Building Smart Cities with Green Materials: The Role of Coir & Natural Fibers

Nature-based urban development

The issues of pollution control, climate change, global warming, and the greenhouse effect and their implications on the lives of all living beings have become one of the most trending and discussed topics of the entire century. Sustainable thinking has become the need of the hour and the only alternative available. It can be brought about by adopting a broad-minded approach to our responsibility towards the Mother Earth. Refurbishing manufacturing practices, eco-friendly innovations in transportation, Managing water resources, oceans, and forests, reducing plastic and using its alternatives, and avoiding deforestation are some of the most basic and much-needed approaches to be acknowledged and implemented.

Sustainable development in a literal sense means the development that takes place by planning and judicious use of resources so that they can be used by future generations. But have we ever thought of putting sustainability as our way of life? This is mainly because our idea of sustainability is naïve and comes only from what we have heard from newspapers and magazines about the environment and renewability. We need to understand that every activity of ours is in some way going to impact nature. So, we must have a sufficient track on it and focus on amending it by implementing eco-friendly technologies that are available in the market, even though they are a little more costly. This initial investment can only help us and our future generations to survive.

Coir in smart city development:

Coir for urban planning

                   The use of coir as a replacement for timber is one of the most unique as well as self-obligatory tools to move towards the thought of a sustainable future. Coir-wood and other coir products used in erosion control and nursery-landscaping applications are bound to become one of the most self-sufficient materials of the near future. The use of coir-wood as a replacement for timber-wood will not only enable to prevention cutting of trees, but it will also promote and encourage further plantation of trees. 

         Biodegradable materials in construction

                  Coconut is a versatile material that grows abundantly in tropical climatic conditions. There are many advantages of coconut primarily in the edible food industry. But the left-over husk, a by-product is not of any use there. Coir-wood is produced by binding the needle-felt coir fibers of coconut using any standard synthetic resin. This has a good potential for different applications in wide areas of industries.

Smart City sustainable materials

                  Coir itself is biodegradable, and when it is made with biodegradable resin, it becomes 100% biodegradable. It gives a naturally attractive look; hence, it can be used directly without much additional treatment or look enhancement. If required, it can be painted or polished, or lamination can be applied to it. It is insect-proof and termite-proof. It is water-resistant on a large scale. The tensile strength is usually equal to/or more than that of plywood. It gives strong properties both along and across the directions of the material.

Benefits of coir in smart city construction:

Sustainable construction materials.

In the construction sector, there have been many commendable developments from an environmental point of view. There is a widely used concept of categorizing buildings into green buildings and net-zero buildings used in our country and elsewhere. Under this, the buildings have to adopt several energy and water conservation methods like the use of natural ventilation, better-insulating building materials, less wastage of water, reuse, and recycling of wastewater after proper in-house treatment, rainwater harvesting and recharging the groundwater, solid and liquid waste reduction strategies by recycling the waste, use of solar photovoltaic, biogas, wind energy, and other site-specific solutions.

The use of alternatives to wood can be used in the construction of partition walls, doors, windows, furniture, etc. Many natural, eco-friendly, and recyclable materials can be used to perform the same function as wood. By doing so, we can effectively reduce the cutting down of trees, which in turn will help us in our efforts towards carbon sequestration. This, in turn, will pave the way to reduce global warming and the greenhouse effect. Several natural and artificial water bodies should be created to keep the temperature low and the atmosphere cool.

Climate-resilient infrastructure trends:

How Coir Supports Green Urban Infrastructure

In the infrastructure sector, a lot of economic as well as eco-friendly alternatives can be availed. The roads and railway infrastructure has got a huge scope to play in safeguarding our environment.

The slopes of the roads and railways can be safeguarded and beautified by the use of the coir geogreen blankets as seen in the above figure. This bio-degradable material can be applied to all the slopes that are adjacent to roads and railways, as well as in safeguarding the already mined areas.

A lot of money, efforts, and time have already been spent by nations across the world in developing sustainable solutions to protect our Mother Earth. Now it’s time to put this into effect. It is already too late to realize the importance of sustainability, as our Earth is the only planet where life exists. And if we lose her, then there is no chance of the existence of living beings in the coming years.

Smart cities and sustainability 2025!!

SDG-aligned building solutions!!

The United Nations created the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in 2015 as a component of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. They seek to address several global issues, such as injustice, poverty, inequality, environmental degradation, climate change, and peace. The SDGs are a global call to action for nations to cooperate to create a more sustainable future for the planet and all of its inhabitants. Each goal is meant to be accomplished by 2030 and includes precise targets and metrics to track advancement.

The following sustainable development goals are very important from the perspective of sustainable smart cities and the innovation and partnership involved in building the same.

1. SDG 11: Sustainable cities and communities: Make cities and human settlements inclusive, safe, resilient, and sustainable.

2. SDG 9: Industry, Innovation, and Infrastructure: Build resilient infrastructure, promote inclusive and sustainable industrialization, and foster innovation.

3. SDG 17: Partnership for the goals: Strengthen the means of implementation and revitalize the Global Partnership for Sustainable Development.

Eco innovation in smart cities:

• Sustainable urbanism is a new concept promoting urban design with nature.

• This emphasizes the creation of a constructive framework involving energy, water, resources, and community.

•  Landscaping forms an integral concept of contemporary township planning.

• The Geogreen blanket serves as a wonderful tool for transforming barren land into invigorating spaces.

Smart ecocities of the future!!

Some of the similar initiatives from our own country that we need to learn and adopt from are the Dholera (SIR) smart city project, the GIFT city project-Gandhinagar in Gujarat. These cities define the perfect blend of successful developments and establishments with a complete sustainable approach. Sustainability is very much connected to energy, its limited consumption, and its subsequent saving. Many such concepts are needed of the hour to mitigate the global environmental problems and to make our earth worthwhile and livable for the coming generations.