Green And Brown Networks: Time To Give Up On The Car?

The German city of Hamburg is developing a plan to become ca-rfree over the next two decades. This will be achieved through a network of interconnected parks, playgrounds, sports fields, allotments and cemeteries (gruenes netz) which will link up to enable people to walk or cycle safely to most parts of the city. 

Green networks in Hamburg, congestion charges in London and cycle superhighways in Copenhagen suggest that the car is no longer being seen as a viable means of transport in the future and that more sustainable systems are being sought.

Can the green network model be applied to African cities? The answer is that there already numerous 'brown networks' of paths that people use to walk between points in many cities and villages. These are informal routes; between buildings, besides rivers and through unused parts of the city. These are muddy in wet weather and can be narrow, overgrown and dangerous.

Formalizing these routes could make a significant improvement to urban mobility and would not be expensive. Obstacles could be removed and routes could be made wider and more even. Solar lighting and the strategic location of  small stalls (spazas) for passing trade could be used to improve safety and support small businesses. Dedicated pedestrian routes away from roads would supplement public transports networks and reduce accidents caused by people walking along roads. The development and maintenance work involved in these routes could also be easily carried out by unemployed trainees (on Expanded Public Works or  Tshepo10,000 programmes), creating employment.

Therefore, greening the brown route networks of African cities may be a sensible alternative to the ongoing, and increasing expenditure, on roads, especially as leading world cities appear to be giving up on the car.

Neighbourhood Facilities for Sustainability

It is increasingly acknowledged that current plans to implement sustainability are not achieving the scale and speed of change required. National built environment strategies to address sustainability tend to focus on large-scale programmes in areas such as renewable energy and energy efficiency. While this approach can
improve national environmental indicators such as carbon emissions profiles; it appears unlikely to achieve sustainability.

In recent paper titled Neighbourhood Facilities for Sustainability, Jeremy Gibberd argues that more comprehensive, and more local, approaches are required. Interventions at a neighbourhood level should be developed that enable day-to-day living patterns to become more sustainable over time. A key element of this are built environment characteristics and facilities which support sustainability.

Neighbourhood Facilities for Sustainability (NFS) are initiatives undertaken by individuals and communities to build local sustainable systems which not only improve their quality of life but also reduce environmental impacts. The paper argues that this approach is a valuable way of ensuring that sustainability is addressed rapidly and effectively in urban settings. It also argues that the NFS approach may be more efficient and effective than national programmes as it responds to the local context and develops local ownership and capacity to which ensures systems are well managed and maintained. The approach will be illustrated through NFS proposals developed for an informal settlement neighbourhood in South Africa. These proposals will be critically reviewed and recommendations for further study, made. A presentation on the concept is provided below.

Neighbourhood Facilities for Sustainability: Short Cuts to Sustainable Settlements? from Jeremy Gibberd

Integrated Urban Development Framework

The Integrated Urban Development Framework was launched at a conference organised by the Departments of Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs (COGTA) and Human Settlements on the 25 October 2013. The framework has been developed as a response to Chapter 8 of the National Development Plan. In particular, it aims to address the NDP's vision of urban South Africa:

By 2030 South Africa should observe meaningful and measurable progress in reviving rural areas and in creating more functionally integrated, balanced and vibrant urban settlements. For this to happen the country must: clarify and relentlessly pursue a national vision for spatial development; sharpen the instruments for achieving this vision; [and] build the required capabilities in the state and among citizens.

The document states it will give more practical meaning to the urban vision set out in the NDP and will provide a framework for managing urban development more effectively and efficiently and, where necessary, offer policy and legislative proposals to support the implementation of the framework.

The framework lists many of the problems with current urban situations in South Africa; 'Population growth in our cities is in an upward cycle','Our urban areas remain largely segregated','Existing property values (and land use) perpetuate urban segregation','Our municipalities are facing enormous challenge'.  It also alludes to improvements that will be achieved;  'The urban dividend will be reaped', 'Policies and resource allocation will be more effective','Civil society and the private sector will play their part','Rural development will benefit','Urbanisation will be better managed'.

The document asks for public engagement and to provide input to the framework. However in its current form, this is difficult as the the document does not address the main problems of 'what type of urban environments and processes do we need to move towards' and 'how this will be achieved'. Without this substance, it is difficult to engage with the document. The problems of urban areas are well know and the improvements proposed in the framework will remain a wishlist without appropriate implementation mechanisms.  The NDP also make specific reference to 'functionally integrated, balanced and vibrant urban settlements'. What does this actually mean in detail? This should be central to the framework but appears not be to be discussed.

There are key urban development questions that need to be addressed, such as;

• What should South African urban environments look like? 
• Can a vision of future urban environments be developed?
• Can this vision be described in sufficient detail to show how it incorporates objectives of the Constitution and Nation Development Plan as well as addressing aspects such as climate change and sustainability?
• Given the existing starting point how can this vision be achieved?
• Are there innovative, highly effective and efficient (smarter) ways of achieving this vision?
• What is the role of government, business, NGOs and communities in developing these environments?
• Are there policies and processes that can be used to support the development of these environments?

Tackling these questions and outlining innovative and conceptual solutions could be used to prompt active engagement by key stakeholders and the general public and ensure that important changes in urban environments and processes are achieved more quickly.

Assessing the Social and Economic Impacts of Building Materials

A presentation on "Assessing the Social and Economic Impacts of Building Materials' was made by Jeremy Gibberd at the Sustainable Building 2013 conference in Cape Town in October 2013. This presentation and paper explore how social and economic impacts of building materials can be assessed. One of the recommendations of the study is that a Sustainable Building Material Index be developed. A draft version of this index has been developed by Gauge.


A copy of the conference presentation can be viewed below.

Assessing the sustainability of building materials from jgibberd

The full paper can also be viewed below.

Assessing social and economic impacts of building materials from jgibberd

The Local Climate Solutions for Africa

Training on the Built Environment Sustainability Tool (BEST) was provided at a special Urban-LEDS pre-event training workshop of the Local Climate Solutions for Africa 2013 Congress. Professional staff and counselors from a range of municipalities were trained on the tool and used this to carry out assessments of areas within their municipalities and develop interventions to improve sustainability.

Participants welcomed the approach developed in the methodology and appreciated the simplicity of the tool. In particular, there was positive support for the way in which the methodology was able to address reductions in carbon emission reductions within a sustainable development framework. Participants indicated that this aligned well with sustainable development mandate of local government and the increasing pressure being experienced to accelerate service delivery.

Municipalities also indicated that the methodology and tool would be suitable to working with communities as it was simple and easy to use and provided a way of developing useful inputs for Integrated Development Plans (IDPs) and Spatial Development Frameworks (SDFs).

The Local Climate Solutions for Africa 2013 Congress was held in Dar es Salaam in Tanzania from 30 October to 1 November 2013. More information on the conference can be accessed here.

PW 371-A EDITION 2.0 Government Specifications for Construction

PW 371- A and B EDITION 2.0 refers to the recently updated editions of construction works specifications developed by the South African Department of Public Works.  Specifications include:

• Earthworks
• Concrete Works
• Masonry
• Structural Timber
• Structural Steel
• Insulation, Sealants and Seals
• Glazing
• Electrical Works
• Mechanical Works
• External Works

The documents were published in July 2013 and can be accessed here. The update of the specification has been welcomed by industry and has received positive reviews. From a sustainability perspective however the new specifications do not appear to address sustainability in detail and there appear to be some gaps. These are described briefly below.

Materials

While the specifications mention of the need to consult to trade bodies such as TIASA on recycled content of insulation there is no reference to minimizing the use of insulation that contributes to global warming as a result of using CFCs and HCFCs as a blowing agent in manufacturing processes.  Sections on timber do not refer to any requirement to source timber from sustainable sources. There is also no reference to the origin of materials and components which is surprising given government's interest in promoting local content and localisation.

Electrical Works

Electrical works specifications do not include reference to energy efficiency measures such as efficient lighting, controls like daylight and motion sensors and monitoring capability in the form of sub-metering. In particular, sub-metering may be a very useful mechanism for improving energy management and accountability in government buildings and  could support energy efficiency improvements being driven by government through mechanisms such as energy performance certificates. 

  

Drainage, sewerage, water and gas supply, fire equipment, sanitary plumbing
This section of the PW 371 does not make reference to water efficiency aspects such as water harvesting systems and efficient taps, urinals, showers and WCs. The specifications include pit latrines but makes no reference to water efficient and ecological sanitation. Increasingly water is being seen as scarce resource and therefore many of the above measures should be included in specifications and are increasingly being addressed by municipal bylaws.

DEA Building: Highest Rated Building 2012/2013

The Green Building Council (GBCSA) has awarded the Department of Environment DEA's new building in Pretoria the Highest Rated Building 2012/2013. The building achieved 81 points and is currently in construction.

Gauge was the Sustainability Technical Adviser to DEA on the project and was responsible for the drafting the sustainability specifications that formed the Public Private Partnership (PPP) Agreement. This legal agreement included stringent sustainability criteria which has been reflected in the design and recognized by the GBCSA.  A previous post outlines aspects of the sustainability specification process.