- Questions to answer:
A. Description of the diversification of “greener” building types This new addition to lower Manhattan would include large office buildings. These buildings can be powered in a different way than the rest. We can use residue cooking oils such as vegetable oils to power the buildings. This oil would give off CO2 as the main product. The rest of the products can be filtered out and disposed of safely to conserve the environment. These Office buildings can have a green space (full of different plants and flowers) where this CO2 would be transported to [CO2 offset]. The flora in this place would absorb the CO2 to make oxygen. This green space would not only help with the production of oxygen but it is scientifically proven that green spaces help protect mental health including helping recover from stress faster and boosting employee productivity. This way, this office building becomes more environmentally friendly and is a safer and happier place for employees. Diversifying the energy sources can also mean that the new development would be economically diverse in terms of house pricing. One way to diversify energy sources would be through solar panels attached to the roof. The initial costs of the solar panels would be high but in the long term, the electricity cost would diminish and that would make the building much more attractive for renters. There can be energy storage present in the building itself that can cover up the energy requirements on the days that it is not sunny or pull power from the NYC power grid that would use more hydropower to generate electricity, which could fill the gap. This still would result in a lower rent than with traditional fossil fuel energy sources making it more accessible to families with a lower socioeconomic background to rent in that area. Not only this, the solar panels can act as reflective surfaces for the sun which would help stabilize temperature and create less of a need for heating or cooling the building, thus conserving energy. The extension of lower Manhattan expands the area where hydropower could be established. This plan includes built-in green strips (marshland) on the border of extended manhattan. After these green strips, there could be hydropower plants put in place to supply this new area. This hydropower should be placed after the marshlands since they would decrease wave energy. Another way to add to the deficiencies of energy in the buildings would be by converting kinetic energy into electricity. There are multiple ways this could be done in these buildings. One of them would be the gyms in the residential buildings. There could be hydro-cycles that would create electricity as the person is cycling. Another way could be by attaching converters onto the machines that any time any force is applied to them, they convert that into electrical energy. Also, these buildings could include the kinetic energy tiles that convert kinetic energy into electric energy as a person is walking on them. Even though the tiles are at approximately 500 dollars a tile, the price is continuously dropping as the manufacturing process is being made more efficient. The cost can also be justified with the lowered energy costs in the future (The Switch).
B. What kind of technology should be considered to be included to make the buildings more energy efficient There are different forms of insulation and technology that can be used to make a building more energy-efficient. One way that the building loses heat or welcomes heat is through windows and doors opening. This can be negated through air curtains installed over doors and windows. These air curtains help with heat retention that will stabilize the inner temperature. In the long term, there will be less energy needed to cool or heat a place even if doors and windows are opened. If these air curtains are too expensive to put over all windows, there can be a reduction of windows that can open designs into the building plans. Another way to increase sustainable insulation is by using Cellulose insulation. This insulation is made from recycled paper and cardboard which makes it more environmentally friendly. This insulation is also cost-effective, making the cost of building lower, hence the cost of renting or buying the building lower. Another way to insulate would be to use spray foam insulation. This type of insulation expands after being applied, filling every crevice and hole in the wall, improving insulation. Though this type of insulation is not as cost-effective or environmentally friendly as cellulose insulation. All of this insulation helps negate the energy consumption by making heat retention increase. This helps in the amount of energy consumed and the cost of it. Builders can use different types of windows to make them cost-efficient, sustainable, and energy-efficient. One way is to use aluminum windows. Firstly, aluminum is a recyclable material so builders can use recycled aluminum for it to be cost-efficient and sustainable. Another way is to use triple pane glass windows. These windows would make it so that there would be less heat transferred into the buildings which would make them more energy efficient. Even though these are more costly, they increase the value of the space and also they make the space more energy-efficient making electricity cost less. Low emissivity windows are also an option to be included. These windows are also known as E windows and have a coating applied to them that differs from region to region. It was originally designed to keep infrared light in for colder climates but now the coating is altered so that it can work in a different variety of climates. It is also cost-efficient which helps lower the cost of building. Open floor plans are a great way to make a space more energy efficient. The first reason would be that it allows for natural light. In closed floor plans, some rooms lack windows or walls block sunlight from entering certain areas. This creates a need to use lights which can be prevented with an open floor plan. Another reason is that open floor plans make it easier to live in smaller spaces. Contrasting to living in a small apartment with a closed floor plan, open floor plans can make rooms feel much more spacious. Also, the size of these open floor plan homes needs to be reduced since smaller homes require less energy for heating, cooling, and lighting. The smaller homes would also allow for more housing that is not as expensive. There can also be shared appliances and spaces that multiple units utilize as one, concentrating and reducing the energy needed for multiple appliance hubs. It could also increase the use and space for recreational areas. Thermal Mass is important because the use of materials can contain heat or release it. For example, stone floors and concrete walls absorb heat when the building warms up, and give off heat when a building cools down. However, concrete is an industrial source of pollution and can be damaging to topsoil, so instead, we would propose hempcrete. Hempcrete would allow for thermal and acoustic insulation between the walls of apartments and it has a bunch of environmental benefits because it is non-toxic and allows for carbon sequestration. It would also be useful to have overhangs for windows that would shield them from the sun which further helps the living space from cooling down. The windows hangings can also act as reflectors that would help increase the heat retention of the place. Green roofs are a great option for making the buildings more energy efficient. One way to do that is to implement urban agriculture. Rooftop farming has many benefits such as reducing heat, reducing CO2 emissions, creating less transportation, and bringing fresher food to the people that live around there. Another aspect of green roofs is covering the roods without urban farms with a reflective material. This reflective material has to be carefully placed so it does not blind the aircraft pilots that might be flying over the city. These materials will help keep the building cool which would lower the cost of electricity since it would diminish the amount of energy used in cooling the building. Non-toxic, eco friendly, and sustainable materials High-efficiency LED lighting is important to make a building more energy efficient because they are up to 80% more efficient than fluorescent and incandescent light bulbs. They are energy efficient, produce zero toxic elements, and have a longer life span. By controlling the settings of these light bulbs, we can make the lights dimmable, and conserve even more energy. Occupancy sensors for fans, air conditioning, heating, and lighting. By limiting the uses of these appliances to only when humans need them, energy is conserved. Water Usage is important for both energy and water consumption as a whole. Rainwater can be collected from the roof and stored underground for building usage. Water in toilets can be sourced from rainwater as a non-potable source. There is also the possibility of treating rainwater underground so it becomes potable for residents. Water can be heated by solar-thermal energy and ground-source heat pumps, and low-flush toilets can be implemented to ensure less water and energy are wasted.
C. How to reduce these buildings from climate and energy shocks
One of the ways that we can reduce these buildings from climate and energy shocks on a large scale is by creating a strong building code. Ours would hope to model that of California, which can grow and develop. As technology changes, the building code will be able to grow alongside it. This will also allow for any unseen consequences of our solutions to be mitigated through a new building code.
Additionally, we can conserve power in the energy grid. 40% of energy in buildings is wasted, so buildings will store energy that isn’t used during the day. One way of implementing this system is through a pumped-storage hydropower system. This is when water is pumped to a higher elevation for storage during low-cost energy periods and high renewable energy generation periods; since the new land area will be elevated to mitigate extreme weather event impacts, we could use this elevation to power the conservation of energy. Additionally, this system could be considered for individual buildings. If individual buildings can use their elevation to store energy with the collection of rainwater, this could lead to more energy storage and less waste. Another form of energy conservation to consider is to use of battery energy storage. Lithium-ion batteries store energy for up to four hours, which could account for energy fluctuations throughout the day in individual buildings. Also, lithium-ion batteries have high energy density and are lightweight. Innovations, such as replacing graphite with silicon to increase the battery’s power capacity, are seeking to make lithium-ion batteries even more competitive for longer-term storage. This way, stored energy wouldn’t be fully reliant on the grid.
The building’s energy consumption would also be prioritized to ensure that more efficient processes are used first. On every roof, there will be solar panels. Solar energy will be the energy first consumed, and following that, different sustainable resources, such as hydropower would be consumed. Lastly, as aforementioned, we could use wasted and recycled oil in larger buildings, which will compensate for the emitted CO2 through the energy reduction systems.
Another way to combat climate shocks included in the plan is the green strip surrounding the extension. The green strips would be marshland. Marshland is known to reduce the size and energy of waves which would protect NYC from natural disasters such as hurricane Sandy. Another part of the plan is raising all of the buildings and structures 13-15 feet. This would help combat flooding that could take place from heavy rainfall or other climate events.
D. Consideration of unintentional consequences that could arise from implementing this plan Implementing this plan for the construction of green buildings off of an extended portion of Manhattan could lead to a disruption of aquatic ecosystems in the NYC-NJ harbor and an increase in housing prices. Over the last few years, New York harbors have been recovering from the pollution that was introduced to them. This has come from a multitude of sources, including the combined sewage overflow system. In this new portion of the island, we will not be implementing this faulted system. However, if the new land is filled over with sand, rocks, and waste, then all of the aquatic systems of reefs and more aquatic plants will be lost, leading to a decrease in biodiversity. Even more, this ecological system has been recovering from efforts such as The Billion Oyster project, but will not be allowed a chance to recover. House prices will increase dramatically for buildings on this new land. One of the main price point factors for buildings in NYC is access to water views. Therefore, it will be difficult to promote a diverse group of buyers if the prices are only affordable to wealthier people. Additionally, the houses are expensive because of supply vs. demand; there are more buyers than houses available, so even though this has the capacity to add 180 thousand new units, realistically they will not be as affordable as claimed due to increased demand. Still, this expansion will provide more homes, which could diminish the supply vs. demand in small or big ways depending on the market at the time.
- Questions to consider:
A. What do you mean by a "green" building? There are some non-negotiable qualities that buildings should have and then some qualities that depend on circumstance. A non-negotiable quality is these buildings have to be environmentally conscious. There have to be qualities that make the building energy-efficient and that energy is cost-efficient. There also has to be some time of greenery contributing to the reduction of CO2 in the atmosphere. There also has to be some approach to net-zero in these buildings including environmentally friendly materials and technology not limited to renewable sources of energy.
B. What would the orientations of the buildings be? Can buildings be constructed to face the sun in a more desirable and energy-efficient way? Considering efficient lighting - how much natural vs. artificial The windows face the position where the sun is the most intense, although, in NYC, the windows will encompass the surface area of the building to ensure maximum light. This will provide a lot of natural lighting with open floor plan apartments (which are optimal anyway for the little space in NYC). Floor-to-ceiling windows, as well as energy-efficient windows, will help maintain the heat in the apartments or reflect it based on the season.
C. What are your proposed material choices for constructing the buildings? Are there certain materials that leverage technological and scientific advancement to be more weather resilient? LED lights Rainwater capture is a good way through which many environmentally friendly things can be produced. Rainwater can be used for non-potable water such as toilet flushes, watering plants, washing clothes, and more. Rainwater capture can also avoid the risk of flooding since the rainwater is being stored rather than collected on the streets. Also, rainwater captures can contribute to the electrical storage method of pumped electricity which can act as storing electricity for future uses. One of the problems of HVAC is that if one system is used for a large area, it takes a lot more energy to keep that area stable. Especially since highrise buildings are on different levels, the heat rises which makes a different temperature on each floor. Having individual HVAC systems can keep each floor at a stable temperature which improves the quality of life for people living there and it can use less energy since there is a system for each floor where not a lot of energy is used for one HVAC system heating everything. If we use concrete and stones made from recycled materials it will help reuse something that would otherwise create land pollution. As well as the fact that they have a low cost of maintenance and a long life cycle contributes to their durability. Windows with low-emission glazing help minimize interior solar heat gain and glare.
D. Consider the Building Envelope: Locating fixed elements like stairs, mechanical systems, and restrooms at the building’s core creates a flexible and open perimeter.
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