Assessing Sustainability of Pipeline Projects Using Envision Rating System

Envision is a new sustainability rating system for infrastructure projects developed by the Institute for Sustainable Infrastructure (ISI). The ISI was formed jointly by the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE), the American Consulting Engineers Council (ACEC) and the American Public Works Association (APWA) in February 2011 as an independent, non-profit organization. ISI has been developing the Envision rating system in four distinct stages (1 to 4) with the support of CEEQUAL Ltd., the company that was setup to run the U.K. based sustainability rating system for infrastructure. The Stage 1 (exploration and testing) and Stage 2 (project assessment and recognition) modules of the Envision rating system have already been developed and were released for public comment on July 5, 2011. The Stage 3 (existing facility and focused project performance assessments) and Stage 4 (consensus development for complex infrastructure projects) modules for the Envision rating system are yet to be developed and are expected to become available in 2012. No sustainability rating system appropriate for application to pipeline projects existed in North America until the recent introduction of Envision. This paper presents a summary of the findings from the task committee's review of the Envision rating system focused on its application to pipeline projects and the providing recommendations for potential Envision improvements. The ASCE Task Committee for the Sustainable Design of Pipelines ("SDP") committee's interest is to apply the concepts of sustainable design to the water and wastewater pipeline sector and to provide means for planners, owners, designers, contractors and manufacturers to make improvements in project delivery by reducing project impacts on the environment and finite resources.