[ Canne al Vento ]
_ Inhabiting the Reed-scape
a prototype of self-sustained social housing in Olbia
[ Canne al Vento ]
_ Inhabiting the Reed-scape
a prototype of self-sustained social housing in Olbia
Author/Editor:
Melinda Jin Weifeng Kong Shiyun Shen
[ 191, 97, 0 ]
[
Synopsis
]
Olbia – a fast developing city on the northwest coast of Sardinia. It is a city of amazingly rich history, with comings and goings of Phoenicians, Greeks, Romans, Goths, medieval Spanish, Ligurian-Genovese, Pisans, and Savoy-Piedmontese. However, its constitution is predominantly one of erasure. Much of what preceded is constantly being erased to make way for the new, including many fascinating cultural legacies. The effect is a spread of the “culturally anaesthetising Euro tourist-world expressions” [DW] dominating the landscape. While acknowledging the economic advantages of such development, it is obviously progressively misshaping the stunning, wild landscapes surrounding Olbia, and destroying the intimate and delicate relationship between Sardinian people and their environment. A deep connection which was so hauntingly expressed in Grazia Deledda’s Nobel Prize winning novel Reeds In The Wind. The project seeks to rearticulate the city through the exploration of a new typology of social housing which would assist in alleviating the everrising housing demand, and utilises reed plants as both biomass and purification drainage system to address the lack of resource and need for alternative energy in Olbia in a way that harkens to its cultural past, at the same time, demonstrating its commitment for a more ecological and sustainable way of living for the future.
5
[ Content ] 02. PARA-SITUation [X] :
Scotland
03. Rearticulating the City :
Olbia
III. PROLOGUE
II. CONTENT
I. SYNOPSIS
01. PARA-SITUation [X] :
a. [ Lagan Bridges: sea stars and lunacy ] ‘tide’, ‘flood’
a. [ Archiving the City]
b. [ Finding the Agency ] ‘saltmarsh’, ‘reed’, ‘ritual’
b. [ Loop the Gloup ] ‘cave’, ‘salt’
a. [ Situating the Agency] ‘reed’
a. [ Hierarchy ] b. [ Prototype ]
b. [ Component ]
a. [ Primary Enzymatic Territory ]
b. [ Equating the Figurative and the Non-figurative ]
c. [ City ]
d. [ Body ]
e. [ Building ]
c. [ Hierarchy ]
VI. BIBLIOGRAPHY
05. Inhabiting the Hybrid Territory: the ecosophic object as a set
V. EPILOGUE
04. Narrative Through Three Scales: city, building and body
IV. ARCHITECTURAL MANAGEMENT, PRACTICE and LAW
equating the figurative and the non-figurative
[
8
Prologue
]
Sardinia is the second largest island in the Mediterranean Sea (after Sicily) and an autonomous region of Italy. Taken as a whole its economic conditions are such that the island is in the best position among Italian regions south of Rome. However, economy is still constrained due to high costs of transportation of goods and electricity, which is double compared to the continental Italian regions and triple compared to the EU average. The problem the Olbia region, in particular, encountered is insufficient transmission links as it is on an island situated over 100km from the mainland and surrounded by a ring of rocky high mountains separating it from direct links to other cities within the isle. [1]
as islanders also rush in and out of the city following the touristic seasons. [2]
Olbia is an ancient settlement and currently the economic centre of the Gallura region of Sardinia as well as its main connection to mainland Italy, with an international airport (Olbia-Costa Smeralda), a passenger port (Olbia-Isola Bianca), and a railway from Olbia railway station to Port Torres, Golfo Aranci and Cagliari. It presents itself as a fast-rising tourist destination; however, closer inspection reveals much of these arrivals are only temporary. Most use it as a transitional place for access to the beautiful sea and beaches, particularly the world-famous Costa Smeralda.
Compared to Edinburgh (18.44 per hectare), Olbia has a low density of just 1.49 per hectare. However, the need for speed and quantity of construction due to population rise and the extreme seasonal flux, coupled with prevalent disregard for what exists puts detrimental pressure on what is already an inadequate city infrastructure.
Population of Olbia, currently 56,066, has been increasing dramatically in the last few years at a rate of 10% per annual, and is predicted to grow to 113,033 residents by 2025. Consequently, there is an ever-increasing pace of housing construction, with an estimate of 1461 new houses to be built every year. However, the population rise, like the tourists, is one of transience whose number rises and falls by a factor of ten from winter to summer
Guideline from the 73rd Pronvincial Deliberation makes clear that although the government promotes the satisfaction of housing needs and acknowledges that this is based on vocation settlement and production, the city wishes to avoid excessive movement of residences to coastal areas and promise to allocate housing to the public through policies to support redevelopment by private citizens who have fallen into economic hardship, for which there is increasingly fear of, un-helped by the drastic price-inflation from the flourishing tourism industry.
Indeed, first-hand experience demonstrated that a quick heavy thunderstorm (bringing the only summer rain and typical of Mediterranean climate) could quickly turn the streets into an impromptu river from the “flood� of surface run-offs, which has no where to go as gutters from rooftops run directly onto the streets. These run-offs end up converging together and can form water bodies up to 1 metre deep. However, with no where to contain them and Scirocco bringing hot dry wind from Africa, the water quickly evaporate before it can be used by people.
[
PARA-SITUation [X] :
Scotland
]
The Design Thesis opened with a chapter of The Exploits and Opinions of Dr. Faustroll and a reading Francesco de Goya’s painting Fighting with Cudgels in Mud. Particular interest was taken with the unique, metaphysical way in which Dr. Faustroll views the world and experiments were conducted to explore unchartered ways of mapping and drawing what is there. Our investigation begins with an understanding of “PARA-SITUation”. That is, the Power And Renewables Agency-SITUation. This short six-week project is concerned with figuring out distinctive methodologies of placing buildings strategically in landscapes to collect the Power and Renewables the Agency intend to harness. Class is separated into three or four-man teams who are individually charged with the task of designing a house, laboratory and archive for our protagonist, Professor B.
[ Lagan Bridges: sea stars and lunacy ] ‘tide’, ‘flood’
The end objective is for the projects to collate together at the metropolitan scale, thus forming network of agencies studying the PARA-SITUation and how it operates in different situations and contexts.
9
the drawing apparatus
[
25. Concerning the Land-tide and the Marine Bishop Mendacious ] Agency: tide
The enquiry began with the study of tide at the Portobello beach in Edinburgh, which generated interest in its temporal cyclical nature and the large amounts of flotsom and jetsam that it brings to shore. These investigations formed the basis of the concept for designs in the Outer Hebrides.
01. Drawing By the Tide: an investigation into the rythmns of the sea Portobello Beach, Edinburgh A home-made floating apparatus holding a pen suspended above a sheet of paper is tied to a pier post and left on the beach at low tide. During the day, the sea level rises and falls, the waves carrying the apparatus moves the pen within the box and draws out series of evocative diagrams. drawing by the tide
10
the natural Gloup of Stroma
[
19. Concerning the Isle of PYTX
]
Agency: cave, salt Layered model for exploring the construction of cave through slices of sections
The enquiry began with the visit to the gloup on the isle of Stroma, which was an overwhelming piece of natural architecture and generated interest in formation of cave systems and condensation of salt crystals which can be found all around the inside surfaces of the gloup. These investigations formed the basis of the concept for later designs.
01. Tracing the Formation of Cave Through Drawings and Model Exploding the construction of cave through a series of sectional slices. keywords: folding surface, layers, void
02. The Apparatus of Cave
Tracing the formation of caves
The apparatus of cave consists of compacted salt, water controller, stand, metal tank, strings, mesh. Compacted salt is eroded by the water drops and dissolved in the metal tank. Through the flow of water, the dissolved grains of salt are reassembled and reconstructed on the strings.
Constructing the Cave Salt: Erosion and Reconstruction
11
[
02. PARA-SITUation [X] :
Olbia
]
The study trip to Olbia revealed to us the disheartening conditions of a city languishing in the homogeneous productions of a globalised touristic economy. The disjunction between on-going Corbusier-esque modern constructions and the wider landscape is both evident and unpropitious. Thus we begin anew the search for an Power And Renewables Agency that would divulge an appropriate way of rearticulating the city, and bring to light what may be an “ecosophically sound system of wise dwelling� [DW].
mapping of study trip
nine regions of Olbia
[
Archiving the City _ SITUation [X] :
Olbia
]
[ Archiving the City _ SITUation
[X] :
Gallura Region
]
Agency: Hydrology The lakes of Sardinia play a key role to the people living there. Most of the lakes are installed with dams which supply not only the electricity but also fresh water daily. Due to the mild winter and hot summer, most of the lakes are facing problems of water shortage. Thus, the lack of these resources lead directly to the increase on local living expenses.
14 hydrology drawing of Gallura
[
Archiving the City _ SITUation [X] :
Olbia
]
Agency: Hydrology, Drainage I. Water Basin II. Flood Plain III. Riparian Territory
The water supply in Olbia originate mainly from the lake in the north-west. This means all the water pipelines have to travel all the way around the north-east coastline in order to arrive in Olbia to avoid the mountains in between. Although there are five major rivers in Olbia, detrimental pollution could be found in most of these due to inappropriate use of the system and drainage infrastructure.
15
[
Archiving the City _ SITUation [X] :
Olbia
]
Agency: Transportation
I. Airport, Train Station, Isola Bianca II. Public Bus System III. Highway, Road, Bridge
Olbia is an ancient settlement and currently the economic centre of the Gallura region of Sardinia as well as its main connection to mainland Italy, with an international airport (Olbia-Costa Smeralda), a passenger port (Olbia-Isola Bianca), and a railway from Olbia railway station to Port Torres, Golfo Aranci and Cagliari. It presents itself as a fast-rising tourist destination; however, closer inspection reveals much of these arrivals are only temporary. Most use it as a transitional place for access to the beautiful sea and beaches, particularly the world-famous Costa Smeralda.
16
[
Archiving the City _ SITUation [X] :
Olbia
]
Agency: Planning I. Green Space II. Residential Plot III. Affordable Housing
Population of Olbia, currently 56,066, has been increasing dramatically in the last few years at a rate of 10% per annual, and is predicted to grow to 113,033 residents by 2025. Consequently, there is an ever-increasing pace of housing construction, with an estimate of 1461 new houses to be built every year. However, the population rise, like the tourists, is one of transience whose number rises and falls by a factor of ten from winter to summer as islanders also rush in and out of the city following the touristic seasons.
17
[
Archiving the City _ SITUation [X] :
Agency: Reed I. Existing reed II. River periphery (Riparian zone)
18
Olbia
]
[
Finding the Agency _ SITUation [X] :
Olbia
]
Through archiving the explored and un-explored territories. The Agency, then, doubles as an observatory and laboratory for the re-articulation and re-configuration of Olbia to seek the emerging thesis.
19
[ Finding the Agency _ SITUation
[X] :
Marshland ]
Agency:Saltmarsh
Large areas of lagoon and salt marsh cover the coast of Olbia. This coastal region is a fragile and restless landscape, constantly in flux. For centuries Sardinians have adapted to this shifting landscape, however modern construction, pollution and the natural process of erosion is now threatening the fragile ecology that exists.
20
[
Finding the Agency _ SITUation [X] :
Olbia
]
Agency:Saltmarsh
Based on the assumption that a seawall without saltmarsh protection costs £5,000/m. It shows the savings of up to £4,600/m could be made with 80m wide saltmarsh.
21
[
Finding the Agency _ SITUation [X] :
Olbia
]
Agency: Reed
In the book, Deledda traces the decline of the noble Pintor sisters, who live in Sardinia at the turn of the century. Efix, who is guilt-ridden over a long-ago sin, has continued to work for them without pay. ‘We are reeds, and fate is the wind.’ ‘Life goes on in eternal cycles, dominated by nature’s seasons.’ With in the story also shows that the human world was closely related with things of nature, such as reeds. The clusters of reeds was anthropomorphised so that it becomes as alive and as knowing as the people who populate the land. Thus, the division between the human world and reedscape is blurred and the two melt together to produce a pantheistic whole.
22
Tectonic of Reeds: Still water and reflection Rippling water and reflection Sunlight through dense thicket of reed stalks and abstration of shapes
Phylum: Anthophyta Class: Liliopsida Order: Cyperales Family: Poaceae Genus: Phragmites Size: Leaf width: 3-45 mm Stem height: up to 4 m Common reed forms large beds in shallow water. It has round, hollow stems, which typically grow to 2m in height, but may reach 4m. These stems grow from a system of stout, creeping rhizomes. The flat leaves taper into a point, and are attached to the stem by smooth sheaths, which are loose so that the leaves all point in one direction in the wind. The flowers are borne on highly branching purple inflorescences, which measure from 20 to 60cm in length. The flowers are grouped into ‘spikelets’, which are 10-15 mm in length and support 1-6 flowers. There has been much interest in the potential of reedbeds as water filters; their spreading, creeping system of roots can remove nitrates and heavy metals from water.
23
[
Finding the Agency _ SITUation [X] : Riparian Territory
]
Agency: Reed
Reed Growing Cycle In Olbia, typical Mediterranean climate, which is characterised by warm and dry summer and mild winter, new shoots emerge around March, growing rapidly in June - July and producing. Crop drying accelerates during autumn when anthesis occurs from October to Novement. In winter time, giant reed stops its growth because of low temperatures and regrowth occurs in the following spring time.
24
25
[
Finding the Agency _ SITUation [X] : Riparian Territory
]
Agency: Reed
Reed is a perennial flowering plant. The extensive shallow water bodies in Olbia establish good growing conditions for them.
Reedscape along riparian territories of Olbia
They are often easily found in tidal salt marshes.Reeds in Olbia are especially abundant along all the rivers. In addition to that, it can be adapted both in fresh and moderately saline water with maximum salinity level of 3.6% where the highest salinity level of Mediterranean Sea is 3.7%. As a result, theoretically, giant reeds are possible to extend their territory from the river to the edge of the sea if there is no human attention to it in terms of management and control. Representation of the relationship between reed, river and people in Olbia
26
There are three typical variations of treatment reedbed: horizontal, vertical and hybrid flow. The vertical flow is the common technique to deal with domestic waste water purification. A vertical flow reedbed with 0.6 m shallow treatment ground and 100 m 2 area can meet the usage demand for 15 people. The treatment reedbed consists of specific sand and gravel within a layer of waterproof membrane, creating a dry reedbed where water does not collect above the surface which means there would be no odours from purifying waste water.
Typical Reedbed Purification System
Existing waste water from domestic usage is collected and settled in the septic tank, and directed into the reedbed for purification. The purified water then can be discharged into land or river.
Hybrid Flow Reedbed
Detail of Ground Treatment
27
[
Finding the Agency _ SITUation [X] : Riparian Territory
]
Agency: Reed
The harvest is an annual collective activity which occurs from December to February.
Movement of Harvesting
28
The productive reedscape: 1 m2 of land produces 3 kg dry reeds which makes 1 bale
Reed is one of the most promising crops for energy production for the Mediterranean climate, where it has showed advantages as indigenous crop (already adapted to the environment), durable yields, and resistance to long drought period. It can produce 51MJ per m 2 which could be converted into electrical energy and thermal energy for heating and cooking as by product. The average annual energy consumption (electricity and heat) cost of a household is approximately 1200 euro. The economy and cost of reeds, Cost of Dried Reed (per ton) 40 euro Total Dried Reed needed (per household per year) 3.3 t Total Cost of Biofuel
132 euro
29
[
Finding the Agency _ SITUation [X] : Olbia Agency: Ritual
Deledda beautifully captures the rough, malaria-ridden Sardinian setting, where superstition vies with theology, and folklore has a strong hold on the imagination. Festival activities are very vital part of Sardinian society. It is the way through which people gather and socialise. Therefore, other amenities besides accomodation will be incorporated into the reedscape, which will allow for collective interactions which provide for this social dimension.
30
]
+ Sun(3rd): San Giuseppe
+ 15: San Simplicio
+ Sun(1st): San Vittore
+ Sun(last): Festa Di Madonna Bambina
+ Fri: S’Iscravamentu
+ 25th: Conversion of San Paolo
+ 2nd: Nativita Madonna + Sun(1st): Santa Lucia
+ Spirito Santo +
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+ 24th: Festa De Mare & San Giovanni
+ Sun(1st): Sant’ Angelo
[
03. Rearticulating the City :
the RITE Agency
]
Compared to Edinburgh (18.44 per hectare), Olbia has a low density of just 1.49 per hectare. However, “what is frequently called low-density urbanity has another type of density that is just as intense and important an architecture as that of highdensity urbanity� [DW]: An alternative density of reeds, a density that is high in terms of Power And Renewables, where power and renewables are not constrained to the definitions of energy and resources, but also takes to mean the Sardinian people, local cultural legacies and also the natural environment that is so neglected and forgotten.
[
Situating the Agency
]
[
Situating the Agency _ Olbia
]
Agency: Reed and Ritual
People of Sardinia held a unqie and profound relationship with reeds, which grow abundantly all over the island. Unspoken secrets, disquieting worries, unbridled joy...may all be expressed without fear to the whisperings of the reed fields. This and the famous religious festivals seem to form the most vital and expressive part of the Sardinian way of life. The agency of reed and ritual explores possible programmatic and spatial configurations, which would integrate with the landscape and address the environmental and social problems faced by the city.
34
02.
Self-sustained Social Housings Drainage Harvesting Workshop Reed Field
01.
Laboratory Tower of Reed and Ritual Observatory Tower of Reed and Ritual Sedimentary laboratory
01. The Shifting Landscape II.
Laboratory Tower of Reed
II. I.
Observatory Tower of Reed
Sedimentary laboratory
By understanding the research of soil formation in Olbia and the site, this model tries to represent the geological formation and constant shifting motion in different dimensional layers. Acrylic sheet: the layer of surface (water and land) 0.5mm wood stick: the layer of sand deposit 1mm: sedimentary stone (lime stone) 2mm: permanent stone (granite and basalt) The interacted layers have relative freedom of movement in accordance to their shifting nature.
35
[
Situating the Agency _ Marshland
]
Agency: Saltmarsh
I.
Sedimentary laboratory
The sediment laboratory engages with the geomorphological processes that characterize the saltmarsh landscape, facilitating the ‘deposition’ of sediments. It produces sea level elevations, recording coastal processes, tidal response, storm surge behavior and the rise in sea level. The built up layers of sediment draws lines, the continuously forces are recorded becoming a map that periodically highlights the shifting of nature.
36
II.
Observatory Tower of Reed Laboratory Tower of Reed
PRODUCED BY AN AUTODESK EDUCATIONAL PRODUCT
PRODUCED BY AN AUTODESK EDUCATIONAL PRODUCT
PRODUCED BY AN AUTODESK EDUCATIONAL PRODUCT
PRODUCED BY AN AUTODESK EDUCATIONAL PRODUCT
Considering the possibility of reforming the coastline with reeds, consolidating the edge condition of Olbian gulf which faces the problem of shifting and erosion over time, and meanwhile creating a singular experience of transition upon entering the gulf of olbia.
37
[
Situating the Agency _ Coastline of Olbia Between Land and Water Agency: Reed
II.
38
Observatory Tower of Reed Laboratory Tower of Reed
]
39
[
Situating the Agency _ Rio Seligheddu Agency: Reed and Ritual
02.
Self-sustained Social Housings Drainage Harvesting Workshop Reed Field
40
]
41
[ Situating the Agency _ Reconfigurating the Territory ] Agency: Reed and Ritual
“Branzi suggests an aggregation of smaller ‘enzymatic’ territories that focus their attention on the quality of their objects (and procedures for making objects) whilst promoting how the territories and objects act as catalysts for social and urban change” – what he calls the ‘Weak Metropolis’, “an urbanism that is already environmentally attuned and driven by newly formed but urgent needs.”
04
Thus enzymatic territories of inhabited reed-scape are situated in the Loving Metropolitan Landscape. Maintained by their residents, it is generated by our agency of reeds and rituals and parasitic upon the empty plots of riparian zones in Olbia. It always works alongside other territories and creates a mutually beneficial relationship with the surrounding existing urbanity through the providence of a structured and maintained drainage infrastructure system. Blurring the edge between urban and landscape
03
02
01 42
01
02
03
04
43
[ Situating the Agency _ Reconfigurating the Territory ] Agency: Reed and Ritual
04
03
02
01
44
45
[ Situating the Agency _ Reconfigurating the Territory ] Agency: Reed and Ritual
Winter dike indicates and breaks the edge of 80 m saltings which preventing the maximum flooding.
46
reconfigurating the site: [winter dike]: 80 m distance from the river edge to create a buffer zone of saltings.
Reconfigurating the site: [hierarchy of dikes]
water level: maximum flood level 3 m
47
[ Situating the Agency _ Reconfigurating the Territory ] Agency: Reed and Ritual
Summer dike connecting the river with the saltings.
48
reconfigurating the site: [summer dike]: division by earth dikes and only timber dike along river edge
Reconfigurating the site: [hierarchy of dikes]
water level: non flooding <1.1 m
49
[ Situating the Agency _ Reconfigurating the Territory ] Hierarchy of Reedbed
50
reconfigurating the site: [hierarchy of reedbed] urban drainage reedbed marsh-like reedbed
Reconfigurating the site: [hierarchy of reedbed]
Edge
Primary Reedbed: purifying waste water for surrounding and site usage no surface water allowed
Layer of reedbed
Secondary Reedbed: marsh-like preventing flooding
Rio Seligheddu
water grooves in earth dike
51
[
Equating the Figurative and Non-Figurative
]
[
Equating the Figurative and Non-Figurative: Housing Density
]
Existing Housing Density
53
[
Equating the Figurative and Non-Figurative: Equation
]
Aear of Land VS. Number of Houses
1100 m 2 reed land generate enough power to supply a threeperson family for 1 year. Therefore each 36cm X 36 cm (= 1296 m 2) plot of land can sustain 1 family for 1 year. Site can sustain 104 houses.
Edge (drainage)
54
the drawing of equation
Site Area: 128,000 m 2 Construction Area: 14,000 m 2 Reedscape Area: 114,000 m 2 Housing number: 104
55
[
Equating the Figurative and Non-Figurative: Equation of Living
1 m2 of land produces 3 kg dry reeds which makes 1 bale.
56
]
1 person 1 day can harvest enough reeds to power 1 family for nearly 2 months.
57
[
Equating the Figurative and Non-Figurative: Equation of Living
1100 Reed bales to power 1 family for 1 year.
1 person in 7 days can harvest enough reeds to power 1 family in 1 year
58
]
The harvest is an ANNUAL collective activity which occurs from December to February. Therefore, the site requires 20 people 66 days to harvest.
59
[
04. Narrative Through Three Scales :
City, Building, Body
We elaborate of the thesis and Agency of Reeds and Rituals through testing of technological and environmental details, at all scales of body, building and metropolitan landscape. Detail of Agency Network of Agency
]
[
Narrative of Hierarchy: Space and Structure
]
[ Narrative I: Hierarchy of Space and Structure ]
Hierarchy of Private and Public Working
Hierarchy of Heavy and Light Materials
Porch
62
01
House I of Pintor Sister
02
House II of Deledda
03 House III in the book
Testing Through Three Scales: City, Building, Body Means: Models, Drawings City Scale I 1:1000 Process Model
Building Scale I 1:200 Apparatus of Water Collection
City Scale II 1:1000 Process Model
Building Scale II 1:200 Single House
63
[
Narrative II: Detail and Component
Building Scale III Study of Stairs and Space formed by Stairs Connecting the Hierarchy
Stairwell of Deleddaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s House
64
]
65
[
Narrative II: Detail and Component
]
01.
02.
02.
Body Scale: Isometric of Study Space Passive Design: Stack Effect
66
01.
Body Scale II 1:20 Window Seat Passive Design: Stack Effect
67
[
Testing of the Narrative IN-SITU Building Scale III 1:200 Models 1:100 Plans
68
]
69
[
Testing of the Narrative IN-SITU City Scale III 1:2000 on A0 Network+ 1:750 on A0 Site Plan
70
]
City Scale III Programmes of Spaces 1:750 on A0
Courtyard Formed by Houses
ground floor bedroom water tank reeds workshop timber path earth path bike path entry ramp plaza paving street plaza new road car park river
71
[
Testing of the Narrative IN-SITU Building Scale IV 1:100 on A0 Plans and Sections
72
]
Building Scale IV Hierarchy of Structure and Material Roof: Zinc Roof First Floor: Steel Structure Ground Floor: Concrete Loadbearing Wall
73 1:100 Structural Model
[
05. Inhabiting the Hybrid Territory:
The Ecosophic Object as a SET
From Figure and Ground to Field and Figure: Beyond The Dialectic of Figurative Spatial Practice and Towards the Ecosophic Object. “Architecture is challenged by the rise of Urban Design as an autonomous practice.” In the present day there exists this tension between “makers of buildings” (architects) and “makers of infrastructures to hold forms” (urban designers). The common perception is that architects have a propensity towards creating architectural figures, and there is anxiety that this could result in an urbanity that consists of just collections of these figures, which speaks nothing of the “non-figurative [space]” between figures. Our project breaks this disposition through the proposition of a new urban paradigm, composed of the functional amalgamation of reed field and social housing as both a city-scale drainage infrastructure (addressing the current sewage disposal and drainage insufficiency), as well as [aesthetically] engaging architectural landscape figures formed by clustering of residential accommodations.
]
[
Canne Al Vento: Inhabiting the Reedscape
Agency: PARA-SITUation: Coporeal Species: Incoporeal Species:
]
Reed and Ritual Rio Seligheddu, Olbia Social Housing, Drainage Infrastructure, Biomass and Harvest Workshop Equating Between Reed and House
[
Inhabiting the Hybrid Territory:
The Ecosophic Object as a SET
Cannel Al Vento: Inhabiting the Reedscape Copereal Specic:
1:1000 on A0 Urban Plan of the Enzymatic Territory Site Area: 128,000 m 2 Construction Area: 14,000 m 2 Reedscape Area: 114,000 m 2 Housing number: 104
76
]
1:200 on 2A0 Plan of Social Housing Group Agency: PARA-SITUation: Coporeal Species: Incoporeal Species:
Reed and Ritual Rio Seligheddu, Olbia Social Housing, Drainage Infrastructure, Biomass and Harvest Workshop Equating Between Reed and House
77
[
Inhabiting the Hybrid Territory:
The Ecosophic Object as a SET
1:200 on 2A0 Plan of Social Housing Group
78
]
Elevations: Explore the Hierarchy Agency: PARA-SITUation: Coporeal Species: Incoporeal Species:
01.
01. Elevation
from Street
02. Elevation
from River
Reed and Ritual Rio Seligheddu, Olbia Social Housing, Drainage Infrastructure, Biomass and Harvest Workshop Equating Between Reed and House
02.
79
[
Inhabiting the Hybrid Territory:
The Ecosophic Object as a SET
1:200 Section Through Domestic Drainage System 1:50 Detail Section Through 2-bedroom House
03.
80
]
81
[
Inhabiting the Hybrid Territory:
The Ecosophic Object as a SET
]
Exploded Isometric of Housing with Drainage System
Drainage Layer: Surface Run-off Waste Water _ septic tank Water Reservoir
Foundation Layer: Compacted Soil Layers of Gravel Housing Foundation
82
Exploded Isometric of Housing with Dainage System Agency: PARA-SITUation: Coporeal Species: Incoporeal Species:
Reed and Ritual Rio Seligheddu, Olbia Social Housing, Drainage Infrastructure, Biomass and Harvest Workshop Equating Between Reed and House
Roof Level: Zinc Roof with Guttur Primary structure Secondary structure
First Floor Level: Steel and Timber Frame Timber Cladding
Ground Floor Level: Loadbearing Concrete Wall
83
[
Inhabiting the Hybrid Territory:
Section of Rainwater Collection Perspective Section of Housing Structure
84
The Ecosophic Object as a SET
]
85
[
Inhabiting the Hybrid Territory:
Exploded Isometric of Housing Group
86
The Ecosophic Object as a SET
]
87
[ AMPL ] Introduction to Application of Architecture, Management, Practice and Law.
I: Planning and Compliance with Social and Statutory Regualtions II: Legal Framework III: Building Economics and Cost Control
88
01 [ Planning Considerations ]
Following consultation with Alghero Urban Planning students and perusal of the Provincial Report, in order to gain Planning Permission, a detailed planning application will be submitted to the Province of Olbia-Tempio Regional Programming and Planning Department. The situation of the enzymatic territories and these proposed social housing and reed fields was based on the government’s city Master plan (August 2004), therefore compliant with their desired expansion of programs. Section 3.3.7 promotes creation of “new topologies of common areas and facilities for collective use“, which the reedscape provide, and Section 5 especially plans “to reduce energy consumption by introducing rewards for sustainable building, [and] energy saving building that use alternative energy sources”, which this project particularly responds to.
Proposed reed housing system: combines functions of social housing, greenery, and wastewater treatment Planned Green Planned new residences
Sewage Plant
It will be argued that the proposal is too low in density and contradicts a call for higher density urban development, however, this report should provide attestation to the validity of this proposal in terms of achieving an appropriate ecological urbanity tailored for the conditions of Olbia, rather than just fulfilling demanded housing quantities. Other compelling benefits of the proposal such as wider-scale wastewater and rainwater drainage infrastructures, and provision of self-supplied cheap electricity and heating for its inhabitants should make this a proposition difficult to deny.
Government Master plan
Primary Site Plan
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02
[
Environmental Impact
]
The proposal will, when completed, have a positive impact on the surrounding environment. Introduction of the reed fields in the riparian zones itself constitute green public space, within which will be universally accessible decked walkways and garden platforms, providing previously lacking local amenities. The primary site, for example, is presently cordoned off and abandoned. Its condition dire due to unregulated waste discharge from nearby buildings, which is also making a grim impact upon the river Seligheddu. The establishment of the reed beds will ensure that the surrounding portion of housing (waste product of around 15000 people*) receive an adequate drainage infrastructure, which is itself a greenery and will sustain and purify their waste water before it is incorporated back into the soil and river. Benefits for this new drainage system will be limited and priority will be given to those existing residents close to the site. Precedents in Sicily and Finland suggest that if given the opportunity this reed-scape urbanity is capable of alleviating or even fulfilling many of Olbiaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s environmental and resource predicaments.
Waste water from city housing Directed into reed bed to be purified
Of course reeds are an invasive plant, which means measures need to be in place to limit its growth, such as membrane-lined reed beds and specially designed edges, which mostly constrain their roots to within the set territory. Once established, there is no need for regular maintenance other than the annual harvest for biomass. Inevitably the construction process will impact upon surrounding residents, however the works will be phased so that the most disruptive parts (such as earthworks to create the reed beds and laying of the conducting pipes and foundations) are programmed to occur during the winter months when tourists and some islanders vacate the city. Furthermore, everyday-wise, work will be prohibited during Siesta time (1-3pm) and from 7pm in the evening to minimise disturbance. * | 128,000m 2 in the primary Seligheddu site, of which built area is 14,000m 2 and reeds covers 114,000m 2. 100m 2 purifies 15 people, so a total 15300 people can be purified.
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Residentsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; waste water Reed bed
[ Building Regulations ]
Discussion of the design in relation to regulations is provided through a UK perspective and the Building (Scotland) Regulations 2011.
03 | Structure
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01 01 | Exploding axonometric showing housing structure 02 | Partial house section as proposed 03 | Working section detail
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Part A1 of the UK Building Regulations require that ‘every building must be designed and constructed in such a way that the loadings that are liable to act on it without leading to: “a) Collapse of the whole or part of the building; or b) Deformations which would make the building unfit for its intended use.” Input from a consulting engineer aided the development of the structure, but this will need to be further evaluated and approved by relevant authorities during, prior and post construction. Ground floors are composed of in-situ reinforced concrete with internal insulation and plasterboard (acoustic), whilst the first floor is composed of a hybrid structure of steel (primary) and timber frame (secondary) with internal insulation and plasterboard (acoustic) and external recycled timber cladding. These must sustain and transmit the building’s dead loads and imposed loads such as occupants, wind, heavy rain and the occasional snow. Stability of the structure must be proven to comply with regulations by specialist consultants. A2 states that buildings are to be constructed so that “ground movement cause by (a) Swelling, shrinkage or freezing of the sub-soil; or (b) Landslip or subsidence, in so far as the risk can be reasonably foreseen will not impair the stability of any part of the building” and A3 regulates that “in the event of an accident the building will not suffer collapse to an extent disproportionate to the cause.” The sturdy concrete ground floor structure and beam and column arrangement of first floor has been argued over and carefully engineered in terms of beam/ column dimensions as well as spacing, therefore, there is ample leeway in the structure to handle any unexpected or sudden loads.
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04
[
Flooding
]
Frequent heavy thunderstorms and inadequate drainage system means that Olbia is prone to flooding, although the water making up this flood quickly dissipate along city streets and evaporate under its Mediterranean climatic conditions. The primary site is not frequently affected by the threat of flooding despite its close proximity to the river Seligheddu. The water levels at this section of the river usually remain at around 1 m and may rise up 3 metres once every 500 years. There are even stretches where water will dry out during the summer months, leaving just small puddles behind. Therefore there is no urgent need for the implementation of flood prevention techniques.
Damage to region caused by flooding
However, if the unexpected occurred and the river flooded, the sloped site mean that summer decking and lower reed bed will be submerged by water. This will not be a complication as they are designed to allow this. Steps have been taken to ensure that the housing, workshop and winter decking are situated around 70m from the riverbanks and the lower reed beds act as salting, which will mitigate the effects of the flood, so floodwater does not enter the buildings and obstruct everyday life of inhabitants. Furthermore, structure and materials employed on the ground floor will possess some degree of resistance to being waterlogged, for example, timber finishes are only used on the upper first floor level.
River bed and water level on section
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05
[
Fire
The primary structure of the building is composed of reinforced concrete and steel structure. The steel beams spanning the first floor bedrooms are afforded fire protection by application of an intumescent paint and a plasterboard encasement, which allow them to maintain their integrity for the legislation required time. The secondary timber stud structure, which work in conjunction with the steel beams, and include interior partitions will be made of prefabricated cross-laminated timber panels, which has been shown to have superior resistance to charring during fire if adequate thickness and enough layers are specified. A layer of 12.5mm plasterboard covers the interior surface of buildings, which provides acoustic protection, as well as gives additional fire protection. Smoke, heat (for the kitchen and workshop) and carbon monoxide alarms, and an automated fire suppression system in the workshops will protect each of the buildings and mounted prominently to allow for easy monitor. The height and density the reed fields can reach
]
at certain times of the year present an obvious fire risk. The reeds on the site are harvested regularly every winter, so there is no fire risk during late winter and spring as there will only be stubs left on the ground. By early summer every year, they will grow up to 4m tall, therefore a fall-radius gap of 4m is left between the outside edge of the houses and where the reed bed begins, which act as a safety belt. Although the reeds can grow to be a quite dense network of bamboo-like plants at its most prosperous, because their root system are constantly functioning as purification drainage system for surrounding housing, there is a constant level of moisture and dampness around their base. The lower reed bed has an especially marsh-like condition. Therefore, aside from deliberate arson, they are unlikely to catch fire spontaneously. If there is fire, the collective water reservoirs located underneath courtyard timber decking can also be used to pump water to douse any fire.
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[ Health & Safety ] Under Construction Design and Management Regulations 2007 architect must inform the client of their “statutory duty to appoint a CDMC and a principal contractor’, which are “to be made as soon as is practicable after the client has sufficient information about the project to be able to assess the appointee’s competence and adequacy of resources for health and safety.” Therefore, CDMC need to be familiar with the design and construction processes and practice, and of health and safety matters relevant to the particular project. *
06 | Construction The River Seligheddu site will first require an in depth site survey to clarify the present conditions as the area has been neglected for a long time. Once the existing soils and vegetative conditions have been registered, an appropriate methodology of clearing the site can be agreed upon and carried out. Upon successful clearance of the site, the first stages of construction will be laying out the base and edges for the reed beds
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and ground-works for housing clusters and collective wastewater settlement tanks. Much of this will happen close to the road and existing dwellings, therefore measures must be taken to ensure that the construction workers and public members are arranged at safe distances and both protected from any heavy machinery used, and this need to be carried out all through the construction process in accordance with CDM Regulations. * | Architect’s Job Book, Seventh Edition
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02 01 | Current river conditions: swamp-like and overgrown with weeds 02 | Nearby dwellings who might be affected by construction work
07 [ Thermal Strategy ] Olbia has hot, dry summers with an average of 24째C and cool, wet winters which are normally warm along the coasts (with a January average temperature of 8째C). The Sirocco winds are from Africa is shortlived but can scorch crops and make life unpleasant. Heavy thunderstorms bring the only summer rain.
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The thermal mass of the concrete elements in the ground floor will help keep a constant building temperature by absorbing some of the heat of the day and slowly releasing it at nighttime. The average island temperature does not suggest a supplementary mechanical cooling and ventilation system is necessary, however, this may be installed for places such as the kitchen, which produce As far as possible, the project will employ a natural heat as byproduct. ventilation strategy employing the void between the kitchens and bedrooms to create a stack-driven Passive strategy alone would not be enough to create an ventilation effect. The reeds will be at their tallest agreeable interior condition within the workshops, which during the hotter summer months, which will provide is where the machines are for cutting and compressing a great source of shading for both people and the the reeds and generators producing electricity and heat housing, keeping the temperature cool within the for use are. Therefore, a mechanical system consisting of reed-scape. Given the sizes of the houses the air extraction ducts will be installed above the workspaces consulting engineer calculated that this would easily to extract hot, dirty air away from the rooms. achieve the number of air changes per hour required for a comfortable environment, particularly with the use of windows, which can be opened to create cross-ventilation.
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01 | Study with passive ventilation 02 | Workshop plan 02
[ Noise ]
The reed workshops will clearly produce significant noise during operation, which could lead to sound pollution in its immediate vicinity. However, those houses next to the workshops can be allocated to people in charge of staffing the workshops, so they will be working there when the machines are making noise. Not to mention, a double door system for accessing the workshops will help to achieve acoustic separation from the outside and the an additional 6mm of plasterboard will be added to the interior surface finish of the workshops for extra acoustic insulation.
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09
[
Maintenance
]
Most of the building is easily accessible for maintenance work, with the exception of the rooftops, which act as rainwater drainage system, but these can be accessed through a ladder (in compliance with CDM Regulations), which will be stored at the facility.
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[ Use ]
As the reeds are used to purify wastewater, there is a potential risk of contamination from people getting down into the fields. Therefore, compacted earth dikes and decked walkways are provided for access and movement through the site. During harvest, workers will be required to wear protective work gear to avoid potential harms, and visible washing points are provided outside every workshop for them to clean up afterwards. The landscape of reeds is freely accessible to the public, so the perimeter of the reed-scape will be thoroughly balustrade to avoid falling hazard.
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Development of walkways
11 [ Universal Access ] Although Olbia is situated inside a water basin, most of the city is relatively flat and accessible for all. The site has a gentle slope down towards the river, which help with wastewater purification and decked walkways and platforms make the landscape easily accessible by the public. Ramps are always provided in conjunction with stairs for those with disability and design for the winter and summer decking have been progressively widened to allow to easier access for wheelchair users. Turning radius of such devices was considered and accounted for when designing public courtyards and the spaces between the houses.
Plan on site showing walkways Circulation
Given that the buildings are mostly private properties, elements such as circulation, doorways, glazing and other such access are all ensure to satisfy the requirements as set out for Dwellings in Building Regulations.
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12 [ Building Economics and Cost ] On the premise of retaining a clear sense of programmatic hierarchy and the architectural elements which encourage delightful moments of interaction with the reed-scape around them, the designs for the residential units of the housing scheme has been continuously simplified and reduced in terms of form, structure and material complexity in the hope of keeping a low building economy and construction and maintenance cost.
to spread and cover the site within one to two years, so there is no need for mass culturing of reeds prior to planting the site.
To counteract the possibly still costly design of the housing and infrastructure, the following figures should sufficiently demonstrate the economic and cost benefits of this sustainable self-sustaining system: Average Cost of Total Energy Consumption (1 house per year) | 1226 Euro Many structural and material decisions were Cost of Dried Reed (per tonne) | 40 Euro made in accordance with the traditional methods Total Dried Reed Required By 1 House Per Year of construction in Olbia, such as in-situ concrete | 3.3 tonnes (3300kg) works using formwork and metal sheeting for gutter systems (copper is a widely used Therefore, energy consumption cost of using material in Olbia, but it is substituted for zinc for reeds as biomass is: cheaper cost and added purification properties). Therefore, a traditional Design-and-Build contract 40 x 3.3 = 132 Euro per house per year would most likely be an appropriate form of procurement, as this will be the method the local 1226 â&#x20AC;&#x201C; 132 = 1094 Euro per house per year construction team would be experience in. So compared to traditional energy, reed biomass Although an immense amount of reeds is will save every house 1094 euros every year, required to cover the site, the reeds are capable this is not even factoring in the cost saved from of fast self-propagation using their rhizome not needing to transport and deliver the energy, roots therefore as soon as a cluster of them are which is one of the most significant expenses in planted into prepared reed bed, they will be able Sardinia where the price is triple that of the EU.
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[
Epilogue
]
The thesis has sought to rearticulate Olbia through using methodology developed during PARA-situation (Scotland) to investigate its PARA-situation and finding an agency (reeds and rituals), which would incite programmatic and spatial solutions to the many resource, social and environment problems faced by the city, asking if it is possible to find an alternative way of building housing, which could integrate itself with the landscape and benefit the locals who are finding it increasingly difficult to afford living there. The proposal of housing in reed-scape addresses the lack of resource and need for alternative energy source, offering a new prototype of housing, which makes use of locally available plant as renewable biomass (supplying its electricity and heating) and waste treatment system (purifying and releasing it back into the land for the plants), creating a positive self-sustaining system where the land feed the house (and people) and the house in turn feed the land â&#x20AC;&#x201C; an ecological urbanism. The series of enzymatic territories holding the housing prototypes are situated on presently empty lands by riversides that are scheduled for residential expansions. The rippling reed fields bring public green spaces to a city lacking in such facilities, at the same time creating networks of wastewater purification infrastructure, greatly alleviating pressure on the existing system. During festivals, the reed fields not only allow public interaction as public green spaces, but also play a vital part as landscape configurations that are evocations of past cultural legacies.
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[
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]
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