In the article “Developing Sustainable Infrastructure in New Cities”, Cho (2014) explained how the guidelines of the Envision Sustainability Rating System can improve the sustainability of infrastructures in urban cities that face rapid growth. Given the rising importance of developing sustainable infrastructure due to urban challenges such as floods and climate changes, the rating system was introduced to evaluate new developments in terms of imperishability, adjustability, and serviceability. Cho further elaborated her aim to provide an Envision evaluation on a planned project in King Abdullah Economic City(KAEC) which is strategically located in an area that would potentially boost the economy and provide residences in 2020. Expecting a high growth rate, KAEC is advised to implement a booming strategy for sustainable development. With the implemented system, “Nuevo Necaxa-Avila Camacho Highway” in Mexico and “Highways Vias Nuevas De Lima” in Peru were evaluated and awarded the “Infrastructure 360” award by incorporating sustainable techniques. Cho hoped that working towards a sustainable future would help influence the ongoing investment strategies for KAEC and cities across the world. The article addressed the need to develop sustainable infrastructure in new cities and the benefits of a sustainable city. However, the lack of examples and statistics on how KAEC will turn into a sustainable city makes the article very vague and brief.
First of all, the author should have included the different phases of development within KAEC. Based on a report written in June 2014 by Paul Doherty, there were multiple phases on the development in KAEC at that point of time. However, Cho did not mention in her article that was written in December 2014 which was hard to comprehend the plans for KAEC. Doherty (2014) reported that phase one of the development was completed in the fall of 2013 where it produced a modern shipping port to help enhance the transportation of goods from North America and Europe to and from the Middle East. In phase two, a high-speed rail link to Dubai from KAEC was drafted for construction. This would help change the mobility of shipping and logistics throughout the region.
Secondly, Cho should have given examples on how the “Impact KAEC Fellowship” develops plan that would benefit KAEC’s major infrastructure development in sustainable way. With reference to a research article written in October 2014, it wrote about the urban environmental sustainability plans of Masdar City in Abu Dhabi. Manghnani and Bajaj (2014) included the planning and design of ‘The Sustainable City’, the various initiatives towards a sustainable infrastructure for example energy management, solar panels, water management, waste management, transportation, supply chain and material recycling centre. Statistics were also included where it stated that “Masdar City and its contractors are diverting up to 96% of construction waste from landfills and using it in the build of the city”. These are the examples and statistics that Cho needed to include in her article to give the readers more information about how the “Impact KAEC Fellowship” can craft up a plan to help make KAEC a sustainable development. With such faint illustrations, it is unclear how KAEC would become.
Heidi, C. (Dec 17, 2014) Developing Sustainable Infrastructure in New Cities. Retrieved from https://newcities.org/evaluating-sustainable-infrastructure-development-new-cities/
Paul Doherty (June 4, 2014) Smart Cities: A New Dynamic For Middle East. Retrieved from https://www.ditchley.com/sites/default/files/2018-12/MHFIGI%20Smart%20Cities%20Middle%20East_0.pdf
Manghnani & Bajaj (Oct 2014) Masdar City : A Model of Urban Environmental Sustainability. Retrieved from https://core.ac.uk/download/pdf/25523393.pdf
Gerald's 