Homes in harmony with nature

Eco-living

Sustainable architecture has often been brushed aside as not being for everyone. Fact is if implemented in a small way, it can make a huge difference, says Ruth Dsouza Prabhu.

Going green with real estate projects seems to be the order of the day. At a time when Bangalore appears to have lost a large portion of its green cover to concrete, the trend cannot be more welcome. “We in India actually have always lived green,” says Preenand Premachandran who heads a company which has an Indian Green Building Council pre-certified project in Bangalore.

“In our olden days, homes used to have central courtyards and plenty of doors and windows to allow natural light and air to seep into every part of the home. Every home was built as per vaastu. Today, with the apartment culture and space constraints, we have all forgotten how to live green. Living in harmony with nature is all about adopting correct practices like reducing the burden on electricity, water and air conditioning which should be a way of life in every home.”

Many mistake sustainable architecture to be a fancy term, coined to make projects more expensive. The reality is, if done right, such homes can actually pay for themselves within a very short span of time. Simple aspects such as that of lighting, ventilation and choice of materials used in construction can make a world of difference to how your home treats you and how you respect nature.

Nik Halik, an internationally renowned real estate developer based in Australia, was recently in the city. “We are all a part of nature,” he said. “And it is important that we learn to live in harmony with it. Real estate development today has eaten away our green cover and has turned our cities into ecological nightmares. It is important that we learn to bring a bit of the outdoors we once knew, indoors.”

The onus then falls on every individual developer and home owner to ensure that adequate green spaces be allotted in a residential development. This allows for the growth of independent mini-eco systems and in a way we are giving back to society.

Nature provides us so much. When we utilise what nature gives us, we won’t be depleting its resources without a single care. With the abundant rains that most regions get, rainwater harvesting for buildings must be a mandatory requirement for any residential development, and even for existing structures. Considering the number of apartments coming up in Bangalore and the now mandatory move of rainwater harvesting, the common methods employed make use of a paved portion of the terrace or even the open lawns to channel water via gutters to underground or overhead storage spaces. The size of these gutters will depend on the intensity of rain and the amount of water the building collects each year. Every apartment complex will also have to include provision for cleaning the water, else its purpose is defeated. There are various mechanisms to do this – diverting the first rain waters away from the cache is one of them.

Another example would be the use of sunlight. Simple measures such as installing skylights and solar powered systems will ensure that we do not burden an already taxed electricity grid. With natural lighting and ventilation being an integral part of construction, the need for artificial means of lighting, cooling and even heating are reduced. Our carbon footprint comes down drastically and so does our dependence on energy sucking devices. Not to mention, lower utility bills at the end of the month.

While skylights and natural lighting have to be naturally woven into the design of a building, solar lighting options can be included at any point. For independent houses, using them as a means of outdoor lighting can save you a significant amount of money. They recharge naturally and can even be programmed to switch on and off depending on the time of the day. Should your home be under construction currently, then you could also include a system whereby your emergency lighting for the house is powered by the Sun. Solar powered lighting is also ideal to do up your outdoor landscaping and show off that beautiful garden even in the night. The use of sustainable materials also contributes in reducing the carbon footprint our constructions tend to emit. Use of hollow bricks, tiles and the right architecture to make a building self-sustaining and less dependent on artificial means of powering can go a long way. Research has also proven that sustainable materials bring down the level of wastage that occurs on construction sites. It reduces manpower needed to cart it away and leads to a lean style of construction, saving on resources and reducing carbon footprint thereby enabling a greener environment. Of course the options available to you will depend on your design as well as designer.It is important, Nik believes, to promote green buildings, because they increase the productivity of its occupants. Lack of natural lighting, ventilation and spacing can lead to the “sick building syndrome” which can have telling effects on its occupants. There is a strong need for sustainable architecture these days and only when this need is recognised will we be able to make a difference to the quality of our lives. After all, it is only when we respect nature, will we be able to co-exist with it.