ECO CITY, located in Hamburg-Harburg Harbour in Germany, just may be one of the planet’s greenest developments. Swiss-based design firm Tec Architecture and American ARUP Engineering Company (who designed the Sydney Opera House structure and worked on the Centre Pompidou, Paris) have teamed up to create a ten structure sustainable environment that mixes various industry types and eco-friendly businesses in one large area, ranging from studios to large warehouse and production facilities, creating an eco-city within a city.
ECO CITY has wind turbines mounted atop high-rise towers to provide an estimated 10% of the project’s power and solar water heating to offset the use of natural gas. Site lighting will be powered by solar technology. Green roofs are used to minimize water runoff and significantly reduce the heating effect of ECO CITY. In addition to roof gardens, more than half the site will be covered with vertical gardens, further minimizing the development’s carbon footprint and maximizing leisure space.
ECO CITY is one of very few projects in the world designed to achieve a green rating from the three major green building rating systems on the planet: USGBC’s Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) Program, the Building Research Establishment Environmental Assessment Method (BREEAM), and the German Sustainable Building Council (DGNB)’s Program. Currently, ECO CITY is seeking the highest level of environmental certification from all three programs.
The project is currently underway.
Resources
ECO CITY: http://www.ecocity.de/en/
Tec Architecture: www.tecarchitecture.com
ARUP: www.arup.com
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