[lifesaviors] Re: Juergen's recent questions, India-China etc. from Lion
- From: <lionkuntz@xxxxxxxxx>
- To: lifesaviors@xxxxxxxxxxxxx, Palaces4People@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx,Palaces4Japan@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
- Date: Wed, 17 Sep 2003 13:42:13 -0700 (PDT)
[Juergen:]
Dear all,
...
I've got some questions:
Q1 - is there a sustainable state policy in India how
to guarantee save water on the long run for poor
people?
[Lion:]
I don't know personally. They are talking about a
mammoth project to link three rivers, so that would
seem to indicate that there are no other lower-cost
sensible alternatives being implimented to accomplish
the main objectives.
Assam state is the only state in India with its own
cabinet-level flood and water official, according to
Indian newspapers I read. Local (Indian) newspaper
editors have published complaints about the lack of
government preparededness for the floods which come
every two years and this year displaced millions in
India, and millions more downstream in hapless
Bangladesh.
[Juergen:]
Q2 - 55 Paisa for 1 L water: I don't know the current
prices in India, for comparision: what is the price of
1 nan and 1 bowl of Dal in a street-corner-imbiss? How
much is 1 kg rice or wheat?
[Lion:]
I look forward to an Indian observer to report the
answers. I cannot give information at my 10,000 mile
distance.
[Juergen:]
Q3 - water from air, purified water: here in China
several brands of purified drinking water are on shop,
but people warn me to drink it (except a few brands),
because of lack of minerals and hydrolytes...
[Lion:]
Water pollution is a universal problem. Here is a page
of photos of asia flooding. Notice several of them
have to do with water supplies during high water.
Every picture showing people standing in water must be
assumed that human and animal wasres are dissolved in
those waters because no "flood-proof" sewer system
exists which seals human and animal wastes from
floods. Low-tech pumps are limited to about 8 meters
or less of draw. The probability of contamination of
water tables where low-tech is the only-tech is
assumed to be contaminated groundwaters.
[Juergen:]
... many types
are like distilled water and will harm your health.
Can somebody give me information about sufficient
solutions for closed water cycles like our
PALACE-systems? How do "India watermakers" address
this question?
[Lion:]
You can never be directly harmed by drinking distilled
water. If your diet is deficient in trace minerals
then you will suffer deficiency-related health
problems, eventually.
[Juergen:]
Q4 - Which social-cultural aspects could be restrains
for developing PALACES for wide population in India?
(tradition, religion, casts, segregation...)
[Lion:]
Anyplace which already has cities is a candidate for
adding Palaces For The People as infill blocks. In
some places, relieving the physical pressures of
housing scarcity, high housing costs, and especially,
no visible future, can reduce the aggravation levels
which cause social frictions with other "superficial
causes" as blame. New cities, and new ecovillages,
based on Palaces For The People are to be magnets
which attract those interested in this lifestyle. The
number of things in common, presumably, is greater
than the number of things which divide. Certainly,
this is experimental. Where in history has the entire
population ever been housed in PALACES?
[Juergen:]
Here in China, some social-cultural factors which are
to be considered when developing new housing systems
changed during the last 20 years. Meanwhile, status
and private space - even a small piece of
representative lawn in front of the door, and private
space inside a car, are high valued by mid-income and
wealthy people. To realise private space and prestige
is very important in current urban society....
[Lion:]
This is probably quite universal, and not limited to
China. One must consider these facts: When I was born
there were 3 billion people. Now there are over 6
billion. The human race failed to make adequate
preparations for the increase. There are 2 billion
people who have never even seen indoor plumbing or
sanitary water supplies. There are 4 billion people
stacked up at the door waiting to come in. We must not
be unprepared for that increase. People must come to
an understanding that status symbols which require
them to be involved in manslaughter is a habit which
cannot be allowed to continue. The word "enough" must
be learned by those whom are unfamiliar with that
word.
[Juergen:]
...Ecology
can even be a contribution to prestige, but this is
very fragile. Often "ecological buildings' and
"eco-settlements" turn out as not much more than a
marketing-strategy. The term "eco" is currently used
very inflationary, and I fear, it will be "thru" in
public awareness after the 2008 Olympics - but not the
problems, of course.
I think, that PALACES can provide a lot to satisfy
many of the very different needs of people and
city-environment. Might be, in addition to a "basic
model" we should develop some proposals for a few
general types, which are adopted to standard
situations in some countries, and for specific uses.
[Lion:]
It would be helpful, to me, if you elaborated on these
ideas at greater length and detail. On the other hand,
from my perspective, I may not have been fully
descriptive in my own envisioning process. I have
foreseen that superficial coverings come in many
styles, colors, textures and materials. Underneath the
coverings, the laws of physics declare what is
allowed, and what is disallowed. Using partition walls
to direct traffic flows, sightlines and spaciousness
have to conform to fundamental principles of material
strengths, compositions, joinery, opposing gravity,
windshear, earth settling and quaking, insect and mold
attacks, etc.
In the specimen computer modelling I did, I discovered
that having diagonal passageways between opposite
corner entrances of buildings greatly reduced the
usable floorspace but cut down on walking commutes so
drastically that the tradeoff is valuable along major
commute thoroughfares. So some buildings would be
transparent to walking commuters along some commute
routes in diagonal directions. Because of the high
pedestrian traffic twice a day, these reduced selling
space indoor malls would actually have a higher value
per square meter of commercial space, than buildings
with conventional rectangular conformation which gives
more usable space under roofing, but less pedestrian
traffic to that space.
In flood-prone areas, buildings need to be designed to
be rapidly sealed against rising water. I have an
over-abundance of choices of high-tech solutions to
that problem. I consider that problem "solved". The
continuing unsolved problem is floodproofing buildings
in the places where 14,000,000 were (at least
temporarily) displaced this year due to flooding. The
dispossessions almost all occurred in
infrastructure-deprived areas, with technical
knowledgebase stunted to significant degrees. An
ongoing search for indigenous building materials which
retain their building strengths and characteristics
for 60 days submergence under water is continuing.
Here is an area I could enjoy some help with research
and information sharing.
[Juergen:]
It's not only a question of design, but even on
functional focus and costs.
Most important determinations can be:
- income of people in relation to local construction
costs
[Lion:]
To some extent local construction costs are rendered
moot. Completely new building methods are available,
never seen before on this planet. These new methods
are based on conforming to the following design
criteria:
(1) Must be capable of retaining the functionality for
100+ year building lifespan;
(2) Must not be composed of organic materials which
have a sugar base (wood, cellulose, lignin)
susceptable to molds, bacteria, fungi, rodents or
insect attacks;
(3) Materials exposed to exteriors must be durable,
and capable of withstanding a once-in-500-years most
extreme weather event;
(4) Structural materials must be completely inflamable
as used, and give off no toxic smokes if exposed to
open flames. All flamable structural materials must be
embedded within non-flamable/non-smoking materials.
(5) Building designs must provide assembly by pools of
largely untrained, unskilled workers;
These are only part of the overall design
specifications. Others related to compacting the human
ecological footprint are less relevent to building
costs topic of immediate attention here. Largescale
building projects in Orissa, India, provide a baseline
cost estimate to compare to Palaces construction
costs. Because of improvements of Palaces construction
methods, and synergy of sharing, it is confirmed that
a higher standard can be provided within costs
currently acceptable to the most marginalized
populations (homeless cyclone refugees).
Many new materials have burgeoned the patent offices.
Palaces construction methods and materials need to
begin undergoing independent engineering tests. Can
you help arrange any of these in association with
engineering departments in China's universities?
[Juergen:]
- family-type and individual living-style: is becoming
more and more uniform all over the world, but still
differences and preferences
[Lion:]
Some basics never change. Gravity, inclement weather,
thirst, voiding bodily wastes. A profusion of cosmetic
veniers exist to change the decor: the underlying
architectural demands must still always be met.
[Juergen:]
- disasters
- local materials: considering concrete as general
main material for the structure, glass and ceramics
for the outer skin, there is some variability in
material for:
- interior seperation walls (e.g. gypsum, adobe,
recycled stones and bricks)
- floors (terrazzo, wood, ceramics)
[Lion:]
I began with steel-reinforced concrete as a
construction method known around the world, and the
essential basis for permitting the development of the
modern highrise cities. "Kaizen" is a Japanese work
for a process of constant perpetual improvements in
immediate small steps. From the first presentation of
a proposal for ecocity econference I have grown away
from the use of concrete, especially with steel
reinforcements. I can now say that an ecocity of one
million residents can be built without any substantial
use of steel, and only modest use of
portland-cement-based concrete. Concrete is a large
family with many relatives. New "geopolymers", which
are artificial zeolite stone, have been invented in
several formulations by at least two independent
inventors. As portland-cement replacements, they offer
substantial reductions of carbon-emissions. By
replacing both portland cement AND steel rebars,
Palaces can contribute hefty tradable emissions
credits under the Kyoto Treaty, not to mention a
substantial reduction in pollution to the communities
manufacturing these commodities.
China has emerged as a leader in converting
petrochemicals into carbon-fibers of much greater
strength than steel. In some cases steel can be
replaced with one-fifth the volume, with no loss in
structural security, by using one quarter of the gross
weight in carbon fibers composites. The wholesale
prices of these carbon-fiber materials can b seen on
the internet selling for US$ 0.94 per square foot, and
that square foot has 560,000 psi tensile strength per
square inch. A rope made of that square foot of fabric
could suspend the weight of 763 fully-loaded highway
trucks with trailers, yet you can cut it with a pair
of sissors. Interesting possibilities emerge from
considering such materials.
Carbon-fiber geopolymer doorframes and window framing
in my methods adds structural integrity to a building
wall, whereas steel or wood framing for doors and
windows weakens the walls wherever they exist.
[Juergen:]
We have not to develop all eventual types to final
design - no. but it is might be not a bad idea, to
point out flexibility and strength, based on the basic
components developed by Lion Kuntz....
[Lion:]
Could I ask you to be more specific in what you have
in mind? I have been appealing for exactly this
(pointing out flexibility and strengths, but also
specific weakneses and flaws too) for seven months
since introducing the proposal. So far, Juergen has
been the only person who has done both. Other
criticise the webpages for lack of table of contents,
or refusing to publish specifics of technologies
intended to aid Palaces and not available to people
who are not demonstrably committed to ecocity
principles.
[Juergen:]
....Even the basic
components would be emphasized more or less, according
to the local situation, e.g. the need for cooling in
summer (consider the massive core of the pyramid!),
the availability of high quality spring water for
drinking purpose, etc.
[Lion:]
The earth several meters under your feet, even in the
hottest desert, is refreshingly cool. Water stored in
a 20 x 20 x 20 meters cubic cistern has 8 millions of
liters of water sharing the temperatures of this
coolth. This water pushed to the roof, and circulated
by gravity through pipes in the walls and flooring
sucks up calories from the building and keeps it in
the comfort zone. From time to time, compressed oxygen
(waste product of electrolyzing water for the vehicle
fleet fueling and smokeless cooking gas production) is
released under water. The physics of expanding gas
bubbling through water serves as a coolant for the
cistern water, besides a purifactant.
[Juergen:]
I'm not used to use building eco-evaluation systems
like GB-tool, LEED and BREEAM, but after a basic
design has been finished, I would like to apply one of
these systems on a PALACE-prototype, and learn by
doing. Is there any body who can give me some support?
[Lion:]
I am not familiar with these things you mention. I am
in the process of solicitating additional attention by
ecobuilders in responding to the proposal as it is
developing.
[Juergen:]
Thanks and best regards, later more on PALACES,
Juergen PAULUSSEN,
Beijing/ China
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Sincerely, Lion Kuntz
Santa Rosa, California, USA
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http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Palaces4People/
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Palaces4Japan/
http://www.ecosyn.us/ecocity/Proposal/Palaces_For_The_People.html
http://www.ecosyn.us/ecocity/Challenges/Asia_Floods/Wet/All_Wet.html
http://www.ecosyn.us/Interesting/
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