Marina City Green Loop
While the world is looking for alternatives to fossil fuels, Algae is an unlimited source of energy, food, and most important, a remarkable natural CO2 absorber. Every industrial energy system inscribes its technological order into the urban fabric. Therefore, what shall be the shape and the fingerprint of the next ZERO CAR BON economy in the big cities? So, which spatial implications shall have Algae’s new technologies, and which potentials integrations could be imagine for Algae bioreactors in central urban areas? Re-use is by far the most sustainable option: that’s why the key issue is how anticipate Algae’s green future in the core of the major cities, transforming existing building, there where most of people live and where emissions of СО2 are the most important.
ALGAE IN CITY’S DOWNTOWN
Big cities around the world, like Chicago, are confronted by the same paradox in order to envision a livable future: supporting a bigger economic development while reducing the greenhouse gas emissions produced by this growth. In that way, the Chicago Central Area Action Plan (CAAP) seeks to ensure and expand the downtown role as the engine of the regional economy. The goals established in 2003 were met or exceeded in 2009 and residential growth has far surpassed expectations! By 2020, the Central Area will reach an average growth of 5.000 jobs/ year increasing in about 30% its residential population and according to CAAP; the downtown must improve its office growth by adding an annual average of 1.5 million sf. of office space!
We can see easily that if buildings account for nearly 70% of greenhouse gas emissions (old buildings contribute the most) it seems really hard to conciliate these development goals with those of the Chicago Climate Action Plan (2008) which seeks an 80 % reduction in GH-gas emissions from ‘90 levels by 2050. This situation reveals the enormous need to introduce a new sustainable model which allows benefic closed loops in terms of providing clean energy, reducing and absorbing СО2 emissions, and finally, allowing sustainable economic growth. The Introduction of the Algae green technology has a major role to play to achieve zero environmental footprint in the core of the city.
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Text by Mario CACERES , an architect, urban planner & Christian CANONICO , the architect-engineer (Influx_Studio)