urban biomass & air filtration


green building by Hundertwasser

Building as greenspace by Hundertwasser, Vienna.

reasons for having increased biomass:

  • Air purification - dust and toxins are filtered out of the air (up to 97% on an urban street)
  • Temperature moderation - reduction of “heat island” effect
  • Moisture retention and re-evapouration
  • Noise suppression
  • Oxygen - plants are the lungs of the world
  • Wildlife - increase in diversity
  • Beauty - making cities better places to be in
  • Food production (see edible landscapes)
vertical planting by Patric Blanc

Vertical Planting of buildings by Patrick Blanc

We need to have far more greenery (biomass), especially in our urban centres but also in the suburbs and rural areas too. Biomass is the lungs of the world, which is fast diminishing and we need to build new forest canopies - right in our urban centres. The UK is one of the least wooded countries in Europe, with only 7% forest cover, and we have lost 45% of our remaining ancient and semi natural woodland in the last 50 years.

Biomass is especially important in cities. We are now (since the millennium) an urban society, with over half the world's population living in massive urban centres, many in devastatingly bad conditions.

In the uk, this situation is more stable, but greening of our environment is still a crucial issue. Plants play a major role in improving air quality, absorbing dust and airborne pollutants, moderating noise, temperatures and air moisture etc. Plants make cities more beautiful places to live, reducing stress and increasingly, can and should be used for urban food production (see edible landscapes).

In urban centres, opportunities for planting may seem limited if judged by traditional landscaping criteria. However, lateral thinking can vastly increase the potential and availability of suitable space. Building surfaces can be retrofitted to provide vertical landscapes, plus balconies and green roof space. Streets could become like open forest, with multiple layered canopies, also reflected on horizontal building planes. Vertical swamps can run down the sides of buildings, filtering and cleansing greywater, ready to irrigate landscaped areas or to be pumped, by solar power, to other vertical plantings. Such things need to become the standard fabric of urban buildings. Energy consumption is reduced too, as such coverings insulate the building from both cold and heat.

This is an area where some pioneering work has been done, especially on green or living roofs, but much remains to be explored. I am undertaking work of this nature through my new company, BioTecture Ltd (see links page).

I have recently worked on a Design Strategy for the London School of Economics (see projects), exploring such ideas for urban environments.