8 Jan 2014 – Chinatown’s Horses getting ready for their Year!
After May sent this link, wanted to shoot some pix for her:
http://e360.yale.edu/feature/singapore_takes_the_lead_in_green_building_in_asia/2720/
By encouraging the adoption of innovative architectural design and energy-saving technologies, Singapore has emerged as a model of green building in Asia…
Across town, a new hotel, Parkroyal on Pickering, displays its green credentials in the form of an artfully tiered façade dotted with tropical ferns and creeping vines. Along with an efficient cooling system, its green perks include rainwater harvesting, lighting sensors, and high performance window glass and hot water pumps. Entering the wood-paneled lobby, which has a wall of tropical mosses, a visitor is reminded of a rainforest — no matter that the building lies in the heart of the banking capital of Southeast Asia.
In Singapore everything is driven by the economy – Ng Eng Kiong, president of the Singapore Green Building Council.
Thus, a future economic downturn as serious as the 2008 financial crisis could potentially reverse some of Singapore’s green-building gains. The BCA reports that some of the city-state’s older buildings have a lifespan of just 10 to 15 years — a fact that could further deter long-term investments in sustainability.
The above well-written and interesting article is by Mike Ives. Was trying to go there for a buffet but was side-track to a local chicken noddle instead. Still would like to try the buffet another time. If really observant, one could see that some of the interior vertical gardens do need maintenance. Some of the views from certain rooms are not too scenic, ie facing Chinatown’s HDB/public housing where laundry are hung out to dry!
Tue: belated yummy birthday lunch (chicken in black sauce with noodles) for Leonard in Chinatown. Appreciations to him for guiding me thru’ some of the shops. Always such fun with Leonard (besides being my computer guru) as he knows where the latest good local eating and shopping joints are.
is that the greenest building is the building that doesn’t get built. Since construction almost always degrades a building site, not building at all is preferable to green building, in terms of reducing environmental impact. The second rule is that every building should be as small as possible. The third rule is not to contribute to sprawl , even if the most energy-efficient, environmentally sound methods are used in design and construction. Urban infill sites are preferable to suburban “greenfield” sites.
Thanks for stopping by and for you comment. And yes not building at all is preferable but that is unfortunately not the case in a crowded city! So the other alternative is to try to build something eco-friendly.
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