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Viability of utilizing the global methods for assessing the sustainability of urban design projects in Iraq

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Abstract

Due to rapid urbanization, cities and urban areas become responsible for about two- thirds of CO2 and the GHG emissions, as well as the depletion of different types of energies and natural resources. The sustainable of urban development may be considered a fundamental solution which can achieve the balance between human needs and nature. Furthermore, it facilitates the dealing with urban design challenges for the long term. It also encourages local community engagement in the design process through different stages, as well as contributing to decision-making to create sustainability of urban design. From this vision, many global assessment tools were emerged and have been used in different countries around the world. This paper aims to clarify the viability of using well-known methods to assess the urban design projects in Iraq and the suitability of local realities. The proper conduct analysis of current situations based on an in-depth critical review and a comprehensive comparison among three well-known urban sustainability assessment methods, namely: BREEAM Communities from the UK, LEED-ND from US, and PEARLS Communities from the UAE (as a neighbouring country to Iraq). The study conducted an in-depth qualitative and quantitative analysis of the main evaluation criteria for the selected tools, such as content use, the weighting system, scoring, certificate rating, and the context. The key findings stressed that the global assessment tools in used, are focusing on the sustainability assessment of the local context and dealt with the local urban challenges. Therefore, they cannot be generalized to be global tools that can be used anywhere, especially for urban design and development projects in Iraq.
    

Keywords

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Kerbala Journal for Engineering Sciences
Volume 0, Issue 1
September 2020
Pages 1-13
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