Sunday, 7 June 2009

Eco-sustainable architecture. Whatever that means?


Human activity is responsible for approximately 27 billion tonnes of carbon emissions globally every year. Approximately 90% of this amount is contributed to by the concrete and airline industries. How can the designers of buildings help more effectively? Stop using concrete? Boycott air travel?

One of the major limiting factors when conceiving, and then implementing eco-sustainable architecture, is in the manufacturing phase. No matter what environmentally conscious devices (photo voltaic panels, green roofs, renewable building materials, passive ventilation, thermal mass etc) are utilised by considerate designers, a disproportionately high amount of energy has to be spent/wasted when actually making buildings.

We believe that one of the most straightforward solutions to this devastating global burden is to, as much as is possible, remove or negate this wasteful construction phase. Like our ancient cavemen predecessors, we should start to use and exploit existing/found treasures to make our homes in (building sites are very inefficient/wasteful places, so pre-fabricated modules/parts are inherently more eco-sustainable). For example the export/import industries use hundreds of thousands of freight containers every year to carry cargo around the world and as it is cheaper to buy a new container than to transport empty ones back to base, a high percentage of them are left empty and unused. This is obviously a problem in terms of cluttering the landscape, but also a huge waste of a very useful (and structurally sound) object with a high level of embodied energy (due to what it’s made of, it’s construction and transportation around the world). The idea (that a few designers have utilised) is to use these containers as a way to create architecture. A simple customisation/modulation of each container is a financially astute and environmentally friendly way to make (amongst other things) affordable homes for many hundreds of thousands of people.

However, this idea is not only limited to freight containers; as depending on the local context and what can be found close to potential construction sites, the possibilities seem endless. We are therefore convinced that by reducing the amount of energy expended during construction phases and utilising, eco-devices, as well as local materials or ready-made structures we can significantly reduce the combined carbon footprint of the worldwide building industries.

We really want to make a difference.

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