Green Buildings with water harvesting to clean the Environment and blue economy

Introduction

Many homeowners are turning their attention to gardens as a way to add greenery to their homes, especially in cities that are becoming more polluted. Installing plants at home requires that you have the knowledge and the time to care for them. Maintaining a garden is more than a personal responsibility. Residents of housing complexes must ensure that their personal gardens are in compliance with the code of conduct and do not impact other residents.

The world has seen some degree of technological and industrial revolution over the past 20 years. Despite its many benefits for humanity, this revolution has created a disturbing level of interaction between humans and the environment. If our current methods of interacting with the environment continue to be ignored, the world will experience rapidly increasing and dangerously increasing effects on its quality of life. One concern in relation to the ecosystem is that as global greenhouse-gas levels continue to rise, planets temperature will also rise. This will cause melting of the glaciers and serious changes to global weather conditions. For instance, building materials from their resource extraction through manufacturing, use, and disposal have become a vital part of the total human effects on global ecosystems and the earth’s climate. Rousseau says that the challenge of finding the right raw materials and energy to make building materials has become a global problem over the past 50 years. This is due to the rapid increase in urbanization around the world. Current estimates suggest that the world’s built environment accounts for about one-third of all global environmental impacts. Global greenhouse gas (GHG),40% of the world’s energy, while reducing emissions.

Because of rising population, there is an increase in demand for housing. More housing development also results in higher environmental impacts. The challenge facing Architectural practice today is to find ways to balance or harmonize the built environment, environmental technology, and aesthetics. Without these essential components, ecological/green design is impossible to realize.

Ecology can also be described as the study and study of living systems. Eco-friendly architecture, which uses nature symbolism, is the integration of architecture and the landscape to create relations between architectures and their cultural context. It can also be described as the use of nature symbolism to create relationships between architecture and its cultural context. This supports the acceptance of green architecture and allows for the interpretation of objects in that context, creating an ecologically responsible and sustainable architecture. Ecofriendly architecture is a long-term architectural and urban planning idea that depicts the future. It is based on social and political changes that may impact the construction and environment policy.

Green Building in India

In 2003, the Green Building movement in India began to gain momentum. 20,000 sq. 20,000 sq.In 2003, 717crores sq. ft (source: Indian Green Building Council (IGBC)) green footprint in India today. The country has nearly 6,000 green projects, and more than 5.77 million acres of large development projects. This has helped to reach 75% of its green building footprint target two years before the actual target. After consideration with the government, IGBC has set the goal of 10 billion square footage of green buildings by 2022. A green building is one that uses less water, maximizes energy efficiency, conserves natural resource, generates less waste and creates healthier spaces for its occupants than a traditional building. It is also known to be a high-performance or sustainable building. The use of green buildings design can be enhanced by the existence of various standards and practice codes. Their performance is usually based on certain sustainability criteria that are combined to evaluate the design effect. These criteria are generally focused on sustainable sites, water efficacy, energy and atmosphere as well as material and resource quality.

One billion sq. ft. of green building offers environmental benefits Green Buildings, ft.

The United StatesGreen Building Council ranks India third in green buildings globally, just behind Canada and Mainland China. This number is increasing steadily. GBCI India (Green Business Certification Inc.), has released the list India’s Top 10 States For LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design), one of the most popular green building rating systems. This is the third year the top 10 Indian states have been published. They are ranked in terms of cumulative gross sq. meters (GSM), of LEED-certified space.

LEED is an international symbol for sustainability excellence. It signifies that a building is reducing carbon emissions, conserving natural resources, and cutting down costs. Maharashtra is the top-ranked country, followed by Haryana, Tamil Nadu and Uttar Pradesh. Haryana has moved up the list from last year, passing Tamil Nadu for third place. The Top 10 LEED states are home to more that 843 MillionTogether, Indians include more than 48.38 millionsGross square meters of LEED-certified area. Below are the detailed rankings:

Urban Infrastructure and Farming

In many cities of India, there was a surge in interest in vegetable and flower growing. People have planted everything from aloe vera to basil to ginger, cucumber, tomato, potato, and chili. This interest is likely due to an increase of time at home, but also an attempt by COVID-19 to rethink how we consume food and where it comes from. It’s amazing to see how urban farmers have learned how to farm to bring the best product to the table.

Growing vegetables and fruits at your home means that you can preserve their nutritional value as well as their freshness. This allows you to easily access fresh seasonal produce without the use of chemicals. Balcon gardening was popularized initially by individuals living in gated communities. However, many housing societies are now looking into the possibility of converting their rooftops or terraces to farming zones in an effort to preserve this practice for the greater good.

Many gardening experts have shown how hydroponics (a method that grows plants without soil) and greywater (wastewater generated in homes from sources such as sinks or showers, washing machines, dishwashers, and excluding waste from toilets) can be used to manage water consumption for rooftop farming. These are great ideas, especially in areas with water shortages.

Why is it important?

Rooftop farming is a relatively new concept that is quickly becoming popular among city-dwellers. Rooftop farming is important because it not only meets the growing demand for healthy, fresh, organic vegetables but also makes the environment more greener, cooler and eco-friendly. It also reduces the environmental impact of food transport and makes people aware of what they are consuming each day. Studies have shown that being around green spaces can have positive effects on your well-being, decreasing stress-related issues, anxiety and mood disorders, as well as increasing productivity.

Rooftop Farming: Benefits

Rooftop farming offers many benefits. Here are a few:

• Environmental benefitsRooftop farming improves air quality by filtering and reducing polluted air particles, such as dust and soot. A rooftop farm reduces the carbon footprint by not having to transport food. One of the best things about rooftop farming, is that it reduces the ambient temperature, making the space cooler. Rooftop farming is the best way to make rainwater useable.
• Maximize the use of vacant space: Rooftop farming allows you to make use of spaces that you don’t often use, such as your apartments terrace. If you have the opportunity, why not make the most out of it?
• Local and organic products availableConsuming homegrown produce is healthier than eating out. We may have forgotten how delicious fresh, nutritious vegetables taste in cities. It is not too late to start a terrace garden.
• Community engagementA terrace kitchen garden can be a wonderful thing. However, it is possible to make it a community engagement activity. Residents of a housing association can take care of their plants and reconnect with nature. The best part about this approach is that they can harvest and consume the produce.
• The best way to get out of the city!: If you’re feeling overwhelmed by the city life, you can now grab your getaway from your rooftop. That’s so cool! Nothing is more relaxing than sitting in the middle of green plants and watching them grow. It can also reduce stress and increase happiness.
• Property value increases: Who doesnt like greenery! A blessing is when someone has the opportunity to live in a place where everything is perfect, especially in a big city. You can transform a boring building into a beautiful green landscape with rooftop gardens. This will increase its aesthetic value and property value.

Rainwater Harvesting in India (RWH).

Water is the main resource and vital for the survival of all life forms on Earth. Although 71% of the Earth’s surface is made up of water, approximately 97 percent is not suitable for human consumption. The remaining 3 percent is freshwater, which can be used for human use and is found in rivers, lakes, undergrounds, etc. Groundwater, which is accessible through borewells, tube wells and wells, is the most readily available of all these sources. It is also most likely to run out quickly. The already low levels of groundwater are being threatened by the rapid increase in population and unwarranted climate change, which leads to severe droughts in certain areas.

Rainwater harvesting is a simple technique that collects rainwater for future use. Rainwater can be stored, used in different ways or used directly for recharge. RWH can help to mitigate the effects of climate change and depleting groundwater. Capturing rainwater can recharge local aquifers and reduce urban flooding. It is also a way to ensure water availability in water-scarce areas. Although the term has been more widely used in recent years, it is still a popular rural practice. Madakas, surangas and taankas are some of the oldest rainwater harvesting methods in India.

This water conservation method is easy to implement in your own homes, apartments, parks and offices, as well as temples around the globe. Farmers have refilled their borewells, set up water banks in drought areas and greened their farms. They also increased the sustainability of their water resources and created a river. For a better implementation of the rooftop RWH with storage, technical know-how can be accessed. RWH is an effective method in water-scarce situations and it is also very easy to do.

Rainwater harvesting in diverse end-use sectorsThe Key Driver

• Several countries have launched awareness programs. for promoting rainwater harvesting. They also offer tax exemptions and incentives for rainwater harvesting. Many Indian states have already passed legislation mandating rainwater harvesting systems in construction and in older buildings.
• Rainwater harvesting offers additional benefitsIt helps with irrigation, such as lowering water costs, reducing soil erosion, floods, etc.
• Population growthThis has led to the search for alternative sources of fresh water. Government support in raising awareness about water scarcity and promoting rainwater collection methods is expected to increase the market for rainwater harvesting in the near future.

Asia Pacific is seeing an increase in demand

• Together, the Asia Pacific and Europe accounted for 69.5% of the 2020 rainwater harvesting market. Both rainwater harvesting markets have high potential and are expected to grow at a significant CAGR over the forecast period. The European rainwater harvesting market was dominated by the commercial end-user segment. This is more than any other region. This is due to the high cost of rainwater harvesting in this region.
• Although there are many installations in the Asia Pacific, the unit cost is much lower than that of North America and Europe. Africa and Asia Pacific prefer simple rainwater harvesting methods to more complex ones. They are however compromising on the quality and efficiency of the rainwater harvesting system.

Rainwater harvesting has many advantages

Rainwater harvesting can be an effective way to recycle resources and it can also be beneficial in providing water supply in areas that are in short supply. It helps to reduce the demand on primary water sources while increasing the supply of potable and fresh water for the masses. It is beneficial in urban areas as it increases the efficiency of wastewater treatment plants. The harvested rainwater compensates for the increased demand for clean water. The system installation is simple and easy to maintain by laymen. It also reduces dependence on groundwater and prevents excessive depletion.

Despite the fact that we live in 21st century,^stCentury, it is amazing to note that in a country that has more than 1.38billion inhabitants, 28 states and 4100 cities have only two cities, Thiruvananthapuram or Kota. All other cities with a population of over 1 million get water for approximately 3-4 hours each day. This is not because of a lack of infrastructure, but because of mismanagement of the water distribution systems in the districts. This causes a large portion of the population, especially the poor and the downtrodden, to drink contaminated water for their basic needs, leading to the spread of disease.

Tamil Nadu was the first Indian state that made rainwater harvesting mandatory for buildings in order to reduce groundwater loss. It was done in 2001. Five years later, Chennai’s groundwater levels rose by almost 50% and the quality of water has improved. This initiative was made possible by mass awareness campaigns in urban and rural areas.

After the success of Tamil Nadu’s model, many rules and regulations were introduced by other states. Even the Parliament made efforts to help the cause by introducing the central legislation, The Rainwater (Harvesting and Storage) Bill in the Lok Sabha in 2016.

Numerous predictions have shown that many major cities in the world will soon run out or exhaust their groundwater resources. It is essential to look beyond traditional sources of sustenance and adopt and adapt non-conventional, renewable resources, which are vital for our survival. Rainwater is a renewable resource that is abundant in areas that receive little or no rainfall. The water can be used for irrigation and other domestic chores such as washing and toilet flushing. It will need to be purified further to make it safe to drink. Rainwater collected from rooftops could contain particulate matter like animal and bird feces and dust particles.

All rules and regulations governing rainwater harvesting are legally enforced. They all have one goal: to conserve water, which is the essence of life. The major obstacle to effective implementation of these rules and regulations is the inability of the authorities to provide information and mismanagement. Residents associations claim that instead of each house having a separate rainwater collection system, the authorities should encourage rainwater harvesting in the community. The authorities should also discourage the construction of storage pits for water to store in buildings that already have them. This could lead to seepage or weakening of the foundations.

Blue Economy refers a water-based sustainable economy development that improves human wellbeing, social equity, and reduces environmental risks and ecological scarcities.

Global Blue Economy

The ocean is a potential driver of economic growth, job creation, and innovation and will continue to offer economic opportunities in the future. The estimated value of key water-based assets is around INR. 1,539.73 lakh crores (US$24 trillion, INR. 64.16 is 1US$. The global ocean-based economy has a value estimated at between INR. 192.46 384.92 croresIt is worth US$ 3 to 6 trillion per year and more than 3 billion people depend on it for their livelihoods. The length of the entire coastline in the world is 356 000 km.

India’s Blue Economy Opportunity

India’s coastline is 7,517 kilometers long, making it one the largest peninsulas among the Indian states. It is served by 13 major ports and 200 notified minor or intermediate ports. The state contains 1,382 islands, some of which are uninhabited. Additionally, the state has a total length of 16,000 km of Rivers & Canals, which allows for water transport, particularly in the plains sections.

Blue Economy Challenges

A series of challenges limit the potential to grow the blue-economy.

• OverfishingBecause of technological advancements and poorly managed fish stocks access, and rising demand.
• Habitat degradationThis is mainly due to coastal development, deforestation and mining, as well as unsustainable fishing practices. Infrastructure and livelihoods are also affected by coastal erosion.
• Climate change-related phenomena — both slow onset events like sea-level rise and more intense and frequent weather events. While long-term impacts of climate change on ocean systems are uncertain, it’s clear that changes in ocean temperature, acidity, major oceanic currents and other factors, including sea level rise, threaten marine life.
• Unfair trade: Exclusive Economic Zones, zones in which a country has special rights over exploration of and use of marine resource, are crucial for the economies of island countries. They often dwarf their respective landmass or governments administrative capabilities.
• Ad hoc development: Unplanned, unregulated development in the narrow coastline interface and nearshore areas has resulted in significant externalities among sectors, suboptimal sitting of infrastructure, overlapping uses land and sea areas, marginalization and degradation of critical habitats, as well as significant externalities.
• Lack of skilled labor and technical ability.
• Insufficient funds to support Blue Economy operations.
• Overcome the Blue Economy Challenges

A more systematic approach that is based on a better understanding national priorities, social context, as well as the resource base can lead to sustainable and inclusive blue-growth. In order to manage different activities efficiently and sustainably, countries are becoming more aware of their biophysical characteristics, carrying capabilities, synergies or trade-offs.

To give authorities, businesses, communities, and communities a better view of this unique space, marine and coastal spatial planning, as well as integrated maritime surveillance, are essential. Digital mapping of maritime space and coastal natural assets can provide a basis for cross-sector analysis to avoid conflicts and externalities.

Similar to the science of data-limited stocks assessments, it can provide critical information necessary for improved fisheries management. Mobile technology is being used in places like South Africa and Indonesia to collect previously unobtainable data, such as information on fishery landings or stock health.

The most vulnerable areas to climate changes and natural hazards are the coasts. There are risks of flooding, erosion, sea-level rising, and extreme weather events resulting from ad hoc developments. The Integrated Coastal Zone Management, or ICZM, coordinates the application of various policies affecting the coast zone and maritime activities. ICZM can be described as an iterative process. It includes a variety different approaches, including mapping, delineation, demarcation of coastal sediment cells and hazard lines, and building the capacity for agencies, institutions and communities to make informed choices about growing the blue economic within the limits of its living natural resources base.

The blue economy must be able to evaluate the value of marine resources. Not only is the value of marine living resources not well understood and measured, but it is also not properly valued.

Human Capital: Skilled labor in all developing countries is highly in demand and is very relevant to the blue economic system. Investments in the wider blue economy and skills training for fishermen who are unable to make a living from the aquatic resources can result in win-wins for all sectors and help conserve the environment.

Secured Governance Concept

Secured Governance envisions rapid economic development through natural resource utilization, blue economy implementation and a vision of secure governance. It prioritises immediate development needs and the interests blue economy developers and extractive industry over the proactive preservation and enhancement of ecosystem services. It was eventually developed over time to reflect possible construction and development with minimal government investment. This type of secured governance function, which involves many interacting mechanisms that control and define them, will provide substantial benefits.

Aside from the obvious benefits of increased revenue from coastal development, there is another major advantage: a significant increase in India’s export and import of natural resource. While improving valuation methods will result in more rational coastal land-use decisions it will also design sustain additional revenues to the government. It will also improve our understanding of ecological-economic mechanism that contribute to the natural capital assets’ value. Blue economy innovation is driven by business-level innovations using locally sourced resources. It focuses on job creation, building social capital, and creating multiple cash flows through stimulating entrepreneurship.

Secured Governance is a strategy that allows for all of the basic infrastructure development to be completed with minimal investment from the Government. Both inland and marine water resources as well as activities such shipping, fishing and tourism, oil & Gas, renewable energy and aquatic plants. The blue economy concept will be adopted. The blue economy orientation in the development policies of islands and inland waters bodies is expected to bring more benefits. This is the concept of creating Smart Cities (Hubs) on islands that will serve as growth centers for specific sectors and mini-HUBs within coastal villages.

Secured Governance focuses on increasing private participation while significantly reducing government involvement. Instead of getting involved in the nitty gritty of Blue Economy projects, the government plays a more supervisory and monitoring role.

The Blue Economy allied projects are valued and valued to make it self-sustaining while bringing unprecedented growth, development and economic opportunity for the region.

• Smart City Development & Tourism Hob development in IslandsSecured Governance: The Blue Economy concept is used to implement Smart City development in the Islands to promote economic growth in India.
• Mini HUBs located near inland water bodies: Attractive locations along waterways and in inland water bodies now have a new recreation facility and artificial tourism spot. There are also support activities for navigation, places for camping in rural areas, clubhouses, hotels, restaurant services, and service stations for small boats. These mini-HUBs bring significant economic benefits for their locality. They increase employment and land and property values. They also improve the economic competitiveness, and well-being, of nearby areas.
• Nano HUBs in Indian coastal villagesThe HUB connects three market elements: processing, marketing, and production to increase the competitiveness of rural economies. The rural economy’s blue elements are the value chain. The HUB’s core functions include coordination, integration and marketing. These core functions include repair of fishing boats and nets, fish processing to reduce post-harvest losses and fish marketing.

Social BenefitConceptually, it helps people in areas like HUBs or Mini HUBs. This gives them greater access and more opportunities for employment. The region’s output will increase, including tourism and other allied facilities or services. This is a reflection of an improvement in living standards.

Economic Benefit: Encourage innovation and new ideas in India’s water-based region. Significantly increase the value of land and economic growth. Stimulating foreign and private investment would be a good idea. INR. 1.5 lakh croresAnd create 20 MillionLocals have new opportunities for employment and business opportunities. Around 3.6%Private investment could bring additional revenue to the Indian states.

Conclusion

Are you aware of the potential environmental damage that your residential or commercial building could cause? Is it possible your building could be emitting harmful pollutants without you even realizing? We are well aware that there are many environmental issues, including water and air pollution, and we know what to do to address them. Not only would it save the environment, but it would also help us to reduce our total ownership costs.

The second-largest source of demolition waste and greenhouse gas emissions (35-40%) is the construction industry. Buildings use the most energy during construction, and then later for lighting and air-conditioning. While many amenities like lighting, air conditioner, and water heating offer comfort to building occupants it also consumes a lot of energy, which can lead to increased pollution. Occupants also produce a lot of solid and liquid waste.

Sustainable architecture is architecture that minimizes the environmental impact of buildings. These green buildings that are sustainably constructed are resource-efficient and environmentally friendly, from their location selection to demolition at the end of their lifecycle. A green building is more energy-efficient than a regular structure and produces less waste and greenhouse gases.

It is not about being more efficient. It’s about building buildings that maximize the use of local materials, local ecology, as well as to reduce power, water, material requirements. These are the things that will make it clear that traditional architecture was actually very green. According to VA estimates India could save over a billion dollars if all buildings in Indian cities were to adopt green building principles. 8,400 megawattsIt is sufficient to lighten the darkness with its power 550,000Homes are built every year. The Blue Economy is a growing force in global activities. This presents great opportunities for innovation in coastal management and navigation assistance as well as biodiversity protection. The Blue Economy is a way to increase local economic activity and create jobs within knowledge-intensive economic sector. In order to better address the challenges of coastal regions and inland water bodies, new services are needed. Local and regional authorities should not hesitate to invest more in the adoption of new technologies. To develop strong, vibrant local economies, it is essential to encourage and increase collaboration among all actors in the value chain.

By,
Dr. P. Sekhar, Chairman,

Unleashing India Global Smart City Panel & MTGF

Dr. Ashok Aur,

Eminent Speaker and Award winning Global Expert and Director of the Center of Excellence on Agri and Horticulture

Summary

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Green Buildings with water harvesting to clean the Environment and blue economy

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The world has seen some degree of technological and industrial revolution over the past 20 years. Despite its many benefits for humanity, this revolution has created a disturbing level of interaction between our environment and us.

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TPT News Bureau

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THE POLICY TIMES

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