION
• Orientation is the positioning of a building in relation to seasonal
variations in the sun’s path as well as prevailing wind patterns. Good
orientation can increase the energy efficiency of your home, making
it more comfortable to live in and cheaper to run.
• Orientation is generally used to refer solar orientation while planning
of house with respect to sunpath. The orientation can refer to a
particular room or most important, the building facade.
WHY CONSIDER BUILDING ORIENTAION?

• Well-orientated building maximized day lighting through building

facades reducing the need for artificial lighting.
• Some typologies especially housing can be zoned to ensure different
functional uses receive sunlight at different times of the day.
• A careful strategy can also mitigate overheating and glare when
sunlight is excessive. You should know how the sun interacts with
your building in high summer and the depths of winter.
 LAYOUT AND ORIENTATION MUST BE CONSIDERED
FROM THE BEGINNING OF THE DESIGN PROCESS

• Orientation for passsive heating and cooling

• Choosing a site
• Building location
• Layout
• Overcoming obstacles
Orientation, layout and location on site will all influence the amount of the sun a building receives and
therefore its year-round temperatures and comfort.
Other considerations include access to views and cooling breeze.
- Orientation and layout will also be influenced by topography, wind speed and direction, the site’s relationship with
the street, the location of shade elements such as trees and neighboring buildings, and vehicles access and parking.
Orientation for Passsive Heating and
Cooling
• For maximum solar gain, a building will be located, oriented and designed to
maximize window area facing north (or within 20 degrees north).
• Orientation for solar gain will also depend on other factor such as proximity to
neighboring buildings and trees that shade the site.
For solar gain , as well as considering location, orientation and window
size and placement, it is also important to consider the thermal performance and
solar heat gain efficiency of the glazing unit itself.
Important considerations of solar gain for
passive heating is important
• NOISE
• DAYLIGHTING
• PROTECTION FROM PREVAILING WINDS
• ACCESS TO BREEZES FOR VENTILATION
• SHADE TO PREVENT SUMMER OVERHEATING AND GLARE
• VIEWS
• PRIVACY
• ACCESS
• INDOOR/OUTDOOR FLOW
• OWNER’S PREFERENCES
• COVENANTS AND PLANNING RESTRICTIONS.
CHOOSING A SITE
• If a site is not suitable for passive design, some elements of the passive
design ethos may not work in favour of efficiency and comfort.
• The most important factor is the amount of sun the site receives, as a
site that receives a little or no sunlight cannot be used for passive solar
design.
• A flat site will generally have good sunlight access anywhere, but a
south facing slope or a site adjacent to a tall building or substantial
planting on the nothern side, will not receive good solar access.
An ideal site for passive solar design will;
• Be flat or north-sloping
• Be free of obstractions to the north(and be unlikely to be built out in the future)
• Be able to accommodate a building with a relatively large north-facing wall or
walls for maximum solar gain(as well as north-facing outdoor areas if those are
wanted).
• A site with north-south alignment is likely to receive midday sun and with
minimal overshadowing, but may have limited morning or evening sun. A site
with east-west alignment is more likely to be overshadowed to the north.
Building Location
• A building should in general be located in near the site’s southern boundary for maximum solar
gain.
in most cases, this is likely to reduce the risk of shading from neighboring properties, and also
provide sunny outdoor space.
• The best location for solar access will vary from site to site depending on site shape, orientation
and topography; and shading from trees and neighboring buildings (or future buildings).
• Other factors such as views, wind, topography, and the location of trees and neighboring
buildings will also influence a building’s location on the site.
• In areas where cooling is more of priority than heating, factors such as access tp breeze might be
more important than solar access.
Layout

• Rooms and outdoor spaces should be located to

maximized the comfort during use. In general,
this means living areas and outdoor spaces
facing north, and services areas such as
garages, laundries and bathrooms to the south.