In the future, wars will be fought over water, not oil.

Many eminent thinkers have predicted that future wars will be fought not over oil but, over water because our access to clean, potable water is threatened by industrialisation, pollution and our own profligacy. Most of us, especially urban folk, just don’t seem to value it enough; after all, it just takes the twist of a tap to turn it on. For the rural woman who spends a major part of her day trying to get a few pots of water for her family’s drinking, bathing and cooking requirements, it is very precious commodity indeed.

There are many, many things we can do to alleviate this situation and, if we don’t act on it immediately, all the doomsday predictions may very well be fulfilled. It may look like we have a mountain to climb, but if we take it one step at a time, it’s not that hard.

Saving Water

There are many ways to skin a cat. The Internet will give you a thousand ways to save water – some practical, some not so. Here are a few from an architectural point of view.
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Recycling Water

It’s not just enough to reduce our consumption of this precious resource. What we do use, can – to a large extent – be recycled very easily.
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Harvesting Rainwater

We have a mountain to climb, but if we take it one step at a time, it’s really not that hard.

A lot of people are thoroughly confused after reading half-baked media articles on Rainwater Harvesting (RWH) and most, as a consequence, dismiss it as an impractical fantasy. Not true. RWH will soon prove to be the only way forward in most cities.
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The incandescent bulb is the most common – and one of the least energy-efficient lighting options for brightening a space. Today we have numerous fluorescent type fittings; both, the old tubelight and modern compacts which retro-fit into incandescent holders. Light Emitting Diodes – LEDs – are rapidly getting cheaper and have now reached a level of affordability. The ways of lighting an interior or exterior space are numerous. We’ll touch on a few common ones here and see how they compare.

Daylight

Apart from being free, studies have shown that natural light improves productivity and has significant health benefits compared to artificial light. Getting natural light into your home or office is not difficult to do – all it takes is a little planning by the architect at the design stage. It is necessary, of course, that the designer take care of glare and solar heat-gain but, once these factors are accounted for, there’s nothing better than sunshine to light up your life.

Unlike in Europe and North America, in peninsular India, light from the north-east is the best because it is glare-free. In fact, that’s why vastu stipulates that you put your study in that very corner of your house. Conversely, the south-west is where the glare is the worst, so it’s better to have shade giving trees to protect you on that side. If you are living in the extreme north of our country, however, where it is really cold in winter, you’d want to open out your southern side and achieve some heat gain. For the rest of us, reflected and indirect light is the best.

The mechanics of day lighting are more complicated and will, time-willing, have a page of their own but suffice to say that every architect should try to achieve adequate lighting without building up heat inside the building.

Tube Lights

Tubelights have been around for a while and, because of the harsh light they gave off in their early days, there are numerous people who detest their very existence. But tubelights are efficient and their colour temperature has improved dramatically in recent times which makes them as comfortable to use, if not more so, than an ordinary bulb.

Tubelights have a long life and their drawback, if any, it is that they require a bit of extra energy to start up. Newer electronic chokes have reduced this surge but it’s still often better to leave a tubeliight on than to turn it off and then re-start it within a few minutes.

Compact Fluorescent Lights (CFLs)

CFLs are the new tubelights – they have been squeezed and twisted so that they can replace ordinary bulbs. And they should! CFLs consume just 25% of the energy that a bulb does and are available in “soft white” which is easy on the eyes. Granted, they cost more, but the energy saved is more than paid back during its life which is 10 times as long as a bulb.

LEDs

LEDs or Light Emitting Diodes are extremely energy efficient and should last for at least 10 years of continuous usage. They are becoming cheaper as production ramps up and the technology improves. They are still expensive when compared to the other forms of lighting but, as the comparison shows, that cost is more than paid back in the long term.

Efficiency Shootout

Here is a comparison that tells you approximately how much you benefit by installing fluorescent fittings or LEDs in place of incandescent ones. Note that the figures are approximate and likely to change as time goes by.

As you can see, we can no longer say that the ordinary tubelight is still king. LEDs have a rated life of 25,000 hours although the drivers (transformers) will only last for half as long.  Like the new fluorescent fittings, they are usually available at colour temperatures that closely resembles daylight.

External Links

Philips India Lighting
Osram India
Havells Lighting
GE Asia Pacific

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Glass curtain walls and façades, seen as signs of modernity & progress, are inappropriate for our tropical climate.

Unfortunately, there is a strong trend in India these days towards designing building with glass curtain walls. These are seen as making a break from the bad old days when we were perennially short of power and couldn’t afford to run air-conditioning to keep ourselves cool. Well, I have some news for people with this view — we’re still perennially short of power and cannot afford to run so much air-conditioning.

Our country has a huge shortfall of electric power and that’s not going to change any time soon — at least not unless we suddenly manage to generate power from cold-fusion. In the meanwhile, huge quantities of fossil fuel will continue to be burned thereby exacerbating climate change and making things even worse for everybody and their pet dog.

Glass curtain-wall buildings are inappropriate for our climate for two reasons:

1. Having a glass skin means that the inside is subjected to an enhanced greenhouse effect. Glass easily allows short wavelength light to pass through. Once this light has reflected off objects in the room, is of a longer wavelength which glass blocks. As a result, the internal temperature of the building builds up because the heat has now been trapped.
2. This trapped heat has, somehow, to be expelled and – since there is never any significant natural ventilation in a glass building – this calls for massive (and environmentally expensive) air-conditioning. Let us not also forget that living and working in permanently enclosed spaces leads what is known as “sick building syndrome”.

Heat-reducing glass is like a pick-pocket returning your empty wallet.

Glass manufacturers will claim that their specialised products reduce heat build-up by 30%-40%. What they don’t tell you that not having a glass wall in the first place will reduce your heat-gain by twice that amount!

Another specious argument put forth is that using glass walls reduces the usage of electricity for lighting. Again, this is half-truth. Let us, for a moment, leave aside the amount of glare that people working inside such buildings have to put up with.

Consider a 10m² space.  Under normal circumstances, the air-conditioning load would be about 3,500W (or 2,500kW if you’re using a highly efficient HVAC system).  Lighting the space needs less than 100W if you’re using fluorescent lights and even less if you’re using LED fittings.

Now, the maximum saving you can achieve in lighting is 100W. On the other hand, your HVAC energy requirements will increase exponentially.  Even if expensive special glass is used, I’m afraid no amount of mathematical spin can bury this simple fact.

There are other aspects too, although unrelated to energy consumption. Migratory birds get confused by the glass and often die or sustain critical injuries when they slam against the huge transparent panes.

Further, if you happen to be in a glass building during a fire, there is no scope for ventilation so you asphyxiate–unless the glass curtain wall shatters, thereby endangering both, you and your rescuers from the fire department.

We can easily save energy and reduce our energy consumption by taking a few simple steps. Most are not too expensive and they pay back fairly quickly.

Solar Hot Water

It’s one of the cheapest and simplest ways to save a huge amount of energy and the payback period is pretty short. The panels to be installed are basic and require very little maintenance. Essentially, the technology consists of nothing but copper pipes which zigzag behind a glass pane and heat the water that runs through them. This water is stored in an insulated tank so that if you wake up at the crack of dawn and try to have a bath, there’ll probably be some warm water for you to use. That’s if you didn’t use it up the previous night.
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Passive Cooling in Tropical Climates

For centuries, until the invention of electricity, architects simply had to take into account the ways of the weather so that the interior of a home or workplace was comfortable for its tenants. In India, it led to the development of the Vastu Shastras – an ancient science that has now been obfuscated into a first class superstition… But that’s another story.
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Energy-Efficient Lighting

The incandescent bulb is the most common – and one of the most wasteful – ways of lighting a space. Today we have numerous fluorescent type fittings; both, the old tubelight as well as modern compacts which retro-fit into incandescent holders. Light Emitting Diodes – LEDs are rapidly getting cheaper and have now reached a level of affordability.
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Star Rated Equipment

India’s Bureau of Energy Efficiency (BEE) has created a system of energy rating for a large range of appliances, equipment and light fixtures. Air-conditioners are, of course, the biggest guzzlers here and, while the initial expense is high if you choose, say, an inverter type, consistent use over time will more than offset the cost. BEE has created an interactive Energy Calculator to tell you how much you would save for different ratings of air conditioners.

Glass Façades in Tropical Climates

In our country today, glass-walled buildings are looked upon as indicative of progress and modernity and an international aesthetic. But the fallout of using such climatically inappropriate designs, is soaring energy consumption and sick-building syndrome.
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The microclimate of a particular location or site is controlled – to a great extent – by it’s landscape and terrain. In a predominantly hot country like India the plantation of trees plays a vital role in preventing the build-up of heat. They shade the ground (and the walls of low-rise buildings) with their canopy and, combined with their transpiration, trees can lower temperatures in their immediate surroundings by as much as 5°C. Also, in conjunction with shrubs they can help in channelling prevailing breezes and improve comfort levels indoors as well as outdoors.

It is important, from the point of view of sustainability, to preserve what we can of a site’s natural ecosystem. This includes not just the flora and fauna but also the natural drainage patterns. We all know how landscaping can transform the aesthetics of a place but not many of us realise that greenery does more than just look pretty. Out choices affect what birds, butterflies and other creatures will survive not just in our own property but in the immediate surrounding areas as well.

For example, if milkweed plants like the calotropis sp. grow commonly in the area and we say, “oh, they’re ugly – let’s get rid of them”, then we’re not merely removing a species of plant but also banishing a number of small creatures – many of them attractive – that depend on the calotropis for their survival. I am not for a minute advocating that one should allow one’s garden to grow wild but merely pointing out that landscaping involves more than just choosing pretty plants.

Plant Appropriately

It is not merely enough to know where you are going to grow something; it is equally important to know what you are growing and how it affects the local ecosystem.

The subject of exotic versus native trees has generated a lot of debate but my own personal opinion is that, whenever possible, it is better to plant a local tree instead of one that belongs to a different ecosystem.
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Reduce Hard Paving

City folk seem to have an obsession with paving every inch of land they see. This leads to a huge increase of rainwater runoff which, in turn, overloads the storm-water systems and results in flooding – sometimes with disastrous consequences. Soil, especially when well planted, allows a large percentage of the rain that falls on it, to penetrate the ground and recharge the water table beneath. This, in turn, allows plants to grow more naturally, gives us sweet water in the dry season and, in coastal areas, prevents the egress of saline water.
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Give Nature a Home

Nature’s creatures respond very quickly to favourable conditions, so if you want to attract birds, butterflies or other creatures, it is just a matter of finding out what they need. Only remember that nothing exists in isolation so if, for example, you plant flowers to attract butterflies, you’re going to have predatory creatures like spiders trying to eat them (the butterflies, not the flowers) and you’ll have to be grateful for both!
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Prevent Erosion

Sometimes you’re faced with a situation where erosion becomes a major problem. Usually, through landscaping, you should be be able to either eliminate the problem or, at the very least, bring it under control. In 2003, a client of mine bought a tract of land along the Narmada river where the soil was so powdery that even a little rainfall would create a channel in the ground. Today, that site is a great example of how to deal with soil erosion in a totally natural and eco-friendly way.
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Tread Lightly on the Land

In my experience developers, who are trying to sell multiple plots of land, often spend huge amounts of money completely flattening everything in sight. We are then left with a veritable desert because he has also chopped ever tree, ripped out every bush and completely eliminated the ground cover – not to mention mixed the fertile topsoil with the useless layer underneath. Worst of all, he has managed to completely destroy the natural drainage patterns of the entire development and many others downstream as well.

It is not correct to blame the developer alone for such a situation. He is doing this because he believes that unless he provides a completely level a plot, it will never sell. The demand for levelled land often comes from the clients and, in some cases, their architects. So unless the promoter of the project is already enlightened on the environmental fallout of such indiscriminate levelling (or if he is somehow made aware before the bulldozers move in) this is a very common scenario.

It doesn’t have to be this way and there are a number of things we can do to preserve the ecology of a given site.

Preserve Topsoil

Topsoil is the uppermost layer of the earth – just a few fragile inches of organically rich soil that allows the growth of plants. On average, it is said that a single inch of topsoil takes a century to be created. This, then, makes it imperative that we do all we can to preserve and protect it. Almost always, during construction activity it is lost and, once the building is built, new topsoil has to be imported from somewhere else thereby making some other land infertile.

Pretty senseless, isn’t it?

Now it is a labour-intensive process to take off a layer of topsoil and store it for the duration of construction but it is by no means difficult. All it needs is for the clients to be willing to pay a tiny fraction extra of the total project cost even if the average contractor thinks they’re loony.

The topsoil can be piled in a corner of the site (or stored in bags) where is doesn’t come in anyone’s way and then spread out where required when the landscaping is to be done.

Keep the Existing Vegetation

Every piece of land has a certain character that makes it what it is. Unless you’re buying a plot in a development where everything has already been killed, this character are probably what attracted you to that particular piece of land in the first place. So then why do we not preserve the vegetation as much as possible. Sure, we’re sometimes faced with impossible situations and have to cut a tree or some bushes. In such cases, we should replant at least three times the number to compensate.

More often than not, we can save trees that are “in the way” and actually make them an important part of the design. This needs for the architect to be creative and, equally importantly, for the contractor and his team to be sensitised to such a requirement. From experience I have found that a contractor, labourer or even a truck driver delivering material to the site considers them to be obstacles that must be gotten rid of because they hinder the free flow of materials and labour. Contractors must therefore be made aware before the work starts that you are very keen on protecting such vegetation. If you think you can safely tell them at some “appropriate time”, it will probably be too late.

Maintain Drainage Patterns

A plot of land doesn’t exist in isolation. It is merely a small part of a large jigsaw puzzle that covers the entire earth. In non-urban settings, especially in areas of high rainfall, any water that passes through your land eventually goes to someone else’s. If we change that and either block the water’s entry into the site (or exit from it) we are interfering with the overall system.

While it is true that even natural drainage patterns often change on their own, they do so only when there is an alternative. Suddenly blocking the natural flow of water is either foolhardy (if you’re trying to keep every drop out) or selfish (if you’re trying to keep every drop to yourself).

Again, sometimes we have to modify a watercourse but it should be done in such a way as to not affect the people who live downstream. For example, there was a site in Zirad, Alibaug, where the entire plot, especially the part where the house was to be built, would be flooded during most of the monsoon making it potentially impossible for the clients to enter or leave the house during those months. Their early attempts to make a straight stone dam at the point where it entered the site came a cropper when the first rains washed it away. Surprisingly, this dam had been suggested by the local villagers – which leads me to believe that they’ve been living off the sale of land (instead of what they produced from it) for far too long.

While there is no static rule for dealing with storm drainage the attempt should be two-fold:

1. Try and preserve the entry and exit points for water to and from your site
2. Allow the water to flood gracefully. Trying to restrict it too much will invite trouble at some stage. The massive flooding in Bombay (Mumbai) in July 2005 was a result of the Mithi river being constricted to such an extent that, by the time it broke its embankments, it had swollen to unnatural levels.

When starting to design any architectural project – especially one that is located outside city limits – it is essential that the architect study the ecology of the site and ensure that the impact on the land is minimised. Like the materials used, the design of and methods utilised to build a structure can have far reaching effects on not just the inhabitants but on nature as well.

Site Ecology & Building Footprint

A building’s footprint is not merely the land area that it covers – it includes the impact on the surrounding land and on the earth’s resources as a whole. When designing, say a house outside the city, the architect must carefully study the site to see if the natural flow of water can be maintained, if the natural vegetation and top-soil can be preserved and find ways to minimise pressure on the surrounding ecology by working within the limits of sustainability.
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Trees, Landscaping & Microclimate

Trees can lower the ambient temperature at a site by something like 4°-5° C and regulate humidity in the bargain. They also act as sun and wind barriers in harsh climates, bind the soil to prevent erosion, help rain water to recharge underground aquifers and create oxygen so that we can all breathe. To reach their full potential, trees take a long time to grow but, despite this, people often don’t think twice before chopping them down.
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Learning from Local Tradition

When travelling around the country – especially to smaller towns and, particularly, villages – one can’t help but notice the different styles and materials that are used by the local people. Except in cases where outside influence has destroyed the local vernacular, one sees a definite pattern.
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Reducing Construction Waste & Pollution

Construction is, usually, an extremely energy-intensive activity. Whereas our predecessors worked relatively quietly with hand tools, today’s construction site is a noisy, dirty place.
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Why Asbestos is Poison

Asbestos reinforced cement sheets make for a cheap and effective roofing system that minimises the amount of steel used to erect it. Asbestos itself is a naturally occurring mineral found in many places and the fibre is known to cause Lung Cancer and Asbestosis – a disease that is painfully debilitating and often leads to death.

Because the material has been used so extensively and for so long, the asbestos cement sheet industry has become rich, powerful and entrenched. Apologists for these companies blow smoke in your eyes and have (so far) prevented the material from being banned here – unlike in some other nations.

The companies, at least in India, have two standard arguments:

1. The fibres used here are not blue asbestos (crocidolite), but white asbestos (chrysotile) which is “safer”. That’s like saying they’ll kill you with regular dynamite instead of blowing you to bits with semtex – and even this argument is probably flawed.Until the 1950s, scientists – while admitting the health hazards of asbestos – made no distinction between the types or their ability to cause diseases. When in 1960, it was found by one Dr. J.C. Wagner in South Africa that blue asbestos caused malignant mesothelioma (cancer of the linings of the lungs, chest and abdomen), it caused a furore in the industry there.Interestingly, since it was chrysotile that was the major asbestos of commerce and used in the U.K. and U.S., industry seized blue asbestos as the culprit, declaring that white asbestos has not been similarly implicated and so it is safe. Full story
2. Manufacturers will also tell you that once the asbestos fibre is locked into a sheet, it’s perfectly safe. That may well be true, but when a sheet is cut or drilled on site – and it almost always is – some fibres are bound to be released. Even if we discount the risk to the end-user and grant that the exposure may not be sufficient to cause any health problems, what about the poor labourer who mines the material? It gets into his lungs every day of his working life and a large part is carried home on his person and his clothing, thereby exposing his family to the very same risks. I’m sorry, but that is just not acceptable. And if anyone tries to say that there are safety standards, I’d ask them which world they’re living in. Safety standards in this country are conspicuous by their absence.Although more than 40 countries – most with far better safety standards – have already banned all kinds of asbestos, our politicians still try to question the rationale. After all, life is cheap in a country of 1 billion people and lobbying by large companies always works. I’m sorry if I sound cynical but there are just too many many horror stories to read about.

So what are the Alternatives?

So far, the only non-asbestos corrugated sheets I’ve come across are “Hi-Tech” (that’s the cheesy brand name) made by Everest Industries. They use polypropylene fibres instead to bind the cement and are available as plain grey sheets or in three or four pre-coated colours.

Everest Hi-Tech is an ideal roofing and cladding material for factories and warehouses in a variety of industries viz. Food, Pharmaceuticals, Textile, Engineering, Chemical, Automobiles, Metallurgical etc. It is particularly suitable where the factory/ warehouse need to conform to globally accepted and export compliant construction norms.

Everest also makes asbestos products by the way so it may be a deterrent for some but I’d rather encourage the alternative material because unless enough demand is created, the manufacturers will never give up on asbestos. So far, they don’t sell the sheets retail but do so only on a project basis from their factory at Coimbatore; if your quantity is small, it’ll work out slightly expensive. I’ve yet to come across other companies making similar products but hope they do in the near future.

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