Site planning involves the thoughtful placement of a building on a site to promote energy conservation by taking advantage of natural site features such as breezes, sunlight, shade, and topography. Site selection has a major impact on the immediate natural community and the future occupants of the building. Minimal site clearing reduces costs, and undisturbed plant materials may provide a low-maintenance landscape that avoids supplemental irrigation and fertilizer.

Specific planning for building orientation permits passive design features and non-mechanical measures to conserve energy, utilize solar energy for thermal gain, and direct prevailing winds for natural ventilation and cooling. Natural conditions should be used to full potential to reduce the use of more expensive mechanical systems. Mature stands of native vegetation often provide the desired energy-saving shade and wind control that would otherwise require years to develop from expensive new plantings.

Planning a facility to ensure it is not located in a floodplain ensures that future costs due to flooding and equipment damage are avoided. Site planning is designed to enhance the sustainability of a project or facility from both the environmental perspective as well as the perspective of the mission of the particular military branch or unit building the facility.

Sustainable site planning should involve the following site considerations that will affect building design:

• Natural and cultural resources present on site;
• Geographical latitude (solar altitude) and microclimate factors, such as wind loads;
• Topography and adjacent landforms;
• Groundwater and surface runoff characteristics;
• Solar access;
• Air movement patterns (both annual and diurnal);
• Soil texture and load-bearing capacity;
• Parcel shape and access; and
• Relationship to installation Comprehensive Plan.

Source: Sustainable Building Technical Manual

Each branch of the military has developed a mandatory site-planning checklist for evaluating a proposed site for development or alteration. The checklist is a required step in any civil engineering project. The checklist incorporates many sustainable attributes and each point corresponds with a more detailed reference document. These checklists include such sustainability issues as:

• Preparing of Environmental Assessments or Environmental Impact Statements,
• Complying with Environmental Impact Analysis Process policy,
• Developing as few utility corridors as possible to avoid disturbing vegetation,
• Building on land that has previously been disturbed,
• Avoiding building near stream channels, floodplains, or designated wetlands,
• Avoiding eligible/designated/suspected archaeological or historical sites,
• Avoiding potential to affect threatened or endangered species or critical habitats, and
• Avoiding siting on designated prime or unique farmlands.

Note: These are just a few issues excerpted from the Air Force Comprehensive Planning Draft Site Planning Checklist of January 7, 2000. Contact your Comprehensive Planner for more details. Beginning in the late 1970's the earliest versions of this checklist has served as an aid in the Air Force Site Planning process. Each item in the checklist is tied to a more detailed guide, process and procedure.

This activity also helps facilities to comply iwth the Department of navy's Naval Facilities Engineering Command Planning and Design Policy Statement - 98-01:  Design of Sustainable Facilities and Infrastructure, June 18, 1998, which requires all facilities and infrastructure-related design and construction for the Navy, Air Force (when Navy is the design agent on the project), and Marines, as well as about half of domestic Army construction and about half of all offshore military construction.

Implementing sustainable development strategies, such as careful site planning, also will help facilities meet requirements under the Department of the Army Technical Letter No. 1110-3-491, "Sustainable Design for Military Facilities," released on May 1, 2001.  This letter provides basic criteria for incorporating sustainable design concepts in the design and construction of Military facilities.

Identifying potential environmental impacts and the need for environmental compliance permits during project planning will allow sufficient time to obtain necessary permits before construction and operation.  It also will allow the project design team to consider and mitigate the negative environmental impacts identified in the planning process.

The compliance benefits listed here are only meant to be used as a general guideline and are not meant to be strictly interpreted.  Actual compliance benefits will vary depending on the factors involved, e.g., the amount of workload involved.

• Conserves habitat and other natural and cultural resources.
• Reduces energy use and the costs associated.
• Reduces pollution associated with energy production.
• Reduces contamination of stormwater runoff.
• Improves health, safety, and welfare of personnel.

• Requires thoughtful planning from the beginning stages of building design and construction.
• May restrict the design of a structure.

• Costs for initial planning studies and impact statements.
• Costs to protect existing natural and cultural resources.
• Any changes in labor or other supplies necessary to prepare site with less impact to local environment.
• Costs avoided by taking advantage of natural features to improve energy efficiency.

*There are multiple MSDSs for most NSNs.
The MSDS (if shown above) is only meant to serve as an example.