Vertical farming spatialisation

VERTICAL FARMING

Reversing climate change is coming hand-to-hand with everyday habits like eating. Reducing food waste, engaging a plant-rich diet, and new agricultural/farming methods can directly help reduce CO2 in our daily lives. Solutions based on land and food are interrelated, which is why those solutions have a crucial role in global warming (Stein 2021). According to UN, %55 of the worlds population is living in urban areas, and this number is expected to be %68 by the year of 2050. Therefore, there should be action taken on current food production practices to meet the needs and fight climate crisis at the same time.

Imported Goods in Finland

In the chart, it is seen that more than half of the imported goods are vegetables and fruits. With proper practice of vertical farming, the need to import could be lessened. There is no doubt that we need urgent change in land use and food. For this innovative change to occur, it is essential that the change be encouraged and easily accessible. We plan to bring a non-traditional farming method to Kanta-Häme because agriculture is a significant strength of the region. Vertical farming with hydroponics and aquaponics around Kanta-Häme can encourage people to adopt a plant-rich diet because they can easily reach healthy and organic food at reasonable prices, reducing the number of imports, therefore decreasing its effects like food waste and fossil fuel use. Less agricultural land needed compared to traditional agriculture practices . Vertical agriculture requires %10 of the water needed for the regular agriculture practices.

Since it's vertical and indoor, it is more productive and efficient because there are no pesticides, no soil erosion, and chemicals. It also uses a maximum of 10% of the water that used in traditional farming. There is no need for plastic packaging since there are no pesticides, thanks to the protected environment of vertical farming.

WHY KANTA-HÄME?

Local food production serving the nearby cities and rest of Finland - Less logistics coasts - Less time to make deliveries across country - Less need to export from other countries - Close to 3 big cities; close to main source of consumption

To achieve this vision, Hämeenlinna will be the first location for us to apply a new way of agriculture/farming because there is already a significant knowledge about agriculture in the area. We need buildings for vertical farmings, so we are going to refurbish the idle buildings around Hämeenlinna. Furthermore, we need to reach everywhere in Hämeenlinna without using any fossil fuel contributing to climate change. That's why we have three main options to deliver or sell the goods at the beginning: drones, bicycles, or take it away. It is possible to reach refurbished vertical farming by 20 minutes of cycling in Hämeenlinna, and the delivery can happen effortlessly by cycling too. In dense urban areas, a single drone can carry 3 kg, and it is possible to buy things through an app. The reason for that is to make things as accessible as possible to encourage people. The local food production in Hämeenlinna has a multitude of social, ecological, and economic activities and networks, and there will be several actors such as civic communities, residents, public and private organizations (Jokinen & al. 2018). This situation will make Hämeenlinna more independent and resilient while the city adopts more participatory processes and contributes to its local economy's GDP.

Quite often vertical farming happens indoors, such as in a warehouse or greenhouse. Some empty buildings in Hämeenlinna and its region will be used for this type of new agricultural establishment. At first, as a prototype, and later on to be introduced to larger regions in KantaHäme. Some common choices of structures to house vertical farming include buildings, tunnels, and abandoned mine shafts. Even modular shipping containers have been used for this type of food production.

Choosing sites for vertical farming or similar measures of agriculture will be made with sustainability in mind. To start with, best option is to find empty industrial areas and buildings, or abandoned sites that would have suitable space for these building-based farms and ideally the possibility to cut costs using solar panels instead of electricity. Empty slots and buildings will be put to use instead of letting them get into a bad condition and even pose a safety hazard for unsuspecting day trippers or the environment in case of a fire. For example, in a news article from 2018, several abandoned buildings are described standing along highway 10, as if waiting for someone to set them ablaze.

Further communication with the municipality is required to take a next step forward and agree on more specific practices - going through potential municipality owned sites and buildings for vertical farming, and also looking for unused places that still haven't been claimed by the municipality. Sustainable development of land use benefits both the residents and climate. Therefore, allotments and other recreational places can be established to enhance the greenery of the environment.

These maps illustrate the possible vertical farming locations that are refurbished. The colors are shown the 20-minute travel range of vertical farming stores by cycling. People in Hämeenlinna can quickly reach a vertical farming location by cycling or walking to take their groceries or ordering food from the application on their phone and choosing the delivery method. So, the delivery can happen by walking, cycling, or drone without any fossil fuel use.

The fate of abandoned buildings is not always unambiguous, even in cases where the city has already redeemed the lands of the region. The city may simply have no use for an already run-down building or a desolate site. Some abandoned or otherwise empty sites and plots are well-suited for vertical farming and other measures that allow us to develop sustainable actions in the area.