Materials and Methods for Building An Eco-city - Lessons from History

1. Materials and Methods for Building An Eco-city- Lessons from History Sudarshan Raj Tiwari NEPAL Peace on Earth, Peace with Earth

2. Global Environmental Challenge • Global Warming • CO2 Emissions • Global Ice and Snow Melt • Rising Seas • Bursting Glaciers and Flooding Mountains • Human suffering- change of habitat • Catastrophic Consequences to all life forms • Global Action Reducing CO2 • Manage fossil fuel • Use Clean Energy and Technology Peace on Earth, Peace with Earth

3. Scheme of this Presentation • Learning from • What the Earth did deep in History? • What does the Ancient Wisdom say? • What is urban ecology like? • Traditional Towns to inform the Cities? Peace on Earth, Peace with Earth

4. High CO2 content and Hot atmosphere deep in Earth’s ecological history • Carbon fixing organisms developed to take out CO2 fix C and release O2, using solar energy: Plants • Organisms developed that used plant products as food and used O2 to extract energy • Balance reached through interplay of life forms: plants and animals Peace on Earth, Peace with Earth

5. … In air is cloud germinated, nourished to fullness and preserved continuouslyIn cloud is the rain realized, nourished to fullness and continuedFrom rains herbs and plants are materialized, nourished to fullness and obtain survivalFrom herbs and plants are the animals characterized, nourished to fullness and obtain survival … -from atharva veda Peace on Earth, Peace with Earth

6. Nature’s way with CO2 in atmosphereand solar energy (HEAT) CO2 C O2 Peace on Earth, Peace with Earth

7. Air arises in the sky and is consumed and wholly contained in it Air gives rise to, consumes and wholly contains heat (agni and within it light or jyoti) In heat is water expressed, consumed and contained wholly In Water is the Earth expressed, consumed and contained wholly … in earth is cereal expressed and in cereal is life expressed … from atharva veda Peace on Earth, Peace with Earth

8. Constituents of Global EnvironmentHeat and Earth, the couple- Yete dve yoni yekam mithunam Peace on Earth, Peace with Earth

9. Urban Ecological Imperatives! • Resource Efficient Infrastructure • Public Mass Transport Systems • Compact Development • Mixed use • Short Distances • Clean Technology • ‘Green city’ redressing Peace on Earth, Peace with Earth

10. Nature Peace on Earth, Peace with Earth

11. Urban Culture: Urban Ecology NATURE: Physical Environmental Chains SOCIETY: Social set up for Sharing/ Competition ECONOMY: Resources & Waste Chains Peace on Earth, Peace with Earth

12. Peace on Earth, Peace with Earth

13. Input Concentration-Waste sink • InputTons per dayWasteTons per day • Water625,000Sewage500,000 • Food2,000Solid wastes2,000 • Fuel:Coal3,000Particles 150 • Oil2,800Sulfur dioxides100 • Gas2,700Nitrogen oxides 100 • Motor 1,000 Carbon monoxide 450 • Concrete 80,000 Obsolescence waste 80,000 + Embodied Heat + Radiated Heat + Excluded Heat - Excluded Water (Abel Wolman + plus) Peace on Earth, Peace with Earth

14. Urban Ecology: Desert Regime • Cities are hotter • concentration of buildings, human activities and machines (heat-holding and heat-generating character. • Umbrella of waste products discharged into atmosphere (haze hood) and heat trapping results. • Masonry,cement and bitumen surfaces absorb solar energy/ slower release than natural ground cover. • Natural elements convert sensible heat into other forms of energy: sensible heat remains as such in urban areas. Peace on Earth, Peace with Earth

15. Urban Ecology: Desert Regime • INSPITE OF HUGE WATER SUPPLY FROM OUTSIDE AND ITS SHARE OF RAIN • Cities are drier • Buildings and building materials based on exclusion of water and water proofing • Paving and Road surfaces: impervious to water (cf. natural cover/ sub-surface water) and falling ground water table • Water collecting system and drain-off outside town (discharging system) • Instant floods (cf. natural system of recharge) Peace on Earth, Peace with Earth

16. Urban Exclusion of Heat, Moisture and Plant Life Peace on Earth, Peace with Earth

17. Technological Obsolescence • Technological Obsolescence • Objects becoming useless economically, no physical aging, long residual material life • Plastic bags: economic life ONE HOUR, physical life ONE THOUSAND YEARS • Concrete: economic life of buildings 30 YEARS, structural life 100 YEARS, material Life 300 Years? • Concrete that can last 16000 years? • Waste and its accumulation • Can earth tolerate as much concentration of solid waste? • Is it only a case of shifting site of limestone hill? • Can we afford to make limestone hills of URBAN deserts? Peace on Earth, Peace with Earth

18. Disposability of Materials It is not cut by arms, nor burnt by heatAlso water cannot soften it and air cannot dry it the gita 2.23 Peace on Earth, Peace with Earth

19. Framing an approach for Eco-city • Key Issues • Chemical and mechanical inefficiencies of machines • Technological obsolescence and throw away culture • Heat holding and water excluding property • Key Approaches • Interaction between Land, Air, Heat, Water plus Plant and Animal Life • Reduction of Heat in urban areas and its radiation • Water inclusive architecture and technology • Making land COOL, MOIST and GREEN • Increasing disposability/Reducing Obsolescence Peace on Earth, Peace with Earth

20. Interpenetration Peace on Earth, Peace with Earth

21. Tree on Earth-Making the Grey Green • West • Ebenezer Howard’s Garden City • Le Corbusier’s Les 5 points d’une architecture nouvelle, 1926 • Green Architecture? • Kathmandu • Paved squares, no central public green • Khyo, green lots on the periphery Peace on Earth, Peace with Earth

22. Peace on Earth, Peace with Earth

23. Earth on Water-Making the dry Moist • Modern City • Urban system takes no action to put moisture into the ground • Water proof piping for supply and drainage • Wetness and dampness – a public health hazard! • Surface drains and sealed pavements • Recently- • Rain water harvesting • Recharging wells, holding storage • Porous asphalt for paving has been developed! Peace on Earth, Peace with Earth

24. Earth on Water-Kathmandu • Water accepting technology • Open jointed Brick or Stone slab paving • Surface drains harvesting neighborhood waste water • Use of Porous seams – Bahrabarse Inar • Jhingati roof • Town inclusive towards Moisture Peace on Earth, Peace with Earth

25. Peace on Earth, Peace with Earth

26. Peace on Earth, Peace with Earth

27. Peace on Earth, Peace with Earth

28. Peace on Earth, Peace with Earth

29. Cooling the Earth, using excess heat • Earth is expressed in Water, water in Heat, Heat is expressed in air • Heat and earth cohabit! • Towns working towards using heat • Jhingati tiles (earthenware not glazed/stoneware) • Saaga and composting • Waste chain linked to Food chain Peace on Earth, Peace with Earth

30. Recycling Through Use of Extra Urban Heat*Compost and Sagah v]tsf] k]6df k]6sf] v]tdf Peace on Earth, Peace with Earth

31. Peace on Earth, Peace with Earth

32. Using Perishable materials • Degradability of materials • Action of heat, air, solid matter (abrasion) • Action of water • Nepali Traditional architecture • Based on wood, brick • Wet Monsoons and tradition of conservation by replacement • Generally water inclusive material and technology • Dachiapa Glazing material (red moss) Peace on Earth, Peace with Earth

33. Peace on Earth, Peace with Earth

34. Living together with Plants and Animals • Dhungedhara • Supply side • Filters Regulators and Deep pit • Drainage side • Maintenance free architecture • Fish, frog and snakes at work • Plankton feeding the fish, frog feeding on fish, snake feeding on frogs! • Ecozoic technology of flushing deep closed darins? Peace on Earth, Peace with Earth

35. Peace on Earth, Peace with Earth

36. The Pit Conduit: Dhungedhara Peace on Earth, Peace with Earth

37. A manuscript drawing of Dhungedhara Peace on Earth, Peace with Earth