This blog is part two of the image blog where I talked briefly about an Eco-city. An Eco-city has great importance to the environment, for the people that live in that area, and all the living species that live within and around it. The Eco-city that I previously talked about was Dongtan and that Eco-city was designed by Alejandro Gutierrez and he went onto designing the Eco-city because it was located near the Yangtze River in Shanghai that rare birds use as migratory path. So an Eco-city is important for us to consider and pursue in.
An eco-city is like “an ecologically healthy city,” Eco-City Naturalist explains,”Today’s cities are making life systems on the planet-the ecology of the planet-very sick.” Then they go on making a point that the atmosphere and the ocean have a fever…heating up from the global warming. We are killing off animals all around the world all because of expansion of industries, companies, and cities. How, from polluting, taking over their habitat, and so on.
Eco-City is what people are doing now because they realize that we have been wrong and doing the wrong thing from the emissions of carbon dioxide from cars to allowing companies dump their waste in rivers-we can enforce regulations of the environment better if we tried. But we don’t!
Its buildings make best use of sun, wind, and rainfall to help supply the energy and water needs of occupants. Generally multistory to maximize the land available for green space.
Biodiversity
It is threaded with natural habitat corridors, to foster biodiversity and to give residents access to nature for recreation.
Transport
Its food and other goods are sourced from within its borders or from nearby, in order to cut down on transport costs. The majority of its residents live within walking or cycling distance of their workplace, to minimize the need for motorized transport. Frequent public transport connects local centers for people who need to travel further. Local car sharing allows people to use a car only when needed.
Industry
The goods it produces are designed for reuse, re-manufacture, and recycling. The industrial processes its uses involve reuse of by products, and minimize the movement of goods.
Energy
It reduces energy consumption through conservation, produces energy locally and sustainably through installation of renewable energy technology, and converts existing uses of fossil-fuel energy to renewable energy.
Economy
It has a labor intensive rather than a material, energy, and water intensive economy, to maintain full employment and minimize material throughput.
Emerging Threats
It will make development and land use decisions that prepare for climate change-related flooding, drought, disease, and other impacts from severe weather events, conserve energy and achieve carbon-neutrality, identify ways to reduce/eliminate nutrient loading to waterways, and conduct accurate and continual assessments of resource and infrastructure capacity when planning to ensure growth and development does not exceed capacity.
Sources
Image-http://www.arch.nus.edu.sg/staff_a/big.jpg
http://architecture.myninjaplease.com/wp-content/uploads/2007/05/foster_masdar_1.jpg
Eco-City Naturally Better Living
