Western China makes steps to sustainable building

Chongqing Taoyuanju Community Center by Vector Architects

China is increasing its efforts to make its buildings more sustainable with a new four-year program that kicked off following a two-day conference earlier this month in Chongqing.

The conference brought together more than 250 participants from national and local governments, Chinese enterprises and associations from all provinces in Western China as well as related German organisations.

Building energy consumption in China has increased by 40 per cent since 1990 and accounts for about 30 per cent of total final energy consumption. Although in recent years there has been a significant growth in green buildings in China, the development is still at an early stage in western China.

In this part of the world, micro, small and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs) play a vital role in building sector but their staff often lack knowledge and skills in the field of sustainable building and have a limited access to financing.

The SusBuild project aims to foster sustainable building practices among these small companies in Chongqing City and Yunnan province. It is funded by a European Union project called Switch Asia II. This is concerned with capacity building, providing technical support and raising awareness of large-scale commercial buildings, strengthening the capacity of financial institutions for providing green loans to these kind of companies, and promoting the idea of a sustainable building sector to decision-makers at national and local levels.

For Europe there is the added benefit of fostering a business network locally and between the EU and China.

The conference addressed three topics: sustainable building materials and components, sustainable building design and construction, and energy management in buildings.

Lena Tholen and Christopher Moore from the influential German Wuppertal Institut, which initiated the project, shared European experiences of energy management in sustainable buildings, giving a policy perspective, and the design and construction of sustainable buildings.

Participants visited pilot project buildings and an industry park aiming at developing modern building industry clusters in Chongqin Quijiang District.

Amongst the buildings that the delegates saw were the green roofs of the Chongqing Taoyuanju Community Center, designed by Beijing-based Vector Architects. This is blanketed with plants, from vine-covered walls to the undulating green roof that mimics the shape of the surrounding hillside. The design includes a rainwater collection and reuse system, passive ventilation, permeable pavement, and locally sourced materials.

Chongqing Taoyuanju Community Center by Vector Architects

One building in the complex has earned LEED Gold certification. Xizi Otis Chongqing Plant won the award for its sustainable construction, reduced water use, energy efficiency and indoor environmental quality, among other measures. It also recycled 90 per cent of the waste generated during its construction phase, which used locally sourced materials to reduce its carbon footprint. It utilises an ongoing operations management process to minimise environmental impact.

The factory manufactures an elevator design that is a favourite of green buildings. The Gen2 elevator reduces energy consumption by up to 75 per cent compared with traditional elevators by using a regenerative drive, LED lighting and sleep mode for elevator lights and fans.

Also in the area is a regeneration project for a 22-hectare former iron and steelworks dating back to the 1930s in the Dadukou district that is designed to make it economically, socially and environmentally sustainable. The former gasometer is now a business hotel for an area that has a mixed economy with compact planning to ensure good connectivity; and sustainable forms of transport – buses, trams and pedestrian route.

'Magic Mountains'.

In this district the authorities recently held a contest to design a new green business district. One entry, from the CEBO/Chongqing University team, was for a development populated with buildings that resemble prismatic mountain peaks called Magic Mountains.

The tops of the buildings have plants growing out of them and the design includes passive cooling and heating, a plan that encourages biking and walking, and measures to reduce the overall consumption of resources and energy by 22 per cent.

The university hosts a low carbon green building international joint research centre which this entry was intended to showcase.

SWITCH Asia II will continue until the end of 2019.

A middle class low carbon community in the UK

Not far from the Minster town of Southwell, Nottinghamshire, on the edge of Sherwood Forest, a groundbreaking experiment has been going on for the last 20 years.

Five households have been forging a new way of living that is more sustainable than most in the sleepy village of Hockerton.

When I went to see Hockerton Housing Project as part of the research for a book I'm writing on One Planet Living it was a lovely late summer’s day. All of the trees and bushes were laden with fruit.

I was taken on a tour by a chap called Bill who had been living there for about seven years with his family.

We saw the orchards and fields where they grow 40% of their food and keep sheep and hands, and the pond which collects water, that is filtered for use in their washing machines, sinks and toilets.

Drinking water is collected from the glass roof of the conservatory the front of the row of houses and treated separately.

All of the effluent is purified using a beautiful reed bed at the side, and the water flows into a long lake in front of the terrace, which is stocked with carp and a haven for wildlife.

The houses are partly earth covered and made of dense concrete to hold the sun's heat captured by the south-west facing conservatories. Electricity is provided by solar panels on the roof and two wind turbines. They have more than they need and sell some for profit.

Part of their mission is to spread the about what is possible to live more lightly on the earth, and so they have regular tours and give talks and workshops.

And if you want to go live there one of the four bedroomed homes is for sale: a snip at £500,000.

"My kids love it here," says Bill. "And, after the initial suspicion, the local council and village people like us to. In fact, they are very proud of us."

More info: call (+44)(0) 1636 816902.

The village that took on the planning system - and won

Director Helen Iles at the premier of Living In the Future.

Last week, a remarkable film sold out in all theatres in which it premiered, and I was lucky enough to get a ticket.

It tells the story of a five-year battle by ordinary people fed up with not having access to housing that they could afford, who wanted to build affordable, ecologically-sound housing for themselves on land which they owned.

The story began when nine families occupying 35 acres of land in South Wales innocently submitted boxes of detailed architectural designs and plans to their local council, seeking approval, which was initially met with hostility. The leader of the council is filmed saying: "Not now, not ever. Never!" as he rejected their application.

Their battle eventually succeeded, and resulted not only in a change in planning policy in that council, which has been adopted throughout Wales, thanks to the support of Wales' former Environment Minister, Jane Davidson, but a campaign to change the Building Regulations themselves, which, at present, are totally unfit for the purpose of enabling this type of architecture.

The film is Living In The Future. After the screening I talked to the director, Helen Iles, who has spent several years following, and filming, the development of this project.

The organisation involved, Lammas, set up an eco-village, Tir y Gafel, and are using it as a pioneering project to inspire others to do the same throughout the country.

It contains the first buildings in the country that are of ‘low impact’ and built with planning permission in accordance with Building Regulations.

These buildings use traditional methods of construction: timber frame, round houses, straw bale, and all natural materials: sheeps' wool for insulation, roundwood, mud.

Buildings for all of the families and a community building were constructed for the astonishingly low total cost of about £70,000. Of course, much of the labour was free, coming from the many volunteers who turned up to help.

The local council has stipulated that within three years 75% of the settlement's income must be self generated from the land, as a planning condition. This is a target the village’s inhabitants are still struggling to meet.

I asked Helen why she chose to focus on the planning issue for the substance of her movie. "It is incredibly hard to get councils to understand this type of settlement and building," she said.

"Not only that, but the Building Regulations are geared to conventional types of construction. If, for example, people want to have an outside composting toilet, then officials say: "Why? Surely we've left all that behind!'"

Similar issues apply to the choice of building materials and sewage treatment using reedbeds.

In fact, when the Building Enforcement Officers visited the site they came up with a list of hundreds of things that should have been done. In the end, these were whittled down to a few that were relatively easy to deal with, compared, that is, to knocking the buildings down and starting all over again.

You would class the people pursuing this dream as hippies. But I was reminded of the early days of the Centre for Alternative Technology, where I used to work. This started in much the same way, as an experiment in sustainable living in the early ‘70s, and was also founded by a peculiar mixture of hippies and upper-class dropouts.

The solutions that they pioneered are now mainstream simply because the mainstream has recognised the necessity of making them so.

I am confident that, while the nature of the buildings might change a little, and that the vast majority of people will not live in this kind of housing, a great many do want to live closer to nature, and in buildings that are softer and friendlier which they can design themselves and which are much, much cheaper.

With so many people needing affordable housing, you can hardly argue that there is no demand. The degree of interest in this type of living is evidenced by how popular the film has proved last week.

What is obvious from watching the film is the extreme stress suffered by these pioneers as they struggle not only with bullying of families and growing food, but building their homes and dealing with a non-comprehending bureaucracy.

They were lucky to have a friend in Jane Davidson.

"Jane was a visionary herself," said Helen. "She came and listened to the people at Lammas. She always listened to people. She was the best Environment Minister Wales has ever had. Most of her policies came from the ground up."

Sadly, Jane retired from politics and the Welsh Assembly Government to concentrate on her smallholding, and is now Director of the Wales Institute for Sustainability at the local Trinity St David University.

But the legacy she has left includes the vision of One Planet Living, which underpins the Welsh Assembly Government's Technical Advice Note 6 "Planning For Sustainable Rural Communities", part of Wales' comprehensive planning policy in line with its constitutional commitment to sustainable development, something which makes Wales unique in the whole world.

Planning officers everywhere deserve to take note of the experience of Pembrokeshire and the Welsh Assembly Government. Largely unseen by the majority, a quiet revolution is taking place.

At some point other communities will spring up in other parts of the country.

The film, admirably financed by the Welsh Assembly Government, is available under Creative Commons principles, i.e. it has no copyright, but the makers would appreciate a donation or the payment of a voluntary fee for public showings.

I recommend you to view it, visit the eco-village, and support the campaign to get the Building Regulations changed.

Forget the voting system, let's have a new seat of Parliament

If the Coalition were to commission the greenest government building in the world, it would inspire a new spirit of governance.

If the last election demonstrated anything, it was the suspicion and alienation felt by the British people towards their parliamentary representatives.

Now we are about to decide on which of two imperfect systems we should adopt for the next election, and polls demonstrate ambivalence and confusion.

The Coalition government itself is a new experiment in British politics - an attempt to forge alliances where they have not previously existed.

Right from the start, it proclaimed that it would be "the greenest government ever", in an attempt to win back public trust and rebuild the battered economy.

There is one thing that it could do, right now, to tackle all of these problems at once - and that is to commission a new seat of Parliament, and perhaps even move in by the next election.

The new building would make a bold and courageous statement. It would be built to the highest standards of sustainability, demonstrating in practice what the government is preaching.

The standard could be Passivhaus or close. It could generate its own power and perhaps export the surplus. It would be constructed with a very low ecological footprint. Above all, it would be a democratic and accessible structure.

The building itself would inspire and be fit for the twenty-first century and beyond.

Like the Reichstag dome, designed for the German government by the British architectural practice of Norman Foster; the Welsh Assembly Government building by the British Richard Rogers; and the Scottish Parliament building at Holyrood by Enric Miralles, it would let the public see the activities of their representatives from above and in the round, and thereby engender the sense of a new kind of relationship.

The feeling you get when visiting these places to watch the practice of government is one of greater proximity and access - the politicians feel more approachable and accountable, the decision making process more transparent. Greater trust will result.

Moreover, the effect of architectural space on the psychology and behaviour of its inhabitants is profound.

The current Palace of Westminster was designed for a different age. Its maze of dark, narrow corridors and stairs, lobby rooms in the Perpendicular Gothic style, and the very antagonistic arrangement of the government and opposition benches in the main hall lend themselves to the creation of conflict, the gathering of cabals in dark corners, and whispering campaigns, where whips can lie in wait for unsuspecting MPs to ambush and drag them into whatever conspiracy they have in mind.

By contrast, the light, circular and open styles, and the human scale of the above three buildings, are much more likely to encourage cooperation and partnership - the very requirements for a coalition. The propensity for animosity and retrenchment is reduced. Just ask anyone who works in the Welsh or Scottish national seats.

Moreover, Westminster Palace is impossible to make energy efficient. It is draughty and dark - and of course a listed building. To replace the windows with energy efficient ones is impossible!

Miralles' plans for Holyrood made sustainability a central element of the design. An independent environmental audit of the entire building was conducted by the Building Research Establishment. It was rated as "Excellent" for environmental performance in the areas of health & well being, energy, transport, material selection and water usage.

The National Assembly for Wales' oversailing timber-clad roof is beautifully striated with wood boarding. It swells into steep forms which allow the spaces below to be viewed and provide welcoming drama. At the corners of the cantilevered roof the canopy flips up at the corners in a delicate and sensual way.

These and the Reichstag Dome attract thousands of visitors a year and are popular icons.

The idea of a new, inspirational Parliament building has been mooted several times. Richard Rogers and Norman Foster have both tendered designs.

In 2009 the Royal Institute of British Architects(RIBA) invited 175 schools to design a 'Parliament for the future'. The winning design, by Eastbourne College, was commended for its consideration of sustainability issues, including the use of local building materials, energy efficiency (through techniques such as the use of natural light and water collection, ease of access and for its potential to regenerate and bring new potential to a previously abandoned area.)

If David Cameron and Nick Clegg are truly serious about their green credentials, about encouraging MPs of different ideologies to cooperate, and about recreating a bond of trust between the public and Parliament, what better symbolic and practical legacy could they give to the future than a new Parliament House that is truly sustainable, democratic and inspiring?

Britain has some of the best architects in the world - several practices are, for example, even now helping China construct sustainable, awe-inspiring cities. There is no shortage of skills, experience and imagination raring to go. We are good at large projects, like the Olympic village, Crossrail or the London Array.

Innovation happens in a recession, not a time of plenty when business rests on its laurels. This project would stimulate the most cost-effective inventiveness, the best of British design - and the economy.

Let the Coalition begin now by announcing a competition, open to everyone, for both the most appropriate site and the best design, and create the greenest government building in the world.

Sustainable Home Refurbishment

My new book, Sustainable Home Refurbishment: The Earthscan Expert Guide to Retrofitting Homes for Efficiency, is out now, published by Earthscan.

Praise for this title:

"This is an excellent book - comprehensively-researched, powerfully-presented and crystal clear. It should be the first stop for anyone seeking objective advice in a field cluttered with misleading claims. I couldn't recommend it more strongly." - George Monbiot

"As the idea of radical retrofit of our existing housing stock gradually moves from geek-dom to chic-dom, this book is a must have for all involved in this burgeoning industry. This book is both for the capable amateur and the professionally engaged.

"There is all the detail you could wish for with a vast array of practical examples and materials. This is not a book for the total novice but is a life saver for anyone on the road to radical retrofit.

"We can't recommend it highly enough. David has managed to make the book a good and interesting ready whilst managing to get all the necessary hard-core energy information in there as well." - Penney Poyzer (tv presenter, writer, Queen of Green, grass roots activist) and Gil Schalom (architect) .

Order it using the link above.

A retro-fit offers many benefits: cutting electricity and heating bills, increasing the resale value of homes, slashing carbon emissions and creating a healthier place to live. This book is the guide to making it happen.

It looks at:

• draught-proofing, insulation and damp
• ventilation, heating and cooling
• electrical efficiency and renewable energy
• water use and re-use
• materials' life cycles and incorporating nature
• protection from climate change impacts
• modelling energy flows and embodied energy
• how we can meet the need to cut carbon emissions from dwellings by 80% by 2050.

Projects can apply to apartment blocks, recent builds and older, solid-walled properties.

Enlivened with helpful diagrams and photographs, plus plenty of pointers for further information, it provides a comprehensive resource handbook for any building professional and contractor, students - or any homeowner serious about efficiency (cash and carbon) savings.

CONTENTS

Introduction

1. Airtightness: Reducing Energy Demand for Heating and Cooling

2. Insulation Materials

3. Insulation Strategies

4. Going All The Way - Towards Passivhaus

5. Windows and Doors

6. Ventilation, Cooling and Heating

7. Water Management

8. Electricity Efficiency and Supply

9. Contextual Issues