This muggy city keeps cool with minimal AC. Here's how. The wind ruffled Aun Abdullah's hair as he strolled along a path paved through lush grasses circled by apartments more than 20 stories high. Large gaps between the towering buildings channeled the winds, providing relief from the muggy heat. "This breeze you're feeling, you wouldn't feel without the master plan," said Abdullah, who works for the Lodha Group, a prominent real estate developer in India. Abdullah's company developed the layout of Palava City, a 5,000-acre experimental community northeast of Mumbai, to take advantage of India's westerly winds. The breezes keep people cool outdoors so they can walk or bike instead of hopping into polluting cars and buses. The homes don't need as much air conditioning. One study found that the development's maximum temperature is consistently 2 to 3 degrees Celsius (3.6 to 5.4 degrees Fahrenheit) cooler than in nearby cities, including Mumbai. The community, which began construction in 2008 and is being developed in phases, aims to not only slash its planet-warming emissions to zero but also to provide a road map for communities facing the pressures of more extreme weather. As cities around the world grapple with rebuilding after disasters, or meeting the needs of an influx of people, Palava hopes to provide a model for adapting to a climate-transformed world. | 
No comments:
Post a Comment