INTRODUCTION

🙢
□ An ecosystem is a complex system with many parts, both 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.

□ If a part of ecosystem is missing may continue for 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 geological formation 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 the rock strata they
consist of and 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.
□ A geologic cross section of the Grand Canyon. Black
numbers correspond to groups of formations and
white numbers correspond to fo rmations
🙢
□ 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 p lan with contour lines.
🙢
□ Contour lines are imiginary lines joining points of equal
elevation above a datum or bench mark the trajectory of
each contour lines indicates the shape of the land
formation at that elevation.
 Patterned Ground
�
is the distinct, and often symmetrical geometric shapes formed by
ground material in periglacial regions.
 Types of patterned
gro und
🙢
Patterned ground can be found in a variety of forms.

□ Polygons- can form either in permafrost areas or in areas that

are affected by seasonal frost.
□ Circles range in size from a few centimeters to several meters
in diameter.
□ Steps can be developed from circles and polygons. This form
of patterned ground is generally a terrace-like feature that has
a
border of either larger stones or vegetation on the downslope
side, and can consist of either sorted or unsorted material.
□ Stripes are lines of stones, vegetation, and/or soil
 □

CIRCLE POLYGON
 Soil
🙢
□ Soil is the mixture of minerals, organic matter, gases,
liquids, and the myriad of organisms that together
support plant life.
 Soil
🙢
□ Soil serves as a foundation for most construction
projects.
□ Soil is intimately tied to our urgent need to
provide food for ourselves and forage for our
animals.
 Types
Sand, Silt, C lay, and Loam.
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Iloilo
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 RELEVANT SOIL
SPECIFICATION SECTIONS:
🙢
Subsurface Investigation
🙢
Site Clearing (stripping
& stockpil ing topsoil)
🙢
Grading
🙢
Excavation and Fill
🙢
 Soil Stabilization
🙢

□ To improve its paving properties and compact ability.

□ Applied in roads, railways, airport.
 Erosion and
Sedimenta tion
🙢
Control
□ Silt fence installed on a construction site.
 Earth sheltering
🙢
is the architectural practice of using earth against
building walls for external thermal mass, to
reduce heat loss, and to easily maintain a steady
indoor air temperature.
🙢
🙢
 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
❖Geology gives insight into the history of the Earth by discipline.
providing 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 also plays a role in
geotechnical engineering and is a major academic
study of the solid features of any celestial body (such as
the geology of the Moon or Mars).
OTHER AREAS OF APPLICATION
�
□ The fields of engineering ,
environmental, architectural and
urban geology are broadly
concerned with applying the
findings of geologic studies to
construction engineering and to
problems of land use. The location
of a bridge, for example, involves
geologic considerations in
selecting sites for the supporting
piers. The strength of geologic
materials such as rock or
compacted clay that occur at the
sites of the piers should be
adequate to support the load
placed on them.
 GEOLOGY IS THE STUDY OF
THE E ARTH:
□ 🙢
the materials of which it is made,
□ the structure 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.
 🙢
Cross-cutting relations can be used to
determine the relative ages of rock strata
and other geological structures.
Explanations:
A - folded rock strata cut by a thrust fault;
B – large intrusion (cutting through A);
C - erosional angular unconformity
(cutting off A & B) on which rock strata
were deposited;
D -volcanic dyke (cutting through A, B &
C);
E - even younger rock strata (overlying
C & D);
F - normal fault (cutting through A, B, C &
E).
GEOLOGIC
MATERIALS
🙢
 ROCK
THREE MAJOR TYPES OF ROCK:
• IGNEOUS 🙢
rock. When a rock crystallizes from melt (magma and/or lava), it is an igneous
This rock can be weathered and eroded, and then redeposited and lithified
into a sedimentary rock, or be turned into a metamorphic rock due to heat and
pressure that change the mineral content.
• SEDIMENTARY
The sedimentary rock can then be subsequently turned into a
metamorphic rock due to heat and pressure and is then weathered, eroded,
deposited, and lithified, ultimately becoming a sedimentary rock.
Sedimentary rock may also be re-eroded and redeposited, and
metamorphic rock may also undergo additional metamorphism.
• METAMORPHIC

□ The rock cycle is an important concept in geology which illustrates the

relationships between these three types of rock, and magma.
□ All three types of rocks may be re-melted; when this happens, a new magma
is formed, from which an igneous rock may once again crystallize.
 🙢
The majority of research in geology is associated with the
study of rock, as rock provides the primary record of
the majority of the geologic history of the Earth.
 METHODS OF
GEOLOGY
�
Geologists use a number of field,
• Laboratory, and numerical modeling methods to decipher
Earth history and understand the processes that occur on and
inside the Earth.
In typical geological investigations, geologists use primary
information related to:
• Petrology (the study of rocks)
• Stratigraphy (the study of sedimentary layers)
• Structural geology (the study of positions of rock units and
their deformation).

In many cases, geologists also study modern soils, rivers,

landscapes, and glaciers; investigate past and current life and
biogeochemical pathways, and use geophysical methods to
investigate the subsurface.
 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 water in liquid form 3.778kg.per U.S
gallon and 1.000kg.per cubic meter.
 THERE ARE THREE SOURCE OF
WATER
🙢
□ Rainwater or Rainfall
FROME THE RAINFALL
ADVANTAGE DISADVANTAGE
Obtain from roofs and watershed. It is Hard to store for a long time as it will be a
soft pure and good on places where there breeding place for mosquitoes, requires big
is an abundant rainfall. containers for storing big quantities for
long uses, roofs may not be clean, bad for
places that receives a little amount of
rainfall.
□ Surface water- a mixture of surface run- off and
ground water includes rivers, pond and
reservoirs

ADVANTAGE
□
FROM THE NATURAL SURFACE

DISADVANTAGE

Obtained from ponds, lakes, rivers Dangerous because it contains

easiness of procurements and good large amounts of bacteria, organic
for locality near such bodies of water. and inorganic substances of
varying quantities.

🙢 Underground/ ground water- portion of

FROM UNDERGROUND
the
rainwater which
ADVANTAGE has percolated into the earth
DISADVANTAGE
Obtained more below ground Because of various organic matter
underground
surface deposit
by means of mechanical and called (water
and chemical elementsbearing
present, it
G manual equipment. requires treatment of various ll.
soil formation) natures, such as sedimentation,
More water can obtained depending chemical, filtration, aerations.
round water
by equipment can
used and be extracted by constructing
locality.
we
□ Well are holes in the earth from which a fluid may be
withdraw using manual or mechanical means such as
draw bucket, pump, etc.

TYPES OF WELL: 🙢
□ Dug wells can be constructed by hand tools/ power tool.
It can have the greatest diameter that a space may allow.
□ Driven wells the simplest and usually the least expensive.
A steel drive- well point is fitted on one end of the pipe
section & driven into the earth.
□ Bored wells dug w/ earth augers usually less than 30m
deep. These are done when the earth to be bored is
boulder free and will not cave in. the well is lined with
metal, vitrified tile or concrete.
□ Drilled well require more elaborate equipment
and accompanied by the lowering of a casing.
 PROPERTIES OF WATER

HEAT CAPACITY Has the ability to absorb heat without

becoming much warmer itself

SURFACE TENSION
□ Ability to stick to itself and pull itself together

CAPILLARITY Ability to climb up a surface against the pull of

gravity

DISSOLVING ABILITY Ability to dissolve almost any substance

COMMON IMPURITIES OF
WATER
ENTRAINED GASES Like carbon dioxide, hydrogen sulfide, methane,
oxygen and nitrogenous and organic compounds
DISSOLVED MINERALS Such as calcium, magnesium, sodium, irons,
manganese, alkyl benzene sulfate from detergents
and synthetic organic compounds and from
insecticides and pesticides
SUSPENDED AND COLLOIDAL Such as bacteria, algae, fungi, silt, protozoa and the
MATERIALS like that makes the water colored and acid
RADIOACTIVE MINERALS By entertainment of radioactive substances from
mining or processing ores, or by wastes
from industrials use of radioactive
materials
 METHODS OF PURIFICATION 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 the bathroom, then drawing the water out, leaving
these sediments in the container.
□ CHEMICAL TREATMENTS- water are given chemical
treatments to kill the harmful bacteria’s present and to cure the
turbid taste or mud taste, remove clay, salts, iron etc.
commonly use 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 water is made to pass on pipes of tiny sieves
and exposed to air of fine mist.
 WATER RESOURCES
🙢
□ A sources of water that
are useful or potentially
useful. Uses of water
include agricultural,indu
strial, household, recreati
onal and environmental
a ctivities. The majority
of human uses require
fresh water. A graphical distribution of the locations of water
□ It is 97 percent of the on Earth. Only 3% of the earth's water is fresh
water on the Earth is salt water. Most of it in icecaps and glaciers (69%) and
water and only three groundwater (30%), while all lakes, rivers and
percent is fresh water; swamps combined only account for a small
slightly over two thirds fraction of 0.3% of the Earth's total freshwater
of this is frozen reserves.
in glaciers and polar
ice caps.
 SOURCES OF FRESH WATER
🙢
□ Under river flow
Throughout the course of a river, the total volume of
water transported downstream will often be a
combination of the visible free water flow together
with a substantial contribution flowing through sub-
surface rocks and gravels that underlie the river and
its floodplain called the hyporheic zone.
 WORLD WATER SUPPLY
AND DISTRIBUTION
🙢
Food and water are two basic human n eeds. However, global coverage
from 2002 indicate that, of every 10 people:

□ roughly 5 have a connection to a piped water supply at home

□ 3 make use of some other sort of improved water supply, such as
a protected well or public standpipe;
□ 2 are unserved;
□ In addition, 4 out of every 10 people live without improved sanitation.
□ At Earth Summit 2002 governments approved a Plan of Action to:
□ Halve by 2015 the proportion of people unable to reach or afford safe
drinking water. The Global Water Supply and Sanitation Assessment 2000
Report (GWSSAR) defines "Reasonable access" to water as at least 20 liters
per person per day from a source within one kilometer of the user’s home.
□ Halve the proportion of people without access to basic sanitation.
The GWSSR defines "Basic sanitation" as private or shared but not
public disposal systems that separate waste from human contact.
 MICROCLIMATE
🙢
□ Microclimate refers to very localised weather
conditions around buildings 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 building or building cluster and include air
movement, precipitation, and temperature.
□ Building location and geometry can affect microclimate
especially in dense urban areas where air movement
can be distorted to form wake 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 microclimate 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.
 TYPES OF
ENVIRONMENT ON THE
EARTH’S🙢SURFACE
□ Upland regions
Upland areas have a specific type of climate that is
notably different from the surrounding lower levels.
Temperature usually falls with height at a rate of
between 5 and 10 °C per 1,000 metres, depending on the
humidity of the air.

Winter scene on Dartmoor, Devon

□ Coastal regions
The coastal climate is influenced by both the land and
sea between which the coast forms a boundary. The
�
thermal properties of water are such that the sea maintains
a relatively constant day to day temperature compared
with the land. The sea also takes a long time to heat up
during the summer months and, conversely, a long time to
cool down during the winter.
Coastal microclimates display different characteristics
depending on where they occur on the earth’s surface.
 • In the tropics
Sea temperatures change little and the coastal

�
climate depends on the effects caused by the daytime
heating and night-time cooling of the land. This
involves the development of a breeze from off the sea
(sea breeze) from late morning and from off the land
(land breeze) during the night. The tropical climate is
dominated by convective showers and thunderstorms
that continue to form over the sea but only develop
over land during the day. As a consequence, showers
are less likely to fall on coasts than either the sea or the
land.
□ Forest
Tropical rainforests cover only about 6% of Earth’s land
surface, but it is believed they have a significant effect on
�
the transfer of water vapour to the atmosphere. This is due
to a process known as evapotranspiration from the leaves
of the forest trees.

Temperate forest in Germany

□ Urban regions
What is an urban microclimate? The table below
summarises someinofurban
the differences
areas com in various
weather elements
rural locations.
pare
🙢
d with

Comparisons of urban and

rural microclimates.
• Urban winds

Tall buildings can significantly disturb airflows

�
over urban areas, and even a building 100 metres or so
high can deflect and slow down the faster upper-
atmosphere winds. The net result is that urban areas,
in general, are less windy than surrounding rural
areas.
However, the ‘office quarter’ of larger conurbations
can be windier, with quite marked gusts. This is the
result of the increased surface roughness that the
urban skyline creates, leading to strong vortices and
eddies. In some cases, these faster, turbulent winds are
funnelled in between buildings, producing a venturi
effect, swirling up litter and making walking along the
pavements quite difficul
 WHY USE
MICROCLIMATE
DES IGN?
🙢
□ 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 that potentially harmful
wind effects are mitigated around tall buildings.
□ The use of shelter belts, both natural and constructed reduce
exposure to the faces of buildings therefore 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 effective transdiciplinary and crossdisciplinary
collaboration.
 WHEN TO USE A
MICROCLIMATIC
STRATEGY?
🙢
□ Designing for microclimate is relevant particularly in
dispersed, 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.
How to use Microclimate
De sign?
🙢
Key points:
>Consider building form to protect external spaces including courtyard
configurations
>Tall buildings can benefit from an aerodynamic form including simple
measures such as smoothed off corners. Facades that are modelled reduce the
impact of downwash vortex effect.
>Planted windbreaks are most effective in reducing exposure to and
around buildings.
>Avoid katabatic (downhill) winds carrying high density air down a
slope.
>Avoid placing a building either in frost pockets or alternatively on
exposed hilltop locations. Use topography to shelter a building.
>Avoid placing a building either in frost pockets or alternatively on
exposed hilltop locations. Use topography to shelter a building.
>Use techniques such as planted facades and earth berming to protect
buildings form wind exposure.

Rules of thumb

Guidance on the siting of buildings in non

urban locations.
□

Using building elements to

protect against exposure.
 Design Procedure:
□
🙢
Step 1: There is no single design procedure to design
for microclimate. However, detailed knowledge of site,
context and surrounding environmental conditions is
critical. Designers should collect information regarding
topography, hydrology, existing planting, sun paths, and
the form and position of existing buildings. The
programme of the proposal should be clearly developed
to ascertain the importance of external space for
amenity and recreational use.
□ Step 2: Critical microclimatic effects should be
identified and prioritised. The architectural proposal
should
respond to this.
□ Step 3: Responses vary widely depending on
location and programme. However, consideration
should be given to the use of building form to afford
protection
�
for example in the formation of courtyards, or
openings to leeward side of buildings. Topography
and planting should be considered to mitigate the
effects of exposure around buildings through the
use of shelter belts and earth berming and
mounding.
□ Step 4: In dense urban areas, protected zones to be
formed by canopies at ground level. Building forms
should be designed to retard effects such as
downwash vortex and wake effects that can
accelerate windspeed. This can be achieved through
softening corners of buildings and producing highly
modelled facades.
 ORIENTATION
🙢
□ Design for orientation is a fundamental step to
ensure that buildings work with the passage of the
sun across the sky. Knowledge of sunpaths for any
site is fundamental in design building facades to let
in light and passive solar gain, as well as reducing
glare and overheating to the building interior. It is
important to remember that the position of the sun
in the sky is dynamic, changing according to time of
day, time of year and the site’s latitude.
 WHY CONSIDER
BUILDING
ORIENTATION?
🙢
□ Well-orientated buildings maximize 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

🙢
On this page:
□ Orientation for passive heating and cooling
□ Choosing a site
□ Building location
□ Layout
□ Overcoming obstacles

Orientation, layout and location on site will all influence

the amount of sun a building receives and therefore its
year-round temperatures and comfort.
Other considerations include access to views and
cooling breezes.
 🙢
□ 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 vehicle access and parking.
 ORIENTATION FOR PASSIVE
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 of north)
□ Orientation for solar gain will also depend on
other factors 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
□ owners’ preferences
□ covenants and planning restrictions.
 🙢
Passive cooling is more of a priority than passive
heating, the building should be oriented to
take advantage of prevailing breezes.

□ Effective solar orientation requires a good

understanding of sun paths at the site at
different times of the year.
 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 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
northern side, will not receive good solar access.
AN IDEAL SITE FOR PASSIVE SOLAR DESIGN WILL:

□ Be flat or north-sloping
�
□ Be free of obstructions to the north (and be unlikely
to be built out in 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 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 a priority than heating,
factors such as access to breezes might be more
important than solar access.
 LAYOUT
🙢
□ Rooms and outdoor spaces should be located to
maximize comfort during use. In general, this
means living areas and outdoor spaces facing north,
and
service areas such as garages, laundries and
bathrooms to the south.
 OVERCOMING OBSTACLES
🙢
□ It is often not possible to obtain the ideal building
orientation on a site (particularly in urban areas) and
compromise will be necessary – for example, where
the view is to the south, the site has a south-facing
slope, there is a source of noise on the north side,
or the view and sun face into strong prevailing
winds.
 HOW TO DESIGN FOR
BUILDING O RIENTATION?
KEY POINTS: 🙢
In the past the passage of the sun across the sky
was plotted with pre printed sunpath diagrams for
specific latitudes. Thankfully CAD packages can do
this for you. Specifically Google SketchUp is effective
in setting up a model in any global location and then
able to simulate a sunpath across a building.

Google SketchUp model showing building

design orientated to maximise south light. ©
John Brennan
 🙢
□ Housing in temperate regions can benefit from
admitting the sun into the building interior.
Openings should be primarily orientated
southwards, consider the use of conservatories and
buffer spaces. Kitchens are better facing east, living
rooms to the south and west. Bedrooms are often
better to the north to avoid light disturbance.

Simple criteria for the organisation of spaces

in housing to maximise positive effects of
orientation. © John Brennan
□ Office buildings typically are about the reduction
of excessive solar gain and glare. This is because of
a greater preponderance of glazed facades and
also
�
higher internal gains from people, computers
etc. Use glazing due south sparingly and
incorporate shading devices.

Knowledge of building orientation can prioritise where to provide

protection for glazed facades. Scottish National Heritage building
Inverness. Architects: Keppie. © John Brennan
 Design Procedure:
Step 1: 🙢
There is no single design procedure to design for
orientation. However, you need to model your proposal in a
package such as Google SketchUp.

Step 2:
Ensure the building is properly placed on its site in
relation to north and the location either geographically or
in terms of latitude or longitude is entered.

Step 3:
Use a sun or shadow tool to model the building at
seasonal extremities.
Step 4: Be conservative in the use of glazing to heavily
exposed sides.
Step 5:
Model the use of solar shading devices.

Step 6:
🙢
You can quantify solar gain coming through glazing
over a year using in a domestic context, really simple
SAP tools.
Other packages such as Autodesk Ecotect and IES
VE-ware can model solar gain and possible
overheating of a building model.

Step 7:
Remember orientation is about protection and
mitigation of sunlight in buildings as well as
accommodating solar gain.