Blartisan

At the beginning of this month, Danica May Camacho, born in the Philippines, was announced to be the world’s seven billionth person.  With such a milestone comes a number of questions, not the least of which include how our resources will continue to keep up with this booming global population.  This is the first installment in a series that will examine the implications of this population growth, through a variety of lenses: in this case water.

Water will be a growing focal point of interest in the near future.  Regardless of a nation’s status of “developed” or “developing,” its respective leaders will soon be faced with difficult decisions regarding how to best preserve this vital life force.   From East Africa to Texas, water shortages and droughts are already showing signs of what the future may hold if current trends are not reversed.

An innovation leading the way toward doing just that provides a potential solution by recycling greywater on a very local level without compromising lifestyle in the process. Currently, traditional models involve using potable water for processes such as air conditioning, irrigation, and industrial purposes.  These uses could just as effectively deploy recycled greywater, a much less finite resource.

Organica’s newly-developed BlueHouse provides a flexible model that enables on-site recycling of greywater without the need for extensive pumps or pipes.  This allows the system to be implemented into the urban landscape, a key feature as the world’s population continues to migrate to cities on a massive scale.  The BlueHouse is an example of the type of innovation needed to handle upcoming shortages in that it provides a way to drastically reduce water use while providing long-term economic savings in the face of rising water prices.

KEY TERMS:

• Potable water – drinking water
• Greywater – waste water generated from domestic activities such as laundry, dish washing, and bathing
• Blackwater – waste water containing human waste such as that derived from toilets

Check out Organica’s video, explaining both the problem at its proposed solution, below:

Project Frog, a San Francisco-based start-up, is setting out to revolutionize the construction industry.  The firm takes a modular approach to building, and uses new, technology-based systems to provide materials that can be assembled on-site.  The result is high-performance, facilitative design that uses time, money, and energy more efficiently relative to traditional construction methods.  CEO Ann Hand describes the process as “like a high-quality Ikea building in a kit, but it’s hurricane strength.”

Project Frog recently received a large capital infusion from GE’s Ecomagination Fund, and has completed a handful of projects throughout the country with many more on the way.  The completed projects are projected to contribute 82% less air pollution, 73% less water pollution, and use 87% less fossil fuel than the average building when aggregated over a 50-year life cycle (pictured below).

The firm specializes in the education, healthcare, and retail spaces, and produces environments that are designed to fit into their surroundings while providing facilitative conditions to their occupants.  Most importantly, however, the firm provides an example that it is possible to improve upon the traditional construction model, which has been largely static for the past 100 years, producing waste and inefficiency. 

Learn more about Project Frog

There’s no better time than Halloween to discuss a project completed earlier this year that is looking to become recognized as the most energy efficient, environmentally responsible cemetery facility in the country.  The building is a 22,400 square foot, Frank Lloyd Wright-inspired Welcoming and Information center located on the grounds of St. Charles Resurrection Cemetery in Farmingdale, New York.

The structure is looking to attain a LEED Silver rating, and has already received the Jeffrey J. Zogg Build New York award for excellence in design and construction.  The building features low-emission windows, advanced MEP and HVAC systems, extensive daylighting, and was made completely out of recycled materials.  The 5-acre sitw is landscaped with natural, low-maintenance greenery that is serviced via a graywater system.

The building is a response to recent legislation in the Town of Babylon (which includes Farmingdale) that requires all new construction in excess of 5,000 square feet to achieve at least a LEED Silver rating.  This aggressive law, passed in 2007, will continue to have interesting impacts on development in Long Island for years to come. 

The firm behind the building’s design

Biomimicry Slideshow

Biomimicry literally means to imitate (mimesis) life (bios).  The discipline is based on the idea that nature has evolved over billions of years, and the results of that evolution are incredible, ingenious systems that human design could learn and benefit a lot from studying.  Nature has a way of functioning and innovating without harming the environment around it that human design could stand to emulate.

The above link provides a slideshow that gives a look into exciting projects that are being explored in this arena.  Everything from solar panel coatings that imitate a moth’s eye’s ability to reflect light to adaptable building coatings that mimic human skin’s regenerative qualities can be seen in the slideshow, each complete with description.

See more biomimicry slideshows here

A multi-use tower unlike any other is in the beginning stages of development in Melbourne, Australia.  Upon completion, the building will have five separate communal gardens, each capable of housing trees over thirty feet tall, an industry first.

The building will boast more than just flashy landscaped balconies.  It will feature heat-reflective glass, solar lighting, and efficient heating and cooling systems.  Perhaps most impressive, however, will be the building’s ability to catch rain water… with its walls.

A jagged facade and triangular-shaped balconies allow the curtain wall to capture rain water that would ordinarily glance off the side with wind.  This is a revolutionary concept in an urban setting, as a skyscraper naturally has much more surface area on its sides than roof.  The structure is slated to be completed in 2014.

Click here to read more about the building

The United States green building market measured $71.1 billion in 2010.  According to the most recent report from EL Insights, that number is expected to grow to $173.5 billion by 2015.  This remarkable growth can be primarily attributed to the confluence of two driving factors: the industry’s growing recognition of potential cost savings and increased governmental incentives that encourage such an approach.

EL Insights, a market research and intelligence offshoot of Environmental Leader, goes on to predict that this increase will a have far-reaching impact, influencing everything from the percentage of construction workers who will seek out high performance design training to market premiums placed on residences boasting sustainable features.

Read more about EL Insights’ report