Building towards a greener future
posted by: Jasmine Greene 78 days ago
Jasmine Greene
As technology continues improving, more research and money is being poured into environmentally friendly buildings. In fact there are numerous eco-buildings going up around the world. Listed below are several of the more interesting and green buildings in the world.
Gazprom Tower: Located in St. Petersburg, Russia, this is to be tallest and greenest building in all of Europe. By utilizing two double glazed glass skins separated by an atrium, the building is able to provide natural ventilation and thermal insulation. The building also offers "breakout" zones that allow workers to enjoy leisure and social activities without expending time and energy in terms of vertical transport. There has been ongoing opposition coming from residents, UNESCO and the Moscow Museum of Architecture. The tower itself would stand 70 stories tall, almost three times taller than the cathedral of the spire of St. Petersburg. Despite threats from UNESCO threatening to revoke St. Petersburg's status of world heritage site, the project was greenlit in September of 2009 [Source: World Architecture News]
Zira Island: While you may have never heard of Azerbaijan before (it's located next to Russia, Georgia, Armenia and Iraq) after the completion of this massive building complex in 2010, the entire world would have heard of this incredible project. Located off the coast of Baku, Zira Island will feature seven "mountains" that house residential and public spaces. The entire island will run completely off of renewable energy sources (water, sun, wind) and will also recycle water and solid wastes on the island. In essence, the island will be entirely self-contained though there have not been any information regarding trash or whether or not they will grow their own food. [Source: Inhabit]
Pearl River Tower: China consumes more coal than the US, Japan and UK combined and builds a new coal factory every week [Source: Energy Bulletin], yet there are many architects and contractors pushing the country to head in a more eco-conscious direction. Upon its completion in 2010, the tower will be the most energy efficient supertall tower ever built. The building will employ internal wind turbines to light the building, geothermal heat sinks, ventilated facades, waterless urinals, integrated photovoltaics and daylight responsive controls. [Source: Architectural Record]
While these three are the most innovative and controversial new building designs, many other companies and architectural firms have taken an interest in a more sustainable design. Some individuals have even created their own sustainable homes. Of course, the questions here is whether the actual materials of the building and the way in which is was built is also green. However, creating buildings designed to be environmentally-friendly upon completion is certainly the first step in creating a greener world.
Gazprom Tower: Located in St. Petersburg, Russia, this is to be tallest and greenest building in all of Europe. By utilizing two double glazed glass skins separated by an atrium, the building is able to provide natural ventilation and thermal insulation. The building also offers "breakout" zones that allow workers to enjoy leisure and social activities without expending time and energy in terms of vertical transport. There has been ongoing opposition coming from residents, UNESCO and the Moscow Museum of Architecture. The tower itself would stand 70 stories tall, almost three times taller than the cathedral of the spire of St. Petersburg. Despite threats from UNESCO threatening to revoke St. Petersburg's status of world heritage site, the project was greenlit in September of 2009 [Source: World Architecture News]
Zira Island: While you may have never heard of Azerbaijan before (it's located next to Russia, Georgia, Armenia and Iraq) after the completion of this massive building complex in 2010, the entire world would have heard of this incredible project. Located off the coast of Baku, Zira Island will feature seven "mountains" that house residential and public spaces. The entire island will run completely off of renewable energy sources (water, sun, wind) and will also recycle water and solid wastes on the island. In essence, the island will be entirely self-contained though there have not been any information regarding trash or whether or not they will grow their own food. [Source: Inhabit]
Pearl River Tower: China consumes more coal than the US, Japan and UK combined and builds a new coal factory every week [Source: Energy Bulletin], yet there are many architects and contractors pushing the country to head in a more eco-conscious direction. Upon its completion in 2010, the tower will be the most energy efficient supertall tower ever built. The building will employ internal wind turbines to light the building, geothermal heat sinks, ventilated facades, waterless urinals, integrated photovoltaics and daylight responsive controls. [Source: Architectural Record]
While these three are the most innovative and controversial new building designs, many other companies and architectural firms have taken an interest in a more sustainable design. Some individuals have even created their own sustainable homes. Of course, the questions here is whether the actual materials of the building and the way in which is was built is also green. However, creating buildings designed to be environmentally-friendly upon completion is certainly the first step in creating a greener world.
Read more: environment & wildlife, green buildings, eco-conscious skyscrapers, green skyscraper
comments
Hi Genevieve,
Well, sources claim that it is to be (not is as you can tell from the way it was phrased in the article) the greenest building in all of Europe.
You are right that the materials used in the buildings may not be created in eco-friendly ways (and even the creation of the building itself is not very good for the environment), however the fact that companies and architects are taking a step to create a building that is sustainable, I think, is a step in the right direction. Not all things can happen at once, so while we may not have recycled steel distributors yet, I think that the push to create truly eco-friendly buildings will create a stronger market for these goods. After all, you can say the same thing about solar panels...the paint, glass, steel, etc. used to create the panels aren't necessarily "green" either...
If you want to check the validity of my article, please click on the sources that I listed or you can even do your own google search.
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why is this inappropriate?
The actual act of building has an impact on the environment. It often uses a large amount of resources (however green they are), it generates a huge amount of waste, and if built on a virgin site or "green field", it can reduce ecosystems or drainage.
As such a small percentage of the building stock, new buildings can at best have minor impacts or benefits. If you are replacing a small old house with a huge eco-friendly house for example, while it may make the owner feel better, it is more likely to have a negative impact. Often the greenest buildings are refurbished buildings.
Back to basics, it is best to reduce, reuse, recycle, redesign in that order.
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Steel can be green if it is recycled steel. But you are right, the building material industries have a long way to go to be sustainable and green. By the standards that exist today, the Russian building may be the greenest building in Europe.
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why is this inappropriate?
Several things puzzle me in this article/post.
1. The spelling and grammatical mistakes make it hard to read and make you wonder about the level of education of the writer, hence the validity of her information.
2. The Gazprom tower in Saint Petersburg has not even started being built yet. How can it be the greenest building in Europe since it does not even exist ?
3. Also, if it existed, how could it be the greenest if the means to build it and to make the materials for it are not green ? How will all the glass and all the steel to build it ever be green ? Have you ever heard of a green steel factory yet ?
4. Only an American would not have heard of "Azerbaijan" (which is normally spelled Azerbadjan, actually).
5. Japan does not burn much coal since more than 70% of its energy comes from nuclear power anyway.
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