EVS

SUBMITTED BY - GAURI G. WAIKAR

FIFTH YEAR B.ARCH
SEMESTER – 9 | E.V.S
IDEAL INSTITUTE OF ARCHITECTURE
SUBMITTED TO – AR. AAMOD KARMAKSH
 1. What do you understand by Sustainable City?
The concept of sustainable cities is closely interconnected with environment
and economy and safeguard protection of natural resources, which in turn
leads to a minimum acceptable quality of life. There is a constant struggle with
issues of air pollution, congestion of human population and availability of open,
green spaces. Strong, healthy, liveable cities depend on a healthy environment,
a robust economy and ample employment opportunities for its citizens.

Human endeavour focuses on certain basic assumptions like good income;

livelihoods which give meaning to life; production of goods and services for
basic needs; creation of purchasing power; regeneration of the natural resource
base; conservation of the environment; control on demographic transitions from
the rural to the urban sector, empowerment and employment for women. Thus,
a sustainable city can be defined as one which is able to provide for the basic
needs of the people along with the necessary infrastructure of civic amenities,
health and medical care, housing, education, transportation, employment,
good governance, etc. It should take care of the needs of all sections of the
society without any discrimination. As it pertains to Indian conditions, due
emphasis should be given to control population and provide housing to the
weaker sections of society who live in sub-human conditions in slums, subsisting
below the poverty line and causing environmental degradation. Burgeoning
population also leads to exploitation, crime and lawlessness due to the ever
shrinking job opportunities. For example, Delhi adds on 400,000 people every
year due to migration from all over India, thus putting a question mark on the
sustainability of this capital metropolis. This alarming increase in population puts
an enormous strain on housing, employment, healthcare, water and electricity.
Large "green" areas are converted to housing colonies, leading to
environmental degradation.

• Characteristics of a Sustainable City

A sustainable city is a city which has :
A controlled population for whom adequate, meaningful employment is
available.
Adequate governance set-up which can meet the needs of the
populace and ensures civic responsibilities, community participation, a
sense of identity, transparency and equity in local institutions.Efficient
basic civic amenities for a reasonably comfortable existence. For
example, due to the shortage of power, more than 50% of power is
 illegally consumed without payment to the municipal corporation,
leading to corruption, astronomical financial losses and inadequate
supply to those who pay for its consumption. Same goes for water, which
is inadequate to meet the demands of the population.
Planned housing colonies with adequate infrastructure like schools, parks,
drainage system, local medicare establishments.
An appropriate transport system, as transportation affects the
environment. Transportation planning has to take into consideration a
wide range of options and choices like adequate roads, parking lots,
alternate system of transportation, mass transit facilities.
The aim should be to reduce the total vehicle kilometres driven in
congested areas, thus reducing the pollution and emission of green house
gases. This can only be effected if the number of vehicles on roads are
reduced. At present, there are about 34 lakh registered vehicles on Delhi’s
roads, of which over 22 lakh are two-wheelers which are the main
polluting vehicles.
Effective environmental infrastructure to address the issues of untreated
sewage and waste polluting rivers, lakes and coastal zones, (thus
threatening water ecosystems).
Empowerment of women and encouraging their participation in the
political, social and economic life of a city and adoption of urban policies
that take into account women’s needs and initiatives.
Development of an efficient urban private sector, both formal and non-
formal which reduces poverty by generating jobs and helping in
economic growth.
An efficient health-care system which would also address issues of
nutrition, family planning and sanitation.
A mechanism in the form of a policy initiative for industrial dispersal to
satellite townships where better employment opportunities are created.

Advantages of a Sustainable City

The importance of sustainability in the urban setting cannot be over
emphasised. As it concerns the very survival of a city, healthy cities contribute to
a healthy nation. Clean environment and economic growth are complimentary
to each other and result in a vibrant community who see themselves as
"stakeholders" in all aspects of daily life. In addition, the advantages are :

A city which provides its inhabitants with every basic amenity for a reasonable
standard of living.
Resources used are regenerated and sustained without getting depleted.
A society which takes part in good governance and allocation of its economic
resources for the well being of its people.
Where citizens are law-abiding, conscious of their role and contribute to the all
round development of the city.

2. Explain urban ecosystem services.

An ecosystem can be defined as ‘‘a set of interacting species and their local,
non-biological environment functioning together to sustain life’’

However, the borders between different ecosystems are often diffuse. In the
case of the urban environment, it is both possible to define the city as one single
ecosystem or to see the city as composed of several individual ecosystems, e.g.
parks and lakes (Rebele, 1994). For simplicity, we have chosen to use the term
urban ecosystems for all natural green and blue areas in the city, including in
this definition street trees and ponds. In reality, street trees are too small to be
considered ecosystems in their own right, and should rather be regarded as
elements of a larger system.

Street trees are stand-alone trees, often surrounded by paved ground.

Lawns/parks are managed green areas with a mixture of grass, larger trees, and
other plants. Areas such as playgrounds and golf courses are also included in
this group. Urban forests are less managed areas with a more dense tree stand
than parks. Cultivated land and gardens are used for growing various food
items. Wetlands consist of various types of marshes and swamps. Lakes/sea
includes the open water areas while streams refers to flowing water. Other areas
within the city, such as dumps and abandoned backyards, may also contain
significant populations of plants and animals. It should be possible, however, to
place most urban ecosystems or elements in one of the above mentioned
categories.
 3. Write a note on CO2 Sequestration.
Carbon sequestration, the long-term storage of carbon in plants, soils, geologic
formations, and the ocean. Carbon sequestration occurs both naturally and as
a result of anthropogenic activities and typically refers to the storage of carbon
that has the immediate potential to become carbon dioxide gas. In response to
growing concerns about climate change resulting from increased carbon
dioxide concentrations in the atmosphere, considerable interest has been
drawn to the possibility of increasing the rate of carbon sequestration through
changes in land use and forestry and also through geoengineering techniques
such as carbon capture and storage.

Carbon sources and carbon sinks

Anthropogenic activities such as the burning of fossil fuels have
released carbon from its long-term geologic storage as coal, petroleum,
and natural gas and have delivered it to the atmosphere as carbon dioxide
gas. Carbon dioxide is also released naturally, through the decomposition of
plants and animals. The amount of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere has
increased since the beginning of the industrial age, and this increase has been
caused mainly by the burning of fossil fuels. Carbon dioxide is a very
effective greenhouse gas—that is, a gas that absorbs infrared radiation emitted
from Earth’s surface. As carbon dioxide concentrations rise in the atmosphere,
more infrared radiation is retained, and the average temperature of Earth’s
lower atmosphere rises. This process is referred to as global warming.

Reservoirs that retain carbon and keep it from entering Earth’s atmosphere are
known as carbon sinks. For example, deforestation is a source of carbon
emission into the atmosphere, but forest regrowth is a form of carbon
sequestration, with the forests themselves serving as carbon sinks. Carbon is
transferred naturally from the atmosphere to terrestrial carbon sinks
through photosynthesis; it may be stored in aboveground biomass as well as
in soils. Beyond the natural growth of plants, other terrestrial processes that
sequester carbon include growth of replacement vegetation on cleared land,
land-management practices that absorb carbon (see below Carbon
sequestration and climate change mitigation), and increased growth due to
elevated atmospheric carbon dioxide levels and enhanced nitrogen deposition.
It is important to note that carbon sequestered in soils and aboveground
vegetation could be released again to the atmosphere through land-use or
climatic changes. For example, combustion (which is caused by fires)
or decomposition (which results from microbe activity) can cause the release of
carbon stored in forests to the atmosphere. Both processes join oxygen in the air
with carbon stored in plant tissues to produce carbon dioxide gas.

Carbon Sequestration is capturing and securely storing carbon dioxide emitted

from the global energy system.

Types of Sequestration:

There are number of technologies under investigation for sequestering carbon

from the atmosphere. These can be discussed under three main categories:

• Ocean Sequestration: Carbon stored in oceans through direct injection or

fertilization.
• Geologic Sequestration: Natural pore spaces in geologic formations serve
as reservoirs for long-term carbon dioxide storage.
• Terrestrial Sequestration: A large amount of carbon is stored in soils and
vegetation, which are our natural carbon sinks. Increasing carbon fixation
through photosynthesis, slowing down or reducing decomposition of
organic matter, and changing land use practices can enhance carbon
uptake in these natural sinks.

Geologic Sequestration is thought to have the largest potential for near-term

application. The MIDCARB Consortium and this web site are dedicated to
providing information on the potential for geologic sequestration in the
heartland of America.

Geologic Sequestration Trapping Mechanisms

• Hydrodynamic Trapping: Carbon dioxide can be trapped as a gas under

low-permeability cap rock (much like natural gas is stored in gas
reservoirs).

• Solubility Trapping: Carbon dioxide can be dissolved into a liquid, such as

water or oil.

• Mineral Carbonation: Carbon dioxide can react with the minerals, fluids,
and organic matter in a geologic formation to form stable
compounds/minerals; largely calcium, iron, and magnesium carbonates.
While research continues on mineral carbonation, early results indicate reaction
times to be too slow for this technology to have near-term widespread
applicability. Carbon dioxide can be effectively stored in the earth's subsurface
by hydrodynamic trapping and solubility trapping - usually a combination of the
two is most effective.

Advantages
Planting trees and managing their development is a proven way to reduce the
number of harmful particulates in the air. Carbon sequestered is carbon not
emitted into the atmosphere. Less carbon in the atmosphere will reduce the
greenhouse gas effect and lessen the impacts of climate change.
Disadvantages

• Carbon dioxide may be stored deep underground. At depth, hydrostatic

pressure acts to keep it in a liquid state. Reservoir design faults, rock
fissures, and tectonic processes may act to release the gas stored into the
ocean or atmosphere.
• The use of the technology would add 1–5 cents of cost per kilowatt-hour,
according to an estimate made by the panels about climate change.
The financial costs of modern coal technology would nearly double if the
use of CCS technology were to be required by regulation. The cost of CCS
technology differs from the different types of capture technologies being
used and with the different sites that it is implemented in, but the costs
tend to increase with CCS capture implementation. One study
conducted predicted that with new technologies these costs could be
lowered but would remain slightly higher than prices without CCS
technologies.

4. Write a note on resilient city.

Resilient cities are cities that have the ability to absorb, recover and prepare for
future shocks (economic, environmental, social & institutional). Resilient cities
promote sustainable development, well-being and inclusive growth.

4 AREAS THAT DRIVE RESILIENCE

Economy

• A diverse number of industries

• A dynamic economy to generate growth
• Conditions allow innovation to take place
• People have access to employment, education, services, skills training.

Society

• Society is inclusive and cohesive

• Citizens’ networks in communities are active
• Neighbourhood is safe
• Citizens enjoy healthy lives

Environment

• Ecosystem is sound and diverse

• Infrastructure can meet basic needs
• Adequate natural resources are available
• Coherent policy towards land use

Governance

• Clear leadership and management

• Strategic and integrated approaches are taken by leaders
• Public sector has the right skills
• Government is open and transparent
A FRAMEWORK ON RESILIENT CITIES

• A framework for resilient cities. It provides a working definition of a resilient

city, the drivers of resilience in order to better identify what resilience looks
like in an urban context, and the policy mechanisms that could be of
benefit.
• The indicators of resilience.
• The policy actions taken by city governments, as well as their
collaboration with national governments.