Sustainable Building at GreenLagoon

Green building Policies at GreenLagoon Enterprise

This presentation is about Green Building Policies at GreenLagoon Development by Henry A Villegas, MD 

GreenLagoon Bungalows' Efficient Toilets and Renewable Bamboo Walls & Ceiling 

Green building at GreenLagoon (also known as green construction or sustainable building) refers to a structure and using process that is environmentally responsible and resource-efficient throughout a building's life-cycle: from building site to design, construction, operation, maintenance, renovation, and demolition. This practice expands and complements the classical building design concerns of economy, utility, durability, and comfort. 

New technologies are constantly being developed to complement current practices in creating greener structures. The main objective of GreenLagoon is to use green buildings, which are designed to reduce the overall impact of construction on human health and the natural environment by: 

• Efficiently using energy, water, and other resources
• Protecting occupant health and improving employee productivity
• Reducing waste, pollution and environmental degradation

Similar concepts at GreenLagoon are

 Natural Building: Involves using a range of building systems and materials that place major emphasis on sustainability.

• GreenLagoon focuses on the use of natural materials that are available locally. For example, we use bamboo materials abundantly found by Lake Arenal
• Natural building tends to rely on human labor, more than technology.
• It depends on local ecology, geology and climate; on the character, manpower & resources and convictions of its Owner & Associates; on the building site and on the needs and personalities of its users. This is why GreenLagoon is a Special Place by Special People for Special Guests & Visitors.
• GreenLagoon aims to satisfy its need and to lessen the environmental impact of buildings and other supporting systems, without sacrificing comfort, health or aesthetics.
• To be more sustainable, GreenLagoon uses primarily abundantly available, renewable, reused or recycled materials (Renewable Woods, Plastic Wood, and Plastic Roof Tile).
• We also strive to use rapidly renewable materials such as bamboo, pine wood, and teca wood
• Building compactly and minimizing the ecological footprint is common at GreenLagoon. We provide waste bins throughout the land, we have on-site handling of energy acquisition (Hydroelectric Energy Source), on-site water capture (Rio Fortuna Springs), as well as alternate sewage treatment and water reuse (Recycling of Water to be used in the Hydroelectric Plant and Nursery).

 Sustainable Design & Architecture: GreenLagoon defines Sustainability as; meeting the needs of present generations without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their needs. Green building does not specifically address the issue of the retrofitting existing old buildings, but we are re-defining sustainable designs to adjust to this principle.

 We understand that instead of cutting trees, we need to reforest them. Based on this principle, GreenLagoon has planted nearly 15,000 trees in the past 10 years in its land.

• GreenLagoon's Design & Architecture evolved around the wise use of natural resources, such as Wind, Light, Renewable Resources and Green Energy, which are freely available in our land and provided by nature.
• In addition to relying on natural building materials, GreenLagoon emphasizes on the architectural design. The orientation of a building, the utilization of local climate and site conditions, the natural ventilation through design, fundamentally lessen operational costs and positively impact the environmental.
• A 2009 report by the U.S. General Services Administration found that 12 sustainably designed buildings cost less to operate than one average building due to excellent energy performance. In addition, occupants were more satisfied with the overall building than those in typical commercial buildings.
• We even landscape design our gardens at GreenLagoon to minimize the human foot print in the environment.

 Environmental Degradation

Eighty-plus years after the abandonment of Wallaroo Mines (Kadina, South Australia), mosses remain the only vegetation at some spots of the site's grounds. At GreenLagoon we do not want this attrocity to become our environment.

 Environmental degradation is the deterioration of the environment through depletion of resources such as air, water and soil, the destruction of ecosystems and the extinction of wildlife. It is defined as any change or disturbance to the environment perceived to be deleterious or undesirable. Environmental degradation is one of the Ten Threats officially cautioned by the High Level Threat Panel of the United Nations. For further study, the World Resources Institute (WRI), UNEP (the United Nations Environment Programme), UNDP (the United Nations Development Programme) and the World Bank made public an important worldwide report on health and the environment on May 1, 1998.

 Environment and Health goes together. Our health depends on a good environment. Please refer to our web site's section on WellnessMD Institute as well as our Wellness & Wilderness Destination for Travel Medicine, The School of SustainEco Internship and our TreeLand Farms sections.

 The United Nations International Strategy for Disaster Reduction defines environmental degradation as "The reduction of the capacity of the environment to meet social and ecological objectives, and needs." When natural habitats are destroyed or natural resources are depleted, environment is degraded. GreenLagoon is making "Environmental Degradation Education" a top priority by thoroughly educating our staff and visitors.

 Environmental Change and Human Health, a special section of World Resources 1998-99 in this report describes how preventable illnesses and premature deaths are still occurring in very large numbers. If vast improvements are made in human health, millions of people will be living longer, healthier lives than ever before. In these poorest regions of the world an estimated 11 million children, or about one in five, will not live to see their fifth birthday, primarily because of environment-related diseases. Child mortality is larger than the combined populations of Norway and Switzerland, and are mostly due to malaria, acute respiratory infections or diarrhea — illnesses that are largely preventable.

 Please refer to our section "El Escondido Organic & Biological Gardens", under Sustainability to learn about a healthy concept of Thriving Environments, Organic Food, Medicinal Gardens, and Wildlife Preserve. Here we are exposing a model of healthy environments, where both, Humankind and Wildlife are living together in harmony and respecting each other's territories, while Humankind is protecting all natural resources in a Sustainable & Responsible way.

 

Natural materials used at GreenLagoon

 A natural material is any product or physical matter that comes from plants, animals, or the ground. Minerals and the metals that can be extracted from them (without further modification) also belong to this category.

 1. Biotic materials

 Wood (rattan, bamboo, bark etc.)

• Natural fibers (wool, cotton, flax, hemp, jute, kapok, kenaf, moss, etc.)

 2. Inorganic material

 Stone (flint, granite, obsidian, sandstone, sand, gems, glass, etc.)

• Metal (copper, bronze, iron, gold, silver, steel, etc.)
• Composites (clay, porcelain, plasticine, etc.)

 Other natural materials.

• Soil

 

Applications of Sustainable Building to GreenLagoon Development of

• EcoLodge, Park & Gardens
• he Falls Villas, Shoppes & Clinics
• The Springs Villas
• Casa del Lago Home

 

Applications of this philosophy range from the microcosm — small objects for everyday use, through the macrocosm — Community Development, and the Earth's physical surface. It is a philosophy that can be applied in the fields of architecture, landscape architecture, urban design, urban planning, engineering, graphic design, industrial design, interior design, and fashion design. Sustainable design at GreenLagoon is mostly a general reaction to global environmental crises, the rapid growth of economic activity and human population, depletion of natural resources, damage to ecosystems, and loss of biodiversity. We have to do something to reverse this trend.

 Sustainable Design Principles & Culture of GreenLagoon Development

 While the practical application varies among disciplines and departments within the company, some common principles are as follows: 

• Little energy to process
• Low-impact materials: choose non-toxic, sustainably produced or recycled materials which require energy efficiency (meaning they use manufacturing processes and produce products which require less energy)
• Quality and durability: longer-lasting and better-functioning products will have to be replaced less frequently, reducing the impacts of producing replacements
• Design for reuse and recycling: "Products, processes, and systems should be designed for performance in a commercial 'afterlife'."
• Sustainable Design Standards and project design guides are also increasingly available and are vigorously being developed by a wide array of private organizations and individuals. There is also a large body of new methods emerging from the rapid development of what has become known as 'sustainability science' promoted by a wide variety of educational and governmental institutions.
• Biomimicry: "redesigning industrial systems on biological lines ... enabling the constant reuse of materials in continuous closed cycles..."
• Service substitution: shifting the mode of consumption from personal ownership of products to provision of services which provide similar functions, e.g., from a private automobile to a car sharing service. Such a system promotes minimal resource use per unit of consumption (e.g., per trip driven).
• Renewability: materials should come from nearby (local or bioregional), sustainably managed renewable sources that can be composted when their usefulness has been exhausted.
• Robust eco-design: robust design principles are applied to the design of a pollution source.
• Cohousing community Enhancing Green Space Preservation, Natural Landscapes Surrounding Tightly clustered housing, Clinics, Shops, all within walking distance.
• Minimize parking spacing, to encourage a low Carbon Emissions & Bicycle Culture.
• GreenLagoon plans to achieve a sustainable development by using various design principles and techniques when designing the infrastructure of GreenLagoon Enterprise Community. These include Smart Growth theory, Transit-oriented development, sustainable urban infrastructure and New Urbanism.
• Smart Growth is an urban planning and transportation theory that concentrates growth in infill sites within the existing infrastructure of a city or town to avoid urban sprawl; and advocates compact, transit-oriented development, walk-able, bicycle-friendly land use, including mixed-use development with a range of housing choices.
• Transit-oriented development attempts to maximize access to public transport and thereby reduce the need for private vehicles.
• Sustainable Urban Infrastructure. Public transport is considered a form of sustainable urban infrastructure, which is a design approach which promotes protected areas, energy-efficient buildings, wildlife corridors and distributed, rather than centralized, power generation and waste water treatment. The GreenLagoon Communities have access to public transportations and are located near the Cerro Chato Biological Wildlife Corridor as well as Protected areas, such as The Fortuna Waterfall Community Project.
• New Urbanism is more of a social and aesthetic urban design movement than a green one, but it does emphasize diversity of land use and population, as well as walk-able communities which inherently reduce the need for automotive travel. Clinics, Commerce, Shops, as well as The Cerro Chato ANC Park & Gardens for Wellness Walks, are designed within walking distance
• Both urban and rural planning can benefit from including sustainability as a central criterion when laying out roads, streets, buildings and other components of the built environment. Conventional planning practices often ignore or discount the natural configuration of the land during the planning stages, potentially causing ecological damage such as the stagnation of streams, mudslides, soil erosion, flooding and pollution. Applying methods such as scientific modeling to planned building projects can draw attention to problems before construction begins, helping to minimize damage to the natural environment.
• Cohousing is an approach to planning based on the idea of intentional communities. Such projects often prioritize common space over private space resulting in grouped structures that preserve more of the surrounding environment. That is the case or our clubhouse, Gardens, Nature Area, Play Grounds, Clinics, Shops and nearby Cerro Chato ANC Park & Gardens, The Waterfall.
• Watershed assessment of carrying capacity; estuary, riparian zone restoration and groundwater recharge for hydrologic cycle viability; and other opportunities and issues about Water and the environment show that the foundation of smart growth lies in the protection and preservation of water resources. The total amount of precipitation landing on the surface of a community becomes the supply for the inhabitants. This supply amount then dictates the carrying capacity - the potential population - as supported by the "water crop."

 

Waste Prevention 

• The only way to avoid environmental harm from waste is to prevent its generation. Pollution prevention means changing the way activities are conducted and eliminating the source of the problem. It does not mean doing without, but doing differently. For example, preventing waste pollution from litter caused by disposable beverage containers does not mean doing without beverages; it just means using refillable bottles.
• Negative Effects of Waste. Experience has now shown that there is no completely safe method of waste disposal. All forms of disposal have negative impacts on the environment, public health, and local economies. Landfills have contaminated drinking water. Garbage burned in incinerators has poisoned air, soil, and water. The majority of water treatment systems change the local ecology. Attempts to control or manage wastes after they are produced fail to eliminate environmental impacts.
• The toxic components of household products pose serious health risks and aggravate the trash problem. In the U.S., about eight pounds in every ton of household garbage contains toxic materials, such as lead, cadmium, and mercury from batteries, insect sprays, nail polish, cleaners, and other products. When burned or buried, toxic materials also pose a serious threat to public health and the environment.
• Waste Prevention Strategies & Policies at GreenLagoon
• In planning for facilities, a comprehensive design strategy is needed for preventing generation of solid waste.
• A good garbage prevention strategy would require that everything brought into a facility be recycled for reuse or recycled back into the environment through biodegradation. This would mean a greater reliance on natural materials or products that are compatible with the environment.

Any resource-related development is going to have two basic sources of solid waste — materials purchased and used by the facility and those brought into the facility by visitors. The following waste prevention strategies apply to both, although different approaches will be needed for implementation:

 

1. Use products that minimize waste and are nontoxic 

2. Compost or anaerobically digest biodegradable wastes 

3. Reuse materials onsite or collect suitable materials for offsite recycling 

Sustainable Landscape and Garden Design Policies at GreenLagoon 

• GreenLagoon has established the principles of Sustainable landscape architecture as a category of sustainable design and energy-efficient landscaping concerned with the planning and design of outdoor space.
• Design techniques include planting trees to shade buildings from the sun or protect them from wind, using local materials, on-site composting and chipping to reduce green waste hauling, and also may involve using drought-resistant plantings in arid areas (xeriscaping) and buying stock from local growers to avoid energy use in transportation. Areas of the garden and landscape can also be allowed to grow wild to encourage bio-diversity.

 

Policies of Sustainable Graphic Design at GreenLagoon 

• Sustainable graphic design considers the environmental impacts of graphic design products (such as packaging, printed materials, publications, etc.) throughout a life cycle that includes: raw material; transformation; manufacturing; transportation; use; and disposal.
• Techniques for sustainable graphic design include: reducing the amount of materials required for production; using paper and materials made with recycled, post-consumer waste; printing with low-VOC inks; and using production and distribution methods that require the least amount of transport.

 

Sustainable Agriculture & Organic Farming at GreenLagoon 

• Sustainable agriculture adheres to three main goals:
• Environmental health
• Economic profitability
• Social and economic equity
• A variety of philosophies, policies and practices have contributed to these goals. People in many different capacities, from farmers to consumers, have shared this vision and contributed to it. Despite the diversity of people and perspectives, the following themes commonly weave through definitions of sustainable agriculture.
• There are strenuous discussions —by the agricultural sector and authorities — on existing pesticide protocols and whether methods of soil conservation adequately protect topsoil and wildlife. Doubt has risen if these are sustainable, and if agrarian reforms would permit an efficient agriculture with fewer pesticides, therefore reducing the damage to the ecosystem.

 

Policies for Hospitality Equipment, Machinery and Furniture at GreenLagoon 

• Automobiles, home appliances and furniture can be designed for repair and disassembly (for recycling), and constructed from recyclable materials such as steel, aluminum and glass, and renewable materials, such as Zelfo, wood and plastics from natural feed stocks.
• Careful selection of materials and manufacturing processes can often create products comparable in price and performance to non-sustainable products. Even mild design efforts can greatly increase the sustainable content of manufactured items.
• Principles for Improvements to Heating, Cooling, Ventilation and Water Heating
• Absorption refrigerator
• Annualized geothermal solar
• Earth cooling tubes
• Geothermal heat pump
• Heat recovery ventilation
• Hot water heat recycling
• Passive cooling
• Renewable heat
• Seasonal thermal storage
• Solar air conditioning
• Solar hot water

 

Polices for Disposable Products at GreenLagoon 

• Detergents, newspapers and other disposable items can be designed to decompose, in the presence of air, water and common soil organisms.
• The current challenge in this area is to design such items in attractive ways, at costs as low as competing items. Since most such items end up in landfills, protected from air and water, the utility of such disposable products is debated.
• Policies in Regards to Eco fashion and home accessories
• Creative designers and artists are perhaps the most inventive when it comes to up-cycling or creating new products from old waste. A growing number of designer's up-cycle waste materials such as car window glass and recycled ceramics, textile off cuts from upholstery companies, and even decommissioned fire hose to make belts and bags.
• Whilst accessories may seem trivial when pitted against green scientific breakthroughs; the ability of fashion and retail to influence and inspire consumer behavior should not be underestimated. Eco design may also use bi-products of industry, reducing the amount of waste being dumped in landfill, or may harness new sustainable materials or production techniques e.g. fabric made from recycled PET plastic bottles or bamboo textiles.

 

Sustainable Energy Policies at GreenLagoon 

 Sustainable technology in the energy sector is based on utilizing renewable sources of energy such as solar, wind, hydro, bio-energy, geothermal, and hydrogen. 

 Wind energy is the world's fastest growing energy source; it has been in use for centuries in Europe and more recently in the United States and other nations. Wind energy is captured through the use of wind turbines that generate and transfer electricity for utilities, homeowners and remote villages. 

 Solar power can be harnessed through photovoltaic's, concentrating solar, or solar hot water and is also a rapidly growing energy source. 

 The availability, potential, and feasibility of primary renewable energy resources must be analyzed early in the planning process as part of a comprehensive energy plan. 

 The plan must justify energy demand and supply and assess the actual costs and benefits to the local, regional, and global environments. Responsible energy use is fundamental to sustainable development and a sustainable future. Energy management must balance justifiable energy demand with appropriate energy supply. The process couples energy awareness, energy conservation, and energy efficiency with the use of primary renewable energy resources. 

• Sustainable Water Management Policies at GreenLagoon 

 Sustainable water technologies have become an important industry segment with several companies now providing important and scalable solutions to supply water in a sustainable manner. 

 Beyond the use of certain technologies, Sustainable Design in Water Management also consists very importantly in correct implementation of the concepts. Among one of these principal concepts is the fact that normally in developed countries 100% of water destined for consumption that is not necessarily for drinking purposes, is of potable water quality. 

 This concept of differentiating qualities of water for different purposes has been called "fit-for-purpose". 

 This more rational use of water achieves several economies, that are not only related to water itself, but also the consumption of energy, as to achieve water of drinking quality can be extremely energy intensive for several reasons. 

• Policies Regarding Sustainable Technologies 

 Sustainable technologies use less energy, fewer limited resources, do not deplete natural resources, do not directly or indirectly pollute the environment, and can be reused or recycled at the end of their useful life. There is a significant overlap with appropriate technology, which emphasizes the suitability of technology to the context, in particular considering the needs of people in developing countries. 

 However, the most appropriate technology may not be the most sustainable one; and a sustainable technology may have high cost or maintenance requirements that make it unsuitable as an "appropriate technology," as that term is commonly used. 

• Encouraging a Sustainable Culture 

 The use of sustainable technologies may be encouraged through means such as reducing the capacity of the electrical cable supplying a home 

 In some cases the electricity supplier charges a higher rate for the energy used when the capacity of the supply is increased. 

• Sustainable architecture topics to keep in mind 

 Sustainable architecture is the design of sustainable buildings. Sustainable architecture attempts to reduce the collective environmental impacts during the production of building components, during the construction process, as well as during the lifecycle of the building (heating, electricity use, carpet cleaning etc.) 

 This design practice emphasizes efficiency of heating and cooling systems, alternative energy sources such as; solar hot water, appropriate building site, reused or recycled building materials; on-site power generation - solar technology, ground source heat pumps, wind power; rainwater harvesting for gardening, washing and aquifer recharge; and on-site waste management such as green roofs that filter and control storm water runoff. 

 This requires close cooperation of the design team, the architects, the engineers, and the client at all project stages, from site selection, scheme formation, material selection and procurement, to project implementation. 

 Sustainable architects design with sustainable living in mind. Sustainable vs green design is the challenge that a design not only reflects healthy processes and uses but is also powered by renewable energies and site specific resources. 

 A test for sustainable design is — can the design function for its intended use without fossil fuel (unplugged) 

 This challenge suggests architects and planners design solutions that can function without pollution rather than just reducing pollution. 

 As technology progresses in architecture and design theories are built and tested, architects will soon be able to create not only passive, null-emission buildings, but rather be able to integrate the entire power system into the building design. A good example was in 2004 when a 59 home housing community, Solar Settlement, and a 60,000 sq ft (5,600 m2) integrated retail, commercial and residential building, the Sun Ship, were completed by architect Rolf Disch in Freiburg, Germany. The Solar Settlement is the first housing community worldwide in which every home, all 59, produce a positive energy balance. 

 An essential element of Sustainable Building Design is indoor environmental quality including air quality, illumination, thermal conditions, and acoustics. The integrated design of the indoor environment is essential and must be part of the integrated design of the entire structure. 

Bill of Rights for the Planet to Ponder About 

A model of the new design principles necessary for sustainability is exemplified by the "Bill of Rights for the Planet" or "Hannover Principles" - developed by William McDonough Architects for EXPO 2000 that was held in Hannover, Germany

 

The Bill of Rights: 

1. Insist on the right of humanity and nature to co-exist in a healthy, supportive, diverse, and sustainable condition. 

2. Recognize Interdependence. The elements of human design interact with and depend on the natural world, with broad and diverse implications at every scale. Expand design considerations to recognizing even distant effects. 

3. Respect relationships between spirit and matter. Consider all aspects of human settlement including community, dwelling, industry, and trade in terms of existing and evolving connections between spiritual and material consciousness. 

4. Accept responsibility for the consequences of design decisions upon human well-being, the viability of natural systems, and their right to co-exist. 

5. Create safe objects of long-term value. Do not burden future generations with requirements for maintenance or vigilant administration of potential danger due to the careless creations of products, processes, or standards. 

6. Eliminate the concept of waste. Evaluate and optimize the full life-cycle of products and processes, to approach the state of natural systems in which there is no waste. 

7. Rely on natural energy flows. Human designs should, like the living world, derive their creative forces from perpetual solar income. Incorporate this energy efficiently and safely for responsible use. 

8. Understand the limitations of design. No human creation lasts forever and design does not solve all problems. Those who create and plan should practice humility in the face of nature. Treat nature as a model and mentor, not an inconvenience to be evaded or controlled. 

9. Seek constant improvement by the sharing of knowledge. Encourage direct and open communication between colleagues, patrons, manufacturers and users to link long term sustainable considerations with ethical responsibility, and re-establish the integral relationship between natural processes and human activity.

 

These principles were adopted by the World Congress of the International Union of Architects (UIA) in June 1993 at the American Institute of Architect's (AIA) Expo 93 in Chicago. Further, the AIA and UIA signed a "Declaration of Interdependence for a Sustainable Future." In summary, the declaration states that today's society is degrading its environment, and that the AIA, UIA, and their members are committed to:

 

• Placing environmental and social sustainability at the core of practices and professional responsibilities 

• Developing and continually improving practices, procedures, products, services, and standards for sustainable design 

• Educating the building industry, clients, and the general public about the importance of sustainable design 

• Working to change policies, regulations, and standards in government and business so that sustainable design will become the fully supported standard practice 

• Bringing the existing built environment up to sustainable design standards 

In addition, the Inter-professional Council on Environmental Design (ICED), a coalition of architectural, landscape architectural, and engineering organizations, developed a vision statement in an attempt to foster a team approach to sustainable design. ICED states: The ethics, education and practices of our professions will be directed to shape a sustainable future. . . . To achieve this vision we will join . . . as a multidisciplinary partnership." 

These activities are an indication that the concept of sustainable design is being supported on a global and inter-professional scale and that the ultimate goal is to become more environmentally responsive. The world needs facilities that are more energy efficient and that promote conservation and recycling of natural and economic resources.

 

 

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