By 2025, the world would have added another 65 million inhabitants, each fighting for their share of liveable space. India, by then, will need to add the equivalent of a city the size of Chicago to its existing floor space, to support the growth in population. The way the world is being built now will determine how human civilization will deal with natural resource management, waste management, and sustainability, in the near future. No longer can we talk merely of green homes as the answer to all our urbanisation woes. No doubt, green homes projects are pockets of excellence, but their positive impact at a city-level is minimal at best. These ‘green’ districts are all about taking the concept of environmental sustainability and sustainable real estate development beyond green homes and sustainable townships, and to create entire new suburbs that function on those lines.
Miniature ‘smart cities’
The Modi government’s smart cities project is a clear indicator that the need for sustainable urbanisation has been recognised. However, the current scramble among various cities to qualify under this programme indicates that its primary message has still not been understood — it is not about winning the race to win the prize but about making a concerted effort to improve the way our cities are run, about making them more liveable and future-ready. Regardless of the smart cities movement, it is possible for cities to create their own green districts — large urban areas where the normal flow of development has been reinvented and redirected so as to create an oasis of sustainability.
Green districts?
Green districts are urban areas which not only add sufficient floor space to the increasing population density, but also employ design elements and techniques that minimise pollution and exploitation of natural resources. They integrate design principles that support a transit-oriented, dense and mixed development that considers renewable energy as a means of power production.
While this looks good on paper, the concept in fact requires a great deal of agility and fine-tuning as green districts need to be small enough to innovate quickly, but big enough to have an impact. The ideal geographical size of a green district is, in fact, that of a newly emerging suburb in Pune.
Why green districts will become indispensable in the near future:
Economic viability
In fact, it is no secret that green residential projects involve a significantly higher cost to developer. This is also true to green districts, wherein the construction cost of everything from residential and commercial spaces to supporting infrastructure, would be higher by 10 per cent. However, this cost is justified by lower operating costs. Within three to five years — which is the period it takes for most new suburbs to attain functional viability — green districts can ‘break even’ on the cost of creating them.
The true value of green districts is in the massive positive impact that that they have in terms of improved environmental quality, urban climate and matchless investment opportunities. As long as they are planned intelligently from the ground up and incorporate the right technologies, green districts are by far the most economically viable urban configurations.
‘Repaired’ environment
Green districts follow construction practices that reduce a suburban area’s energy consumption by as much as about 20–50 per cent, while simultaneously rationalising water consumption by 50-60 per cent. Further, green districts generate 25 per cent less solid waste, making the available land more viable for both farming and living and reducing the dependence on environmentally destructive landfills.
The writer is Managing Director, Pride Group
