Ecological Solutions to City Planning

City Planning

Vertical farming: 

Vertical farming combines a multitude of technologies such as biodomes/greenhouses, wastewater treatment on site, hydroponic gardening, composing, and many others, to create a closed loop, controlled growing environment for a city's food supply. By growing food in a vertical greenhouse the size of a small sky scraper, land use can be reduced dramatically, and pesticide and herbicide runoff into the natural systems can be eliminated completely. In addition, by producing food at the city center, transportation costs and carbon emissions can be reduced as well. Vertical farming also creates technology and horticulture jobs, and reduces reliance on large farming equipment and factories required to grow food in the currant agricultural system. These buildings can have beautifully elegant and aesthetic designs, and can become a social center in the city as well as a food producing powerhouse. Some designs incorporate on site restaurants and grocery stores at ground level, and some have microclimate plazas in their center, offering an oasis of green in the middle of a city of grey. The website below has explanatory videos and blogs, as well as promotion of the book, The Vertical Farm, which I read a few months ago and was greatly inspired by. 

verticalfarm.com

Wastewater/Stormwater Management:

Large cities such as Philadelphia, Seattle, Portland, and New York are embarking on a mission to reduce pressure on their wastewater and sewage treatment centers by installing numerous green projects throughout their infrastructure. Mimicking porous soils and wetlands, small projects such as depression swales, and larger projects like porous pavement streets, are preventing runoff by capturing rainwater event precipitation along its course through the city, instead of letting it flow rampant through the streets and end up overloading municipal systems. Other componenets include green roofing, rain barrels, tree trenches, and rain garden planters, using nature's need for water to remove it from the urban grid, slow flow rates, and clean it as well. The second link down leads to an article focused on PA's initiatives and projects, and includes financial estimates for implementing these designs in the next couple of decades. The first link is for a water filtration technology that uses the simple model of soil to cleanse wastewater before returning it to a groundwater system or surface waterway. Buildings can become closed loop systems by capturing rainfall, cleaning wastewater, and simply redirecting the clean water back into the building for secondary use.This technology can also be installed on a smaller scale at private homes for water treatment on site, instead of using energy to pump it off site and send it to a treatment facility before it can return to the natural environment. 

Biolytix water filters- biolytix.com

http://e360.yale.edu/feature/to_tackle_runoff_cities_turn_to_green_initiatives/2613/?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+YaleEnvironment360+%28Yale+Environment+360%29