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Environmentally friendly construction of buildings – an approach towards Eco Living
By Admin | July 11, 2009
Sri Lankans have been living in harmony with nature for thousands of years. Constructions have been done through out the years using earth material thus having least pollution. Interactions with the Europeans have resulted in using modern construction material and methods among Sri Lankans.
Unprecedented natural disasters such as Tsunami as well as other disasters including floods, landslides can destroy entire villages thus displacing hundreds of families. Reconstruction of houses after such disasters should be planned and implemented in environmentally friendly manner. One concept is Eco village that are sustainable communities where people strive to achieve more viable life styles. Eco villages are based on social, ecological and spiritual motivations.
The present study was conducted on eco village concept and green building by taking Lagoswatte Eco Village located in Kalutara District as a case study. Meetings were held with officers at Sarvodaya Shramadana Movement and visits were made to study the buildings of the village. A literature review regarding eco villages in the world and traditional building materials in Sri Lanka was conducted before the visits. Species that had been planted were also recorded. 35 houses out of 55 houses in the village were interviewed using a questionnaire prepared to gather information about various aspects including their knowledge of eco living, harmony with nature, harmony among themselves. Tsunami housing schemes around the village were also studied in order to compare the standard.
Studies revealed that although the Lagoswatte eco village was not entirely constructed using environmentally friendly material it was among the best planned housing schemes in the area. A proper waste management system was maintained and percentage of green cover in the village was high compared to other villages. All 55 houses were provided with solar power and more than 80% of the community was well educated about advantages of living with least pollution. Houses were built to have more ventilation and cooling effect. Another advantage the community had is that they were being continuously advised by Sarvodaya Shramadana Movement which helped them develop their knowledge on environmentally friendly life style.
The areas where improvements needed are also discussed in this paper. Although they were provided with species the maintenance of vegetation was less. More earth materials should have been used during the construction phase. The spiritual motivation was less observed during the study.
This paper also identifies the importance of lessons learnt from the study and applying them in development activities which are carried out in areas such as North and Eastern Provinces. Traditional building material that have been using in the areas should be used. Sustainable development would only be met if construction is done using eco friendly methods.
Key words: Eco Village, Eco Living
S.A.Vanniarachchy, D.M.H.S.K. Ranasinghe, G.D.S. Priyadarshika, C. Heenatigala
Nature Solutions (Private) Limited, Sri Lanka, Department of Forestry and Environmental Science, University of Sri Jayewardenepura, Sri Lanka, Marine Pollution Prevention Authority, Sri Lanka, Panadura, Sri Lanka
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