mayor of monkey town
2008-10-28, 11:02
Just publishing a ~250 word tutorial paper i had to churn out for uni tomorrow.
Not bad for 15 minutes i say.
The planning of our modern cities has not been as carefully planned as it should have been, and as a result has an environmental footprint significantly larger than necessary, this article suggests that as an average the energy and water resource footprint of a home could be reduced by at least %400 but in many cases %1000.
These figures speak for themselves, and are based on the urban sprawl which is characteristic of Sydney and countless other cities around world. The practice of building these Mac mansion suburbs, although fast and cheap to build they are literally drinking our rivers dry and completely unsustainable.
They are absent of sufficient insulation, water or energy efficient innovations such as grey water recycling or solar hot water heating brings forth substantially higher costs. A direct result of heating of large poorly insulated houses, reliance on motor vehicles over public transport, a linear water process reliant on larger regional dams - all unsustainable choices.
Essentially this process is the triumph of excesses over efficiencies, we can continue to live affluent lifestyles but by changing the processes by which we establish settlements, government regulation on the way we build our home would relive a huge amount of pressure on public infrastructure and allow greater comfort for the people living in these homes.
Homes can be successfully retro-fitted, but it would be far more practical to insist that sustainable building practices become the norm rather than the exception. It would produce better results environmentally and economically, rather than having homes that are expensive to run for consumers and expensive for the environment.
Not bad for 15 minutes i say.
The planning of our modern cities has not been as carefully planned as it should have been, and as a result has an environmental footprint significantly larger than necessary, this article suggests that as an average the energy and water resource footprint of a home could be reduced by at least %400 but in many cases %1000.
These figures speak for themselves, and are based on the urban sprawl which is characteristic of Sydney and countless other cities around world. The practice of building these Mac mansion suburbs, although fast and cheap to build they are literally drinking our rivers dry and completely unsustainable.
They are absent of sufficient insulation, water or energy efficient innovations such as grey water recycling or solar hot water heating brings forth substantially higher costs. A direct result of heating of large poorly insulated houses, reliance on motor vehicles over public transport, a linear water process reliant on larger regional dams - all unsustainable choices.
Essentially this process is the triumph of excesses over efficiencies, we can continue to live affluent lifestyles but by changing the processes by which we establish settlements, government regulation on the way we build our home would relive a huge amount of pressure on public infrastructure and allow greater comfort for the people living in these homes.
Homes can be successfully retro-fitted, but it would be far more practical to insist that sustainable building practices become the norm rather than the exception. It would produce better results environmentally and economically, rather than having homes that are expensive to run for consumers and expensive for the environment.