Things You'll Need:
- Access to historical zoning (municipal government)
- Fire code maps (sand-born maps)
- Camera
- Pad of paper
- Mechanical pencil
- GPS
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Step 1
Each city, state and country has its own requirements for identifying and mitigating the potentially adverse affects of land development. Check with your local government or planning commission (city planner or board of commissions) for these requirements.
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Step 2
You may need to secure the services of an attorney. Land-use lawyers often understand the nature of your venture and how to prepare legal documents often required. They can foresee pitfalls and possible consequences related to zoning and state-related environmental laws.
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Step 3
Develop the capital necessary for you venture. Bank loans, grants and private investors are frequently utilized for a project requiring environmental impact studies.
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Step 1
Figure out, through your research, what was previously on the site. If the parcel had previous development (buildings, dumps, land infill and so on), what were they and what were their uses? Sanborn maps are an excellent resource for historical building uses and from which the materials they were built.
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Step 2
Assess the impacts of your project. For example, if your project is a local strip mall, consider traffic patterns, traffic volume, signage, storm water runoff and planting requirements. Check with local regulations to comply. Use GPS and a camera to document location. Match proposed project with historical maps and fire code maps.
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Step 3
If you determine that there will be impacts, determine the steps you will take to mitigate these. Check for local aesthetics ordinances and zoning. For example, for storm water runoff, you must decide methods to reduce the potential to local waterways and roads from the added impervious surface of hard-scapes. Appropriate site design will mitigate the impacts you have identified above.
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Step 4
Potential public health issues must be identified. These include: chemical storage, chemical usage, removing chemical substances from site, potential air-water-land pollution and the feasibility of placing this type of business in the community.
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Step 5
You must now determine which of these steps can be mitigate or managed appropriately and whether the remaining risks are acceptable to the community.
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Step 6
Submit you proposal and documents to the planning board(s). They will review it and you can begin planning the project design.
