globalbriefs
News and resources to inspire concerned citizens to work together in building a healthier, stronger society that benefits all.
Bunker Hunker Down is the New Up
Designer Matthew From- boluti, of Washington University, in St. Louis, Missouri, has turned conventional wisdom about modern construc- tion upside-down with his architectural design, Above/Below, submitted for the eVolo Skyscraper Competition. His un- derground skyscraper would theoretically fill a 900-foot-deep, 300-acre-
wide crater left by the Lavender Pit copper mine, in Bisbee, Arizona. A cone-shaped, inverted tower would allow people to live, work and even grow food in a huge cavern, covered by a dome. The building is designed to maintain a comfortable temperature via a passive climate-control system suited to the hot desert environment. A solar chimney provides natural ventilation as the sun heats the air at the surface, causing it to rise and draw cooler air up through vents at the bottom. The moving air passes through wind turbines at the top of the chimney, generating electricity.
Fromboluti’s aim is to atone for the mine’s destruction of the landscape by finding new ways to harvest the energy that went into excavating it, suggesting that no design should be considered “off the table” when planning for the future.
Source:
ForumForTheFuture.org
Trash Fashions The Rehabilitation of Plastic
The rap on most plastic is that al- though it can be recycled, it doesn’t decompose in landfills. For a period of time, the city of Houston halted its composting of household yard waste due to the cost of having to cut and empty the plastic bags used in curb- side pickup, even though the annual landfill fees exceeded $1 million. But now the service has resumed, based on the use of new, compostable plas- tic bags that require no special han- dling; the city even garners income from sales of composted clippings. Dinnerware, such as utensils, plates and cups, is another niche market in which advocates see potential for use of compostable plastics, especially by cafeterias, res- taurants and other institutions. Not only are such items not biodegrad- able, they often end up being thrown out with food waste.
Biodegradable polymers that break down in a matter of months are more expensive; for example, the BASF company’s Ecoflex ma- terial costs about two-and-a-half times more than the polyethylene it replaces. But proponents say that it provides value by enabling the large- scale collection of organic waste, such as grass clippings and food, and that the potential for growth is enormous.
Source: Chemical & Engineering News
20 Collier/Lee Counties
swfl.naturalawakeningsmag.com
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