Patches of grass, a few trees, some flowers and on top of it all, piles of dirt—everywhere. This will be junior Vivian Guo’s view from her new home for the next several months. Before she moved, there were neat lawns and gardens.

Just before the start of this school year, Guo moved to a new neighborhood, like many other CHS students did this summer. She previously lived in Saddle Creek, a relatively large 17-year-old neighborhood in Carmel.

“We moved because my parents wanted a ranch, a one-story house,” Guo said. “Since we didn’t move for location, we still wanted to be able to communicate with friends.”

Guo’s family ended up moving right across the street to Westmont Estates, a newly developed neighborhood, which was formerly a cornfield and horse farm. The land began to be cleared last year, and by this year, a few houses had already sprung up.

According to Adrienne Keeling, planning administrator for the Carmel City Council, Westmont Estates is not the only neighborhood where new houses are being built this year in Carmel and throughout Indiana.

“There are currently approximately 25 to 30 developments in varying stages of progress right now. Some have started construction; others are approved but aren’t under construction yet,” Keeling said via email.

After completion, these new developments will add 2,600 homes to existing residential buildings in Carmel. This includes condos and apartments, as well as senior living units.

The creation of new neighborhoods clearly benefits anybody who is looking for a new place to live.

However, at the same time, it can also severely harm the environment. Any trees and vegetation on construction sites must be cut down to clear the land for building homes. This disturbs the wildlife living there, since the construction destroys or changes their natural habitats.

Construction building can also be loud due to drilling and hammering, causing noise pollution. It creates dust and other forms of waste, negatively affecting nearby residents and joggers’ respiratory health.

Debris from construction only adds to the waste neighborhoods produce. In fact, according to The New Ecologist, around 25 to 30 percent of the United States’ annual solid waste comes from construction and remodeling.

Though there are clearly environmental problems that can arise from construction, some people, like Guo, have noticed that not much was actually disrupted in the construction of the neighborhoods they moved into.

“You would think that from all the building that the geese would be gone, but they’re still everywhere,” Guo said. “The forest back there (behind the construction) was also originally there, but they made a path through the forest.”

Though Guo’s new neighborhood retained most of its existing landscape, junior Maddie Adkins said she noticed obvious changes in hers.

“I used to live in a neighborhood where there are a lot of trees and big, green spaces behind the apartments,” Adkins said. “Now, it’s all being cut down to build more houses and shopping centers to accommodate that Carmel is growing.”

Many houses are still being built in Guo’s neighborhood, so construction is happening every day. As a result, there is a continuous output of pollution.

Guo said she doesn’t seem bothered too much by it, though.

“The houses here aren’t extremely close, so it’s not like someone is building a house three feet away from you,” she said.

In fact, Guo said she thought that it was quieter than her old neighborhood.

“Back in our old neighborhood, there were a lot of kids, plus our neighbor’s dog liked to bark non-stop,” Guo said. “We don’t seem to have any kids in this neighborhood, so it’s more quiet.”

According to Guo, building a new neighborhood is an effective way to use the existing plots of land. She said she thinks unused farmland or fields should be put to use because otherwise, it’s not doing anything useful.

“A year or two before all the construction started (at Westmont Estates), the field was full of weed. I guess the farmer just didn’t care anymore. It was actually kind of gross,” she said.

Along with the weeds, Guo said that the trees near the edge of the street have been cut down as well.
When considering a built house to one open for construction, Adkins said people should consider the built one first.

“What you’re really looking at is the long-term value of your house,” she said. “Your house’s value is not going to be very high if there’s construction constantly going around.”

As for the environmental components of neighborhood construction, Guo said many buyers have the option of choosing eco-friendly building materials and energy-efficient appliances.

“Our house uses stuff like a ‘green’ water heater, and then smaller stuff like fluorescent light bulbs,” she said.

According to Keeling, the City of Carmel is always encouraging people to use more environmentally-friendly construction plans.

“We have LEED-accredited staff who review development proposals and recommend ‘green’ practices appropriate to the projects,” Keeling said.

In the future, the city council plans on building mixed-use developments located near existing services, jobs and other destinations. City residents would be able to make shorter car trips to run errands or commute to work, tremendously reducing vehicle emissions and other forms of air pollution.

“Developments closer to existing services can also reduce the need to build additional streets and utility infrastructure, saving raw materials, fossil fuels and, of course, money,” Keeling said.

Guo said she hopes in the future, more trees and flowers will be planted and that the neighborhood will build a park.

“Back in our old neighborhood, there was a pool, so people had more (recreational) opportunities to do things,” she said. “Here, there is nothing much. Hopefully they’ll start building more things.”