Sustainable Materials - Part 2: Wool Bricks

Hey everyone!

After researching some sustianable materials for a project, I came across two interesting products, one was "Grasscrete" and the other was "Wool Bricks." In the last post i discussed GrassCrete, and now i will discussing Wool Bricks.

What are Wool Bricks?

• Researchers in Europe have been working together at the Schools of Architecture at the University of Seville in Spain and the University of Strathclyde in Glasgow, UK. 
• They have now created a new, environmentally friendly building material that is stronger than traditional bricks and also uses less energy to make.
• These bricks are reinforced by wool and seaweed, and were developed during a push by the two universities in Europe to create more of an environmentally friendly building material that would also mechanically improve upon more traditional ones.
• These bricks are a zero-carbon product and have a leg-up in the strength department.
• They are also locally-sourced. The clay-based soils were given by brick manufacturers in Scotland, while the wool was re-purposed from local textile suppliers -- resulting in a brick that is well-suited for a cold, damp climate. 

https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/10/101005085503.htm

http://inhabitat.com/researchers-develop-eco-super-bricks-made-of-wool/   

http://www.treehugger.com/green-architecture/wool-seaweed-makes-sustainable-brick-stronger.html  

Advantages of Wool Bricks

• "These fibres improve the strength of compressed bricks, reduce the formation of fissures and deformities as a result of contraction, reduce drying time and increase the bricks' resistance to flexion." 
• The bricks can be manufactured without firing, which helps save energy. “According to the authors: ‘This is a more sustainable and healthy alternative to conventional building materials such as baked earth bricks and concrete blocks.’”
• “Untreated clay was one of the earliest building materials to be used by humankind. The oldest examples of this can be found in houses in the Near East dating from between 11,000 and 12,000 years ago. Earthy material mixed with plants and pebbles to make them stronger has also been found in certain archaeological deposits from 1400 BCE in Sardinia (Italy).”

(https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/10/101005085503.htm ) 

Disadvantages of Wool Bricks

• The only disadvantage that I thought of would be the expense of shipping these eco-friendly bricks across the world. 
• Also, if builders do not use these bricks, it will bring the price up, and then more builders will be less likely to use them. Whereas, if more people use them, it could bring the price down substantially.

(http://www.associationofconstructionanddevelopment.org/articles/view.php?article_id=10814)

I think that Wool Bricks are definitely the brick of the future and all buildings should now be made with these strong and eco-friendly bricks. 

Sustainable Materials - Part 1: Grasscrete

Hey everyone!

After researching some sustianable materials for a project, I came across two interesting products, one was "Grasscrete" and the other was "Wool Bricks." For this post I will be talking about Grasscrete, and my next post will be about Wool Bricks. 

Grasscrete

What is Grasscrete?

Grasscrete is a type of concrete that infuses grass into it to create an open pattern of grass and concrete. This “helps to provide a benefit of reducing concrete usage overall, while also improving storm water absorption and drainage.” Grasscrete is “also massively used for projects in the water environment” such as reservoirs and storm/drainage channels.


 “Grasscrete is made by pouring concrete over ‘Formers’ which is a mold that leaves voids in the concrete [for the grass]. Grasscrete Formers come in two types. A re-usable plastic tool that is used only for fully grassed or concealed installations or the more common single-use Molded Pulp Former used for all Grasscrete types. The Molded Pulp is made up of 100% recycled paper sourced from both post industrial and post consumer waste streams.” ( http://inhabitat.com/11-green-building-materials-that-are-way-better-than-concrete/ )

A Cross-Section of Grasscrete

Advantages

• It is load bearing - up to 40 tonnes gross vehicle weight
• It resists differential settlement
• It reduces sub-base depths
• It eliminates curb edges
• No reliance on grass for stability 
• Optimal drainage capability

Disadvantages

• It is 30% more expensive than trusty old concrete.

Although being 30% more expensive might turn people away from buying grasscrete, using it “can eliminate or minimize the need for stormwater collection systems which may be a substantial savings.” 

( http://www.sustainablepavingsystems.com/faqs/what-is-the-installed-cost-for-grasscrete-vs-concrete/ )

Who sells Grasscrete? 

 A supplier of Grasscrete products is http://www.grasscrete.com/ . This company was formed in the United Kingdom in 1970, but they have international licensees and agents in over 25 different countries, including Canada, New Zealand, Spain and Turkey. They sell products for paving, grass roofing and walls.
They have many different products for paving, depending on what one might be looking for. These products include grassblock, grassroad, grasskerb, and of course grasscrete.
There are also many different types of wall products, depending on what one wants. These types include, Betoflor, Betoplus, Betoatlas, Leromur, Betotitan, and Binwall.


In my opinion I believe Grasscrete is an incredible product that should be used more often in construction.

Sustainability & Transportation

Hey everyone!

Today I will be discussing options for transportation that are greener options than your typical vehicle. Some options that people are most familiar with are: walking, cycling, public transportation, or car-pooling. But what some people fail to realize is that these are all great options, but sometimes just not realistic for everyone. especially those with big families. So what are some more realistic options? This is what I am going to look at in today's post.

Option 1: Hybrids

http://www.afdc.energy.gov/vehicles/how-do-hybrid-electric-cars-work

What are hybrid vehicles? Hybrid electric vehicles, also known as HEVs, are vehicles that "are powered by an internal combustion engine or other propulsion source that can be run on conventional or alternative fuel and an electric motor that uses energy stored in a battery." But what are the benefits of driving an HEV vehicle? "HEVs combine the benefits of high fuel economy and low emissions with the power and range of conventional vehicles."  From: http://www.afdc.energy.gov/vehicles/electric_basics_hev.html 

Option 2: Plug-In Hybrid Electric Vehicles

http://www.afdc.energy.gov/vehicles/how-do-plug-in-hybrid-electric-cars-work

"Plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEVs) use batteries to power an electric motor and use another fuel, such as gasoline or diesel, to power an internal combustion engine or other propulsion source. Using electricity from the grid to run the vehicle some or all of the time reduces operating costs and petroleum consumption, relative to conventional vehicles. PHEVs might also produce lower levels of emissions, depending on the electricity source." From: http://www.afdc.energy.gov/vehicles/electric_basics_phev.html 

Option 3: All-Electric Vehicles

http://www.afdc.energy.gov/vehicles/how-do-all-electric-cars-work

"All-electric vehicles (EVs) use a battery to store the electrical energy that powers the motor. EVs are sometimes referred to as battery electric vehicles (BEVs). EV batteries are charged by plugging the vehicle into an electric power source. Although most U.S. electricity production contributes to air pollution, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency categorizes all-electric vehicles as zero-emission vehicles because they produce no direct exhaust or emissions. Because EVs use no other fuel, widespread use of these vehicles could dramatically reduce petroleum consumption." From: http://www.afdc.energy.gov/vehicles/electric_basics_ev.html

So which one is truly better? In my opinion, anything that uses less fuel and reduces harmful emissions is better than your standard option. But, if you cannot afford to buy one of these three options, I urge you to use the options I listed at the beginning of this post to use as much as possible. I know that it's not always possible to car pool or walk places, or even take public transit, but the more we can reduce the number of cars on the road, the better it is for everyone and everything on this planet.

If you are interested in looking at what options that are out there currently, I recommend searching on this website: http://www.afdc.energy.gov/vehicles/search/ as it is a great resource for searching for whichever type of vehicle you are looking into buying.

Sustainable Shoes

Good morning!

After seeing a couple posts on Facebook about Eco-friendly shoes, I decided to do some more research on this topic of sustainability. While doing some research, I found an article on treehugger.com  titled: "9 brands that make ethical casual shoes and sneakers"

Now as someone who had never heard of Eco-friendly shoes, I was surprised to see that there was many more companies who specialized in sustainable footwear! I was even more surprised as to how nice they all looked! When i first came across the article, I thought it would be a bunch of websites, that had really ugly shoes, that not many people would actually want to wear. But, boy was I surprised to see all the fun styles and colours and materials that shoes could be made up of!

A shoe company that I thought was very interesting was the Indosole brand. They make shoes out of "natural materials like organic canvas, banana leaves, and grass... All materials are 100% vegan and handmade." (http://www.treehugger.com/slideshows/sustainable-fashion/9-brands-make-ethical-casual-shoes-and-sneakers/page/5/#slide-top)

Here are 2 pictures of Indosole Shoes

This is the Women's Kelapa Shoe:

https://indosole.com/collections/womens/products/kelapa-shoes?color=trails-emerald-black 

This is the Men's Prahu Boat Shoe:

https://indosole.com/collections/mens/products/prahu-boat-shoes 

After looking at all these cool shoes, I may just have to buy a pair and see how comfortable they are!

Evergreen Brickworks Field Trip

Hey everyone!

Last week, my class and I visited Evergreen Brickworks in Toronto, Ontario. Evergreen Brickworks is an old brick making factory that has been turned into a beautiful green space. Not only has Evergreen reused an old, historic building, but the building also has a LEED Platinum Certification. But, what does that mean? What is LEED? LEED stands for Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design and is a "rating system that is recognized as the international mark of excellence for green building in 150 countries." Received from http://www.cagbc.org/CAGBC/LEED/CAGBC/Programs/LEED/Going_green_with_LEE.aspx?hkey=54c44792-442b-450a-a286-4aa710bf5c64

In simpler terms, LEED is an organization recognized to certify buildings  that must have met certain criteria. To become LEED certified, a building is reviewed under several ‘credit categories.’ These include: location/transportation, water efficiency, energy and atmosphere, materials and resources, indoor environmental quality, innovation and regional priority. Each of these categories is divided up into several design requirements. If these requirements are reached, then the building gets a certain number of ‘points’ on a ‘checklist’. Depending on the number of points the building achieves, then they may get a certain certificate saying they are LEED certified. The four certifications a building may receive are ‘LEED certified’, LEED Silver, LEED Gold or LEED Platinum. 

(Different building types have their own set of LEED rating guidelines and checklists under the new LEED v4, including ‘Building Design and Construction’ (BD and C), ‘Interior Design and Construction’ (ID and C), ‘Building Operations and Maintenance’ (O and M), ‘Neighborhood Development’ (ND), and ‘Homes and Midrise’.)

Therefore, Evergreen Brickworks has the highest LEED Certification available.

The History of Evergreen Brickworks - https://www.evergreen.ca/

In 1889, William Taylor and his two brothers opened "Don Valley Brick Works" and in 1901 they sold the factory to their brother-in-law Robert Davies. In 1904, "The Great Fire" destroyed most of the downtown core, which resulted in new by-laws requiring masonry construction for most buildings, creating more business for the factory. In 1984 the factory closed and was left to sit there while people used the abandoned factory as a playground for urban explorers, partiers and photographers. That is until 1991, when Evergreen began to lead tree-planting activities in the Lower Don Watershed and a year later in 1992, the first phase of park development was undertaken with the support of from the City, TRCA, as well as a significant private donation by the Weston Foundation. In 2002, Evergreen began to explore the ideas that are now taking physical shape as this new environmental centre. And in 2006, the first Evergreen Brick Works farmers’ market and summer programming opened for the public. Two years later, in 2008, ground-breaking was celebrated and construction began.

Now, Evergreen Brickworks is a thriving place for those in the Greater Toronto Area to get away from the city and enjoy nature at its finest. It is home to the Evergreen Garden Market, The Tiffany Commons, Sweet Pete's Bike Shop, The Children's Garden in Chimney Court, Koerner Gardens, Weston Family Quarry Garden & Don Valley Brick Works Park and much more.

The Tunnels where the bricks would pass through

Art

More art.

The VERY LARGE Rain Barrels

 The rest of the pictures are just scenic pictures that I took

TED Talk by Nicolas Duval: Architecture is in Crisis and sustainable design

Good afternoon everyone!

Here is a video on sustainability that I found.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K2EXsoiZ-To 

Hope you enjoy the video!

Urban Sprawl

Hey there!

Today I am going to be discussing "urban sprawl." During my class today we had 2.5 hours to research urban sprawl and come up with our own conclusions on whether it was good or bad. (This is the same information as was in my PowerPoint)

This post will include: what it is, causes, the pros and cons, solutions, how it affects interior designers, and whether or not I think it is good or bad.

What is Urban Sprawl?

• “the spreading of urban developments (as houses and shopping centers) on undeveloped land near a city” (http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/urban%20sprawl)
• “the migration of a population from populated towns and cities to low density residential development over more and more rural land.” (http://www.conserve-energy-future.com/causes-and-effects-of-urban-sprawl.php) 
• Therefore, urban sprawl is, in my opinion, the spread a populated town or city by developing rural towns and cities.

The 4 Main Causes of Urban Sprawl

Governments

“The increase in demand for housing farther from inner cities is partly due to mistaken government policies.” (http://www.ncpa.org/pub/ba459) Zoning Restrictions will often result in sprawl because of the high- density of residential construction and the use of large parking lots for commercial use.

Population Growth

“A sharp increase in residents beyond the capacity of nearby urban centers necessitates the creation of new communities. As the regional population continues to increase, communities begin to spread farther and farther away from city centers.”  (http://homeguides.sfgate.com/causes-urban-sprawl-2577.html)

The Demands of People 

“Economists Edward Glaeser and Matthew Kahn (2003) have shown that even in the absence of any government policies that encourage sprawl, low-density suburban communities still would [multiply] because many prefer living in areas with less traffic congestion, larger lot sizes and cheaper housing costs.” (http://www.ncpa.org/pub/ba459)

Lack of Planning

“If officials in densely populated urban centers plan in isolation without consulting nearby communities, the result is sometimes poorly planned developments on the outskirts of urban centers.” (http://homeguides.sfgate.com/causes-urban-sprawl-2577.html)

 

Pros & Cons of Urban Sprawl:

Pros:

- Less crowded cities because people can more easily spread out

- Affordability - houses are less expensive in towns compared to tiny condos in big cities (in regards to square footage)

- Creates more jobs by providing different types of buildings for different people to design/build/ furnish/live in/work in etc.

Cons: 

- More pollution because of vehicle transportation from one end of a city to another

- Destroying undeveloped land that houses farms and different wildlife habitats

- Higher taxes because the more dispersed land we have, the more government land (i.e. government offices) we need. 

 

Solutions: 

1. An expanded green belt 

“The forested area of the Greenbelt alone can offset the equivalent of 27 million cars driven over one year.” (http://www.greenbelt.ca/about_the_greenbelt)

“More than 90% of Ontarians agree that the Greenbelt is one of the most important contributions to the future of the province.” (http://www.greenbelt.ca/about_the_greenbelt)

2. Implementing “planned development” 

“This takes into account all the needs and potential problems of a given area before the sprawl occurs.” (http://peopleof.oureverydaylife.com/urban-sprawl-pros-vs-cons-11334.html)

3. Support locally owned business to reduce pollution

“On average, food travels 2500 km before it reaches our plates. Greenbelt-grown food travels less than 250km” (http://www.greenbelt.ca/about_the_greenbelt)

4. Revive currently existing abandoned spaces

In my hometown of Dundas, they took the old Dundas District High School - originally built in 1929 - and re-purposed it into 44 unique loft-style condos. The part I really like is that they kept the exterior and only fixed windows and the brick work, but kept the old-school charm. They even kept the 2 different entrances (one for the boys, and one for the girls – See picture below) 

(https://dundaslofts.nexusonline.ca/)

5. Add more green space

“In a study at the University of Exeter Medical School in England, published in January in the journal Environmental Science & Technology, researchers used data from a British household survey to conclude that people who moved to areas with lots of green space had better mental health overall, compared with those who moved to neighborhoods with less greenery.” (http://nationswell.com/5-ways-to-fix-urban-sprawl/)

 

How does Urban Sprawl Affect Interior Designers?

         Urban Sprawl affects interior designers both positively and negatively. 

Positive Affects: 

1. We have to be more creative in our designs. We also have to be more aware of sustainability and how it affects the land and the people using the land. 

2. We have to think about how we can reuse products in a creative way

Negative Affects: 

We have less space to work with when designing a building as governments are trying to cut down on urban sprawl. Which results in building vertical and not horizontal. This results in lack of “building uniqueness,” especially in residential design. 

We have a bigger area where we could be working, which means more commuting to different areas of the city, resulting in more pollution. 

(http://www.useful-community-development.org/effects-of-urban-sprawl.html)

 

(https://sourceable.net/wp-content/uploads/2013/11/Urban-sprawl-Infographic.jpg)

 

My Thoughts on Urban Sprawl: 

Urban sprawl is damaging the future of our planet and our health. It is not only causing us to plough over farm country, but also causing people to commute farther and farther to and from work. Thus causing the air we breathe to be contaminated by pollutants from vehicles. And by getting rid of natural land, it is becoming harder and harder for the vegetation to get rid of these pollutants and give us clean air. As a result, causing us to acquire negative health outcomes. It also is forcing us to eat less locally grown food and more processed food, or food that has been on a vehicle for who knows how long. It is getting harder and harder to find local food for a decent price which means those living on a strict budget are forced to eat food that is not as healthy for them.

We need to take back our land that has been taken away from us by the large, consumer-driven companies. Once we are able to do this, we will be able to live a happier, healthier life for our generation, and the generations after us.