Sustainable Neighborhood "Eco-blocks" in China
Qingdao Sustainable Neighborhood Demonstration Project
The Qingdao Sustainable Neighborhood Project (QSNP) is an alternative to China’s typical “gated super block” development model. The “gated super blocks” are dependent on expensive central infrastructure support in the form of electric power plant generation and distribution, sewage collection and treatment, water treatment and distribution, and waste collection and disposal. The “gated super block” model is also dependent on the car as the primary mode of transportation. China is currently hard pressed to satisfy the infrastructure demands of the super block model. By contrast, the QSNP, the Qingdao EcoBlock, uses an integrated whole-systems approach to generate all
its energy from on-site renewables, to recycle all of its water and to recycle over 80% of its waste for onsite
uses. In addition, the EcoBlock is designed to provide convenient pedestrian and bike access to a new
bus rapid transit system located on a major adjoining arterial. The EcoBlock’s whole-systems approach is
flexible and adaptable to multiple local conditions and climates and is widely replicable throughout
China. The integrated approach to energy begins with multiple strategies of conservation (insulation, passive solar heating, shading, natural ventilation, daylighting and energy efficient lighting, appliances and controls) which reduce the energy demand by 40%. The remainder of the load is provided by: 1) building-integrated, vertical axis wind machines on the tops of the tall buildings (50%), 2) building integrated photo voltaic panels on the roofs and as shading devices (35%), 3) building integrated solar domestic hot water panels (5%), and 4) a 2-phase anaerobic biogas digester which powers back-up electric turbines (10%). The digester uses food waste (garbage), green waste from the landscape and sewage sludge from primary sewage treatment as the biomass supply. The water recycling is a dual system - 50% gray water, 50% potable water. Potable water from sinks and showers, gray water from washing machines and black water from toilets is collected in a primary treatment-settling tank. The sludge is pumped to the biogas digester. The remaining effluent is distributed to secondary treatment via constructed wetlands (or “living machines”). 50% of the secondary treated water is collected and recycled for gray water supply to toilets and washing machines. The other 50% is combined with collected rainwater, receives tertiary treatment through reverse osmosis and ultra violet disinfection and is then recycled as potable water for sinks and showers. Storm water is treated on site in “bio-swales”, collected and recycled for landscape irrigation. Waste collection is accomplished by a neighborhood vacuum system which draws the different waste streams to a central plant for processing and recycling. The garbage and green wastes go to the biogas digester to be converted to energy. Metal, glass and plastics are processed for recycling. The vacuum system has been successful in multiple applications around the world (including China) and avoids the environmental problems of on site garbage collection.
The integrated, whole-systems approach is made of proven existing technologies. The innovation lies in how the systems work together. The sustainable systems add 5-10% to the cost of typical development and have a 6-10 year payback, depending on the policy regulations of the city. The concept has the potential to be a profitable business opportunity for the developer who is also the property manager. While the systems do not depend on any change in homeowner operation and maintenance, the systems give the homeowner a more environmentally responsive home to operate to their advantage, if they wish. If the Qingdao EcoBlock’s whole-systems approach works as well as the pre- feasibility study indicates, it will be the first (almost) self- sustaining neighborhood in the world and could help lead China to a more sustainable future.
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