UK town could be home to world’s most sustainable tower
Photo courtesy of Jetson Green
The town of Hemel Hempstead, which is located about 24 miles from London, might soon be home to the world’s most sustainable residential tower.
The proposed building called The Beacon would house luxury sustainable apartments, reports Jetson Green. It will also feature on-site renewable energy generation and several energy conservation technologies.
The building will feature a central atrium, which will also function as a greenhouse. The tower will also have an efficient natural ventilation system in place. According to the designers, the ventilation system combined with the clean air created by the plants atrium garden will ensure that the entire building gets fresh, pure air.
The balconies and roof will be fitted with solar panel arrays. There will also be grey water and rainwater collection systems, which will feed the toilets.
Heating and cooling will be provided via ground and air source heat pumps, while the apartments will feature underfloor heating. The windows will be triple glazed, while the building will also have “excellent” thermal and acoustic insulation.
In fact, the designers claim that the renewable energy harvested on-site will be sufficient for the entire tower to function completely independently of the grid. This will greatly reduce the carbon footprint of the building, and will result in very low monthly utility bills.
While the building will be constructed using concrete, the designers will ensure that it is produced as close to the build site as possible. They will also be using 35,000 tons of excavated chalk and clay to infill non-load-bearing walls of the tower.
No construction date has been scheduled.
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