Development of a sustainability assessment model for underground infrastructure projects

The concept of sustainable development is receiving much attention throughout the global community. The concept embraces the traditional paradigm of infrastructure development and is expanding to a wider range of implications from social and environmental impacts caused by infrastructure development. Enhancement of sustainability is generally summarized using a triple bottom line approach of (i) minimizing environmental impact, (ii) maximizing economical benefit, and (iii) minimizing adverse social-cultural impact. Sustainability assessment should consider complications and interrelationships of all sustainability aspects throughout the entire life cycle. This paper presents a methodological development for a sustainability assessment modeling framework aimed at underground infrastructure construction projects. The modeling framework is based on assessing multiple proposed design alternatives and eliciting the most sustainable alternative through multiple assessment processes and a decision making process.