DRAFT of September 23 2013 Land Use: A Powerful Determinant of Sustainable & Healthy Communities AUTHORS: *Llael Cox, †Verle Hansen, †James Andrews, ‡John Thomas, *Ingrid Heilke, *Nick Flanders, †Claudia Walters †Scott A. Jacobs, †Yongping Yuan, †Anthony Zimmer, †James Weaver, †Rebecca Daniels, †Tanya Moore, **Tina Yuen, †Devon C. Payne-Sturges, †Melissa W. McCullough, †Brenda Rashleigh, †Marilyn TenBrink, and †Barbara T. Walton AUTHOR AFFILIATIONS: *Oak Ridge Institute for Science andAUTHOR Education AFFILIATIONS: Research *OakLaboratory; Ridge Institute †Office offor Research Science and Development,Education Research US Environmental Laboratory; †Office Protection of Research Agency; and Development, US Environmental Protection Agency; ‡Office of Sustainable Communities, US Environmental Protection‡Office of Sustainable Agency; **Association Communities, of SchoolsUS Environmental of Public HealthProtection Fellow Agency; **Association of Schools of Public Health Fellow i SHC Land Use Planning SHC 4.1.2 Final Report September 2013 ACKNOWLEDGMENTS We gratefully acknowledge Kathryn Saterson, Bob McKane, Jane Gallagher, Joseph Fiksel, Gary Foley, Sally Darney, Melissa Kramer, Betsy Smith, Andrew Geller, Bill Russo, Susan Forbes, Laura Jackson, Iris Goodman, Michael Slimak, Alisha Goldstein, Laura Bachle, Jeff Yang, and Gregg Furie for helpful contributions. PROJECT COORDINATOR’S NOTE I want to recognize the quality of effort extended by the authors. Ordinarily, one might despair of the prospects of success when 19 individuals from 9 separate organizational units are asked to address a diffuse body of knowledge such as “Land Use.” In this report, the reader will find the remarkable result of an extraordinary effort by a dedicated interdisciplinary group of EPA scientists who distilled useful principles and guidance from a vast and scattered literature. Future investigators will have the benefit of access to a searchable database of over 1400 references created by the authors. It was an enriching experience to work with this group and find within it a meaningful summary of the state of the science. Barbara Walton, Project and Task Lead, September 30, 2013 ii SHC Land Use Planning SHC 4.1.2 Final Report September 2013 TABLE OF CONTENTS ACKNOWLEDGMENTS .................................................................................................................................II LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS ......................................................................................................................... VI LIST OF TABLES .......................................................................................................................................... VII LIST OF FIGURES ......................................................................................................................................... VII LIST OF BOXES ............................................................................................................................................. VII EXECUTIVE SUMMARY .............................................................................................................................. IX 1 INTRODUCTION: THE U.S. ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY, SUSTAINABILITY, AND LAND USE .......................................................................................................... 1 1.1 Scope and Structure of the Land Use Report 3 1.2 Land Use and Sustainability: A critical link 5 2 LINKAGES: ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION, FEDERAL REGULATION, AND LAND USE PLANNING ............................................................................................................................................... 8 2.1 Drivers of Land Use Decisions and Change 10 3 LITERATURE REVIEW: IMPACTS OF LAND USE ON ENVIRONMENT, ECONOMY, HUMAN WELL BEING ................................................................................................................................ 23 3.1 Impacts of Population Change on Land Use 23 3.1.1 Urbanization ............................................................................................................................... 23 3.1.2 Sprawl ........................................................................................................................................ 28 3.1.3 Shrinking towns and cities .......................................................................................................... 39 3.2 Influence of Land Use Form and Development on Sustainability 43 3.2.1 Density ....................................................................................................................................... 43 3.2.2 Mixed-uses ................................................................................................................................. 49 3.2.3 Transit-oriented development .................................................................................................... 52 3.2.4 Walkability ................................................................................................................................. 53 3.2.5 Urban parks and greenspace....................................................................................................... 56 3.2.6 Regional accessibility .................................................................................................................. 70 3.2.7 Compact development pattern ................................................................................................... 73 3.3 Impacts of Land Use Types on Sustainability 78 3.3.1 Residential .................................................................................................................................. 78 3.3.2 Commercial ................................................................................................................................ 83 3.3.3 Industrial .................................................................................................................................... 85 3.3.4 Agriculture .................................................................................................................................. 88 3.3.5 Parkland and Open Space ........................................................................................................... 92 iii SHC Land Use Planning SHC 4.1.2 Final Report September 2013 3.3.6 Roads .......................................................................................................................................... 96 4 RELEVANT METRICS, INDICATORS, AND INDICES OF SUSTAINABILITY ................ 102 4.1 Metrics of development form and pattern 102 4.1.1 Measuring sprawl and compactness ......................................................................................... 102 4.1.2 Metrics of urban form ............................................................................................................... 104 4.2 Indices of Sustainable Development 106 5 LAND USE PATTERNS SHOW CAUSAL RELATIONS TO ECONOMIC, HEALTH, AND ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACTS ................................................................................................................ 109 5.1 What neighborhood scale land use qualities are most important for advancing sustainability? 109 5.1.1 Active transportation, physical activity, health, and social well-being ...................................... 111 5.1.2 Climate change and extreme heat events ................................................................................. 112 5.1.3 Environmental Justice and Neighborhood Urban Form ............................................................. 113 5.2 What regional land use qualities are most important for advancing sustainability? 115 5.2.1 Regional coordination to avoid unintended consequences ....................................................... 115 5.2.2 Compact Development Pattern................................................................................................. 116 5.2.3 Accessibility and Affordability .................................................................................................. 119 5.2.4 Minimizing costs and maximizing vitality .................................................................................. 120 6 DECISION SCIENCE AND LAND USE PRACTICES ................................................................ 120 6.1 What practices best support these land use qualities? 120 6.2 ORD Recent and Planned Products Relevant to Land Use Decisions and Sustainability 125 6.2.1 Quantification of Ecosystem Goods and Services, Human Health Impacts, and Identification of Thresholds and Tipping points ................................................................................................................ 127 6.2.2 Defining, Measuring and Tracking ............................................................................................. 129 6.2.3 Comparing Alternative Scenarios .............................................................................................. 132 6.2.4 Collaborative Decision-Making ................................................................................................. 134 7 RESEARCH NEEDS TO ADDRESS COMMUNITY LAND USE SUSTAINABILITY ........ 135 8 LINKAGES FOR LAND USE ACROSS FEDERAL AGENCIES ............................................... 142 9 CONCLUSIONS .................................................................................................................................. 144 10 RECOMMENDATIONS FOR EPA/ORD SCIENCE