In the future, water and its “by-product” hydrogen will play a vital role in any city’s infrastructure. That’s if the design from Californian Architects Iwamotoscott, for the History Channel’s City of the Future competition is anything to go by.
The competition asked architects to envision and design a city 100 years from now.Iwamotoscott's concept and design for "Hydro-Net" came first in the San Francisco section of the competition. They are now up against the winners from EDAW/Praxis 3/BNIM/Metcalf and Eddy (Atlanta) and Beyer Blinder Belle (Washington). The voting by the public ends Monday, April 28th. All competitors had only one week to envision what their city might look like in 100 years, a mere 3 hours to construct their models, and just 15 minutes to present their vision to the judging panel.If this sounds unbelievable, have a look at our slide show. Here you can see their model and Iwamotoscott’s plans for Hydro-Net, as real as they can be at the moment anyway.

What is Hydro-Net City?

By taking into account the natural evolution of San Francisco, HYDRO -NET actually takes advantage of the rising water levels of the Californian coastline.
A whole new “Aquaculture zone” will be used to grow algae, which in turn will produce the hydrogen fuel used to power the city. This fuel is then stored and distributed through a series of underground tunnels made from “nanotube wall structures”. Tests have shown that carbon nanotubes, 50,000 times narrower than a human hair, can be a promising material for hydrogen storage. Out of this new watery city, emerge tall sinuous towers, where the algae is stored to produce hydrogen.
Traffic consists of hydrogen-fuelled hover –cars, which travel underneath the city. These cars also collect, store and distribute the water and power tapped from liquid and geothermal sources beneath San Francisco.

In Venice one can imagine the watery apocalypse that is said to await us. Images of flooded cities and submerged resorts are used more and more as scare tactics to warn us to change our lifestyles or deal with the impending results of climate change. But the rising waters, the melting ice-caps, none of these are necessary to experience what it would be like to live in a city of water. Welcome to Venice. As we peer over the side of our Gondola, we can see the tops of old cellar windows and doors, now flooded and useless, the wine they stored destroyed and the families they housed long gone. The stairs of the luxurious private palaces, stained and un-kept and overgrown with moss, descend into the blue water, waves lapping and darkening the courtyards as they rise with the tides. Wooden spindly poles covered in barnacles support the narrow leaning buildings and towers, as they desperately reach down, grappling to stay upright in the soft sand and rising waters of the Adriatic sea.
It is common knowledge that Venice is sinking and the waters are rising. The city may well be an example as to what happens to a city over time, after we have manipulated nature to the maximum, and have to consequently struggle with nature's retaliation.
Venice is actually made up of 118 small islands, connected by 400 bridges, (soon to be 401 as one more is currently built at the Palazzo Roma). And all the buildings have been built into the sand. As we walk along the narrow streets and labyrinth-like lane-ways, we notice the stacked up wooden planks. These are the temporary walkways that are needed when the city floods. Which it does, often. On average, the main square (and tourist attraction) of San Marco floods 90 times year.But Venice was flooding well before the climate change argument began. The floods of AD 589, 885 and 1268 were all significant. In the 1930s, water began to be pumped from under the city to be used in the nearby factories, and the city has sunk 1/5 of an inch each year.
In 1966, a great flood resulted in the ground floors of 16000 homes being abandoned.

There are other problems to consider. The waves created by the new motorboats erode the wooden foundations. The houses lean and strain as they sink into the sandy swamps on which the were built. There are no cars on the island (tourist traffic is limited to just one bridge joining it to the mainland) but ironically its the acid tainted droppings of the pigeons that are also responsible for much for the buildings corrosion.Venice has already had to make extreme changes to deal with its situation and there are no more romantic fireplaces or coal ovens. They are also testing the use of liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) as an alternative motor fuel for outboard and inboard marine engines. Then there are the large urban projects being developed in order to stop the town from entering an early watery grave. The first involves protecting the island from the rising tides. The"Moses Project" or MOSE
(due to be completed by 2011) consists of 78 mobile steel barriers that will be activated during exceptionally high tides. They will lie on the seabed most of the time, but will be filled with air to create a dam when Venice is threatened. All this would take 30 minutes to work. However critics say that the rise of sea levels from global warming might make MOSE useless in less than 50 years. There are other concerns. Venice has an ancient plumbing system and waste and sewerage is still released into the canals. Without the high tides to flush the filthy water out to sea, the results could be disastrous.

MOSE ProjectThe next idea involves raising the island of Venice itself. This scheme would involve pumping huge quantities of sea water into the ground beneath Venice down 12 pipes each of which would be 700m long. The sea water would make the sand beneath the city expand and lifting Venice by 30cm in 10 years. It also costs just a fraction of Moses at only 100m euro.

How does a city change with the times? Ironically, across the water, the mainland is illuminated with the lights of heavy industry, factories and power plants, that spill pollutants into the air and water. Does Venice need to stay in the sixteenth Century, A UNESCO protected tourist attraction that will drown in its own quaintness? Venice is like an Ouroboros, eating its own tail. History repeating itself, an old city that cannot be overdeveloped yet needs to adjust and adapt with the most modern methods in order to survive.But as one floats down the canals, the only sound that of the swoosh of the Gondolier's oar through water, or the call of a gull, a water city doesn't seem all that bad at all.

Before examining the futuristic scenarios of zero emission cities, it is useful to take a look at architecture that uses natural materials. According to World Watch Magazine, 40% of the world's minerals, water and energy is used in the manufacturing and transportation of construction materials.
Those found in nature would seem to have the lightest impact on the environment. Wood, straw and bamboo are all recyclable, need little artificial energy to manufacture and create no waste products. The materials for Cob (clay, sand and straw ) and Adobe (bricks of earth and straw) architecture can all be locally obtained. There are no synthetic materials or chemicals necessary. Building with earth has been used for centuries, since the first houses were even imagined, and in areas like Devon and Cornwell in England the style of earthen houses was prolific. Now, due to the trend towards sustainability it is seeing a revival, and ancient practices are being revived. In 2005, Cobtan house, designed by Associated Architects and made from cob, won the RIBA (Royal Institute of British Architects) Sustainability Award. Cobtan House
There has been a revival in straw bale construction, and organisations such as the Amozonails hold regular gatherings for straw enthusiasts from around the world. It takes 6000 mega joules to manufacture 1 tonne of concrete and only 115 mega joules to produce 1 tonne of straw. Of course 1 tonne of straw goes a lot further than 1 tonne of concrete. Straw is often considered a waste product and many tonnes are burnt every year, polluting the atmosphere. Straw bale houses can be up to 20% more temperature efficient than traditional homes. David Eisenberg, from the The Development Center for Appropriate Technology has contributed many resources to his popular book “The Straw Bale House”.
The Didimala lodge in South Africa uses 10,000 straw bales, has a planetarium and cinema and is one of the largest in existence. The builders employed a system of post-beam thatch roof structure with a mixture of brick and straw bale walls.
Didimala LodgeArchitect Shigeru Ban uses recycled cardboard and bamboo in his constructions, which range from refugee tents, a paper bridge and the soaring exhibition pavilion at the Hannover Expo. Cardboard is cheap, reusable, biodegradable, nontoxic, widely available, and as Ban has demonstrated, looks great. Ban's signature work is his humanitarian contribution of refugee houses, where tubes have been used quickly and efficiently to house disaster victims. “Even in disaster areas, I want to create beautiful buildings, this is what it means to build a monument for common people', he told the New York Times. Ban also built a bridge in southern France, next to an ancient Roman Bridge, that is strong enough to carry 20 people. The steps of the bridge are constructed from recycled paper and plastic. Ban told Inhabitat that “It is a very interesting contrast, the Roman stone bridge and the paper bridge. Paper too can be permanent, can be strong and lasting. We need to get rid of these prejudices”. Shigeru Ban’s new approach to paper as a building material has made him as one of the most important architects of his time.
Paper bridgeIn the wasteful 21st century, using recycled building material seems a perfect solution.
“Earthships” were devised in the seventies, but continue being built today, and are constructed of old rubber car tyres rammed tightly with earth, and arranged in a horseshoe shaped module. The southern walls are angled perpendicular to the winter sunlight, and the other walls insulated by plants or gardens. This creates “passive solar energy”, which warms in winter and cools in summer. The houses are autonomous and independent from utilities. There is always a water catchment system and recycling of gray water.
Passive solar energy on an earthship. Image from Earthship.net “Adaptive reuse” is a term given to recycling land. In the post industrial age, many former mines or factory sites lie dormant. D.I.R.T studios are renowned for their landscape architecture, which transforms these previous vacant lots into blooming parks and natural wonderlands, all with a slightly healthy dose of industrial charm. The High-line project in New York, which they have contributed designs to, is part of a plan to convert the abandoned rail-lines, that spans 22 block in West Manhatten, into an elevated park.

The High Line by D.I.R.T
On another scale altogether, the large architectural firm, Atkins Architecture, renowned for their elaborate and often extravagant hotel concepts, have come up with a magical solution to an old quarry mine in China. The Waterworld hotel is placed with in the former quarry.
Bristol-based Martin Jochman, who led the design team, says, “We drew our inspiration from the quarry setting itself, adopting the image of a green hill cascading down the natural rock face as a series of terraced landscaped hanging gardens. In the centre, we have created a transparent glass ‘waterfall’ from a central vertical circulation atrium connecting the quarry base with the ground level. This replicates the natural waterfalls on the existing quarry face.”

WaterworldSo even without new technology and complicated energy saving devices, architecture can still be green. While all these natural options are perfectly viable for residential purposes and small scale living, what happens when buildings need to be bigger and incorporate public utililities on a grand urban scale?

Econic Design may not sound familiar, yet, but it is a pioneering direction for architecture and design of the future. It takes the point of view of “Ecology + Icon = Econic” and aims to construct buildings that are not only environmentally friendly, but actually contribute to the city experience and quality of life. Inspired by Brazilian tribes, Econic Design goes further than just energy efficiency and sustainability, and explores energy generating materials!

Econic Design is still in the experimental stage and being work-shopped at University of Pennsylvania School of Design and in Rio. Club Of Pioneers will be following it's evolution and host a discussion where pioneers and students can exchange ideas.

As an introduction, here is an interview with Econic Design facilitator and Club of Pioneers member Matthias Hollwich.
What is your personal background and work?
I am an architect - born, raised, and educated in Munich.
I call the basis of everything I do in my architectural praxis “concept engineering and space shaping”. It's a way to affect architecture in a more substantial way than to just design according to a client brief. Most recently I have worked with the Bauhaus Foundation in Dessau and started my own company that recently moved from Amsterdam to New York – HollwichKushner.
Can you talk more about the Econic Design course ?The University of Pennsylvania is a hot breeding grounds for new direction and talents in architectural design. I call it an Ivy League underdog (maybe because of it being in Philadelphia) - the university does not have the “star power” of Harvard or Columbia – but has a unique diverse faculty, cross departmental collaborations (biology meets structural engineering and architectural design) and a progressive open minded and curious group of students. It has the perfect DNA for inventiveness. The class I am teaching is a “classic” 3rd year design studio with a “non classic” syllabus. The studio task is the design of an Econic Building located in Rio de Janeiro.
Ecology + Icon = Econic.
What was your incentive and what do you hope to achieve?
Architecture is mainly developed from a program with specific dimensions packaged into an experience and a good looking envelope. A contemporary and responsible architect will infuse sustainable ideas and try to minimize the impact of the building on our environment. When I was in Rio this spring I heard about Brazilian tribes, living in the rainforest. They settled in areas of weak vegetation and started to plant new flora, and nurtured the grounds. Once the plants prospered they moved on, looking for the next weak spot. The whole attitude was about an active responsibility to nature. Whether it was a fairytale or real it inspired me to ask the question How can we, as architects, design buildings that have a positive effect on the surroundings?” In the same way rainforests are being used as equity for CO2 trading, architecture might also become valuable and equity in itself. In the Econic Studio I aim to develop with my students
buildings that are initiators for a new consciousness in society where the design is based on ecological findings that turn into an attractor and infrastructure for ecological knowledge generation and communication. A building that is in tune with its urban and natural context generating clean air and providing its surrounding with energy rather than abusing the context and poisoning it by burning fuel and wasting material.
Explain the relationship between theory and practice? I call myself an “Experimentalist” and this is also how the studio is structured. Very often you can see in architecture a lot of theories being developed but than the translation into spatial artefacts is lacking. In the studio the students are already developing spatial concept models. Parallel to this they are researching aspects of sustainability, references and inspiration in nature, key ecological projects from the last years etc. Over time the experimental models, the research and site-specific aspects will merge into one consistent entity that we will retroactively theorize at the end.
What will happen in Rio?In Rio we will visit the site, which is located in the heart of Rio de Janeiro at the location of the former art academy and embedded in a dense urban context. The urban location requires an integrated response to renew its urban environment and therefore site presence
and analyses is crucial. We will also visit the rainforest and buildings from Oscar Niemeyer. On two days we will have “white room workshops” where we invite guests for a workshop in which everybody infuses knowledge, critique, and suggestions into the concepts. Rio is also the moment where the students need to commit to one specific concept direction and bring all the different parts together into one cohesive entity. Of course we will also embed ourselves into local culture and hopefully participate in a samba event!

Why is it important for designers to think about sustainability and follow through with it after the “green” trend has passed?I think it is not a question of thinking about sustainability or not. It is pure math that if we do not apply sustainable ideas, humanity will have a very tough time in the future. The world will recover in one way or another and reinvent itself – but we humans are the ones who are truly in danger. To me it is interesting that during my education as an architect in Germany 16 years ago sustainability was key and all our designs had be ecological enhanced. It was state of the art – but in the US and many other countries that sentiment awoke just a few years ago and many applied methods and technologies are still lacking. With adding formal language to ecology I hope to raise awareness – but also allow the design discipline to expand its vocabulary with a reason-based output. We can almost repeat Mies van der Rohe's message of
“Form follows function” but the term function has vastly expanded including providing “sustainable performance” and a “green marketing message”. In the future I wish that sustainability – or even better, regenerative ideas - are part of any architectural project globally
and new progressive spatial configurations, programmatic fusions and formalistic expressions evolve.
What are your personal thoughts on Econic Design?To me Econic Design is a vision that sets goals but also triggers curiosity and creativity. I told my students that the studio is not calling for a building that is ecological in every sense, but for ways of thinking that show a range of potential. Ideas and solutions are to establish a speculative vision for the future. I can imagine Simulated Ecosystems, Adapted nature, Living technologies, Added eco-machines, Growing structure, Pollinating energy, Materials as nutrients, and many more directions that are initiated by the Econic idea.Can you mention other projects that are pioneering in their design?The exciting aspect of today is that many creative people work with sustainable ideas in one way or another. In architecture where we had Modernism, Postmodernism, and Deconstructivism I can see an "Ecologicalism" unfolding.
People or works of creativity I like for one
or another reason are:
Sir Norman Foster for the Hearst Tower and others, Marcel Kalberer and the Arena Salix, Oppenheimer Architecture and Cormiami building, Cloud 9 and Morphorest, Herzog & de Meuron - their Beijing Stadium, Janine Benyus for Biomimicry, Rem Koolhaas - A Creative power head), Toyota (Prius), Mayor Bloomberg and his Green City Plan, MVRDV(Expo 2000 Pavillion), Al Gore and Live earth, Germany
(has had an ecological drive for years), Books by J Scott Turner (How design emerges from life itself)
and Kenny Ausubel (Natures Operating Instructions ) and many others including Mother Earth.all images courtesy of M Hollwich

Calm before the Surge. Large cities consume 75% of the worlds energy and produce 85% of its greenhouse gas emissions. Worldwide, Mayors are taking the lead as rising sea levels necessitate contingency planning much of it highly expensive because it involves protecting or relocating infrastructure. Massive littoral developments even if they they don't inspire tree hugging polemics should remember the parable of King Canute and the tide. Insurance companies with a few major exceptions, seem to have entirely forgotten that tale as they insure housing & commercial developments in areas that will be in a decade or to even more vulnerable to surges & sealevel change. There is a reason the most expensive urban real estate used to be on the high ground and not on the waterfront. Waterfronts were noisy and noisome with shipping and were also vulnerable to the vagaries of the sea.
At 2 Meters above SealevelWhen the sealevels rise, as many feel they invevitably will. What happens to our cities? For many reasons most of the world's largest cities grew up as ports on seas or rivers. How they can be protected,which parts should be protected, and which should not is now at issue. Wealthier neighborhoods tend to be on higher ground, poorer ones in lowlying areas often landfill or former swamps. Protection schemes will be politically polarized from the beginning see New Orleans if you you have any questions about the fate of low-lying areas. In New York for example, most of the developers and planners seem to be conveniently overlooking the potential for a rise in water level in their rush to develop waterfronts rapidly enough to take advantage of the current market. A large portion of the current shore is being rapidly developed as desirable property for recreation and residence. There is not much of a thought for coastal vulnerability in cases storms, flooding or sealevel rise. Designing the edges of our cities necessitates the adaptation of infrastructure to higher water. Some parts of the Rockaways in New York City see their streets flood once a month, 70% of the area has already seen flooding in the past year it would make sense to take this into account.
Built up Littorals, Future Survivability?Which brings us to the question of survivability (we've touched on liability) New York City has 580 (928km) miles of coast and is ranked right after Miami in terms of vulnerability to a major storm. At a minimum these areas need to restore sand dunes wetlands and natural barriers. These natural berms will be necessary to protect against high water and storm surges. In addition it will be necessary to elevate houses, provide shutters, electrical infrastructure and change the design of elevated subway stations so they can accomodate residents as shelters in case of serious weather. This was a part of the original design from the 1940's which has been allowed to fall into disrepair. While New York City is a relatively efficient city in per capita comparison to other US cities it still emits about eh same amount of greenhouse gases as Norway and Ireland combined. CO2 manifests itself in rising waters which by the cities disaster preparedness own calculations will result in a 1ft rise in sea water levels at the Battery over 100 years and say 5 inches or so over the next 20yrs. These are conservative projections and will most likely be adjusted upwards. Certainly during storm surges from major hurricanes and northeasters.
Continued Waterfront Development and the LawIn the United States FEMA flood plan mapping plans for 100 year floods and it looks at trends over the past and does not project into the future. They plan for past precedents and not future ones. This is also the methodology used by the insurance industry. Thus there is also a definite time lag built into the planning process and also into the CO2 absorption process. Essentially today we are dealing with the effects of CO2 from the 1950's. The effects of current CO2 output will be visible around 2050 or so. Those are the levels we should be planning for. CO2 has finally been adjucated as an air pollutant in the USA allowing it as a n air pollutant is the first step of a long legal battle to actually do something about it, a process that could take upto 10 years. As laws go some jurisdictions are further along than others. But laws in america serve usually as a basis for further litigation rather than a constructived impetus for change. Since challenges take decades to wind their way through the court system. The legal system is very concerned with assigning liability or fault. There is talk about say making the engineers or architects liable for example if a building or structure fails during a major flood or hurricane. Not of course the individuals, courts, lawyers and politicians who fought against building codes which would have disallowed the creation of sub-standard structures at or below projected sea and storm surge levels.
Shoreline InfrastructureWhile New York City is a relatively efficient city in per capita comparison to other US cities it still emits about the same amount of greenhouse gases as Norway and Ireland combined. CO2 manifests itself in rising waters which by the cities disaster preparedness own calculations will result in a (30cm) 1ft rise in sea water levels at the Battery over 100 years and say 5 (13cm) inches or so over the next 20yrs. These are conservative projections and will most likely be adjusted upwards. Certainly during storm surges from major hurricanes and northeasters. Which brings us to the question of survivability (we've touched on liability) New York City has 580 (928km) miles of coast and is ranked right after Miami in terms of vulnerability to a major storm. Certainly need to update our FEMA map and build into structures the ability for passive, habitable survivability even if the majority of services fail. Structures need to be more efficiently built and engineered as habitats to avoid displacing millions of residents in the event of an emergency. This would mean building envelope upgrades to ALL structures. This could euphemistically be called 'adaptation' to new prevailing climate circumstances. In addition it would be necessary to build structures in which it would be possible live without standard city services.
Infrastructure, Really Expensive to RelocateA good deal of infrastructure protection needs to be created including mega project type initiatives such as seawalls and surge barriers, build-in passive survivability in all structures.
The World Bank estimates that between $100 billion and $400 billion will eventually be needed to assist countries in adaptation efforts for new infrastructure alone. Proposals for how to generate substantial sums are sure to be on the table for post-2012 discussionsMany citys have grown up at or near sealevels on coasts, rivers or estuaries and have their infrastructure located on waterfront landfill. . Hydro Engineers will tell you that the fresh water, salt water inter face causes a magnification in case of a rise of the water table. Which becomes both saltier and higher. This causes underground structures (UST's) like tanks, sewers, pipes conduits and tunnels to become buoyant. They tend to start floating more on the ground water, 1ft of rise eseentially affects about 30 ft of tunnel and this increases at a geometric ratio as water levels climb. Also it is necessary to note when you pump groundwater, you draw other water, including potential contamination, into the system.
More things to MoveThe Center for Climate Systems which studies the impact of climate change on infrastructure, water quantity & water quality and the potential for coastal brownfield infiltration. The calculate a mean temperature rise of 5 degrees F (2.5 C) by the end of the century. This translates into a 1-2 ft sealevel rise. It also means from 2050 - 2080 there will be 4 times as many 'hot' days and after the 2080 perhaps 7 times as many occurring on a regular basis. The 1-2ft sealevel rise means by 2050 what used to be a 100 year storm now occurs every 40 years and after 2080 '100 year storms' will occur 3-5 times more frequently. A trend the ICCC thinks may accelerate as arctic sea ice melts and changes the earth's albedo in the the northern hemisphere. Be prepared for big surprises as the GHG trajectory climbs and disrupts many mitigating influences which work to stabilize the system. That is one of the wild cards in climate change. Steady states when disrupted tend to swing one way of the other, abruptly if geological evidence is to be believed. All coastal cities are in for some very expensive infrastructure upgrades and remediation. A significant amount of housing and infrastructure is on the coast and will be very expensive to protect and even more expensive to move.

Clever stands for Compact Low Emission Vehicle for Urban Transportation. Behind this abbreviation we see a moving concept for the urban individual mobility of the future. Clever was developed at the Technical University of Berlin with subsidies of the European Union. The aims of the constructing engineers was to create a car with a gasoline consumption of 2,5l and a weight not more than 400kg which equals half the heaviness of an average compact car. Two people find space to sit.

The Technical University of Berlin, Institute for Land and Sea Transport has developed the Clever Project with the help of partners, amongst them the BMW Group. The trike runs on a 20hp natural-gas engine constructed by BMW. It needs seven seconds to accelerate from 0 to 40 mph. The limit speed is 65 mph.

50 g/km CO2 emissions the clever car will emit. Most of the ways people go today within the city with their "normal" car could be done with the Clever as well but with the consequence of far less pollution. Engineers of the University of Bath designed a hydraulic system that prevents the car from possible turn overs. The cabin is made of fiberglass, which keeps the passengers warm in winter and takes the heat from them in summer time.

The constructors of the TU clearly see a market there. Within the next four years Clever shall be ready for the market they say. The estimated cost will be $13 000. In times where more and more people move to the cities space for cars becomes rare. Solutions that buy into the future of individual mobility like Clever deserve as much public attention as possible.
Find Clever in the PressFotos are taken from the official website www.clever-project.net

Future view of New York City; Courtesy of Alexis RockmanSome Carbon plans actually get out on the ground and count trees and measure CO2. New York City's plan makes use of remote sensing and aerial mapping. Ground proofing, that is getting out there on the ground to count and measure is a good way to check the accuracy of your results will apparently be done later. The agenda is to complete New York City's greenhouse gas audit by the end of March and come up with ways to reduce NYC's carbon signature by 30% by 2030.How? Well they are working on it, but it must be noted that the initial greenhouse gas audit covers only city operations and not the rest of New York. NYC accounts for about 1% of global emissions and the city government operations including CUNY account for 15% of that. In order to get results quickly the City has decided to address primarily 'Hotspots' to maintain a high a high public profile for programs.

 

Rick Aggarwala


Rohit (Rick) Aggarwala the 'Mayors Sustainability Guy' who was seconded from the Deputy Mayor Dan Doctorow's office to head this program, said to the assembly "No one has set a 2030 goal like ours" and that while NYC is already "the most carbon efficient city in the US," largely thanks to its public transit system we will use technology to help meet our goals. Some of the technology he noted that we will need to achieve these goals in 2030 and 2050 has yet to be developed.

Urban HazeThe CO2 inventory is overseen by Robert Dickenson from Columbia University's Earth Institute. Mr Aggarwala noted that certain assumptions were being made in the methodology of the audit. Half the emissions of aircraft taking off from regional airports are counted, truck emissions are hard to calculate and the rough breakdown of CO2 signatures in NYC is 60% from Buildings and 20% from vehicular transport. In the rest of the country vehicular transport accounts for 60-70% of CO2 emissions so some here feel there might be significant flaws in the methodology.Even for a highly efficient cityand New York could be a lot more efficient, including cars & trucks at 20% percent share could be construed as statistically anomalous in the United States. This means the criteria in the model used for determing that percentage may have a built in bias or do not include certain data. Most of the organizations and individuals, involved in PLANNYC 2030 are well known in the context of activism and conservation in New York. All of the individuals who testified before Committee Chair Gennaro made concise, cogent and clear presentations in the 5 minutes alloted for testimony.

 

The Panel

One of the most forceful speakers was the Program Director of the Environmental Defense Fund, Mr Peter Goldmark. He pointed out that mobile sources account for a lot more of NYC's carbon signature than 20%, considerably more. Most likely in the range of 60%. He endorsed congestion pricing for Manhattan on the model of that which was introduced by Ken Livingstone, Mayor of London, a few years back and spoke of the need for better rapid transit and more bus service in the outer boros.
New York City will also play host to the Global Climate Summit. A symposium where the 40 largest cities in the world will get together and compare notes. This event will be sponsored by C40 Large Cities Group and will take place from May 14th to May 17th 2007 here in NYC.

Just in time
So the Mayor's proposed bottom line:

Build a green services industry

Provide more green job training

Build better buildings and rebuild existing ones.

Encourage emissions trading in the financial sector

Improve public transportation

Consider a congestion pricing scheme

Counting trees indeed. It may also be the Bloomberg Administration wishes to securitize and commoditize the carbon credit potential the 1000+ square mile watershed that fills New York Cities resevoirs and determine a way to do this for the trees lining the City's streets.
If so this will a first excercise in the sale of the carbon offset rights of land in a public trust as a security. Counting trees indeed and who owns the rights to the trees you planted in your front yard?