Open house: Isn’t the idea of sustainable architects worth considering by the govt to preserve biodiversity?
Plant maximum number of trees
Certainly, the government should rope in sustainable architects to retain tree cover without compromising on the health and well-being of citizens. This is essential because numerous trees have already been axed in the name of development and construction. As global warming is increasing, the need of the hour is to provide maximum protection to citizens by safeguarding our environment and planting maximum number of trees.
Sanjay Chawla
Create green belt in new projects
Infrastructure upgrade is essential to cater to the growing needs, but wanton felling of trees and undue mining of forest lands has to be restricted to save the environment. Deforestation disrupts the ecosystem, leading to loss of biodiversity, soil erosion and change in the local climate. Recently, over 20 trees, some of which were more than 100 years old, were axed to create space for constructing a Critical Care Centre at the Civil Hospital, Jalandhar, despite strong protests by environmental activists. This destruction could have been avoided by setting up the centre at an alternative site within the premises. Similarly, millions of trees are being ruthlessly cut down every year for widening the roads and laying of new residential/commercial projects. Consequently, natural green cover is shrinking leading to a steep decline in rainfall and global warming, which poses a serious danger to the health of humans and other living organisms. Polluted air and water are silent killers that can be mitigated by preserving trees as they provide fresh air and water by inducing rainfall. Sadly, however, appropriate safeguards are not taken to protect these gifts of nature. For ecological balance, it is crucial to maintain the precious flora and biodiversity of the region. As such, drastic climate changes and its multiplying environmental risks necessitate immediate action. The government must pass on specific instructions to architects engaged in the construction of buildings or planning a development project, that they prioritise environmental protection in all cases. Proportionate green belt ought to be mandatorily reserved while according approval for new urbanisation and development projects. Furthermore, a vigorous afforestation drive may be launched by the administration to cover all vacant lands across roads, highways and along water bodies in villages. It is, indeed, an absolute need to raise awareness about the significance of green cover to check the adverse effects of environmental degradation on public health. By taking collective action, we can ensure a healthier and more sustainable future for generations to come.
Nirmaljit Singh Chatrath
Green buildings are the way forward
The building and construction sector contributes about 38 per cent of the greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and accounts for 35 per cent of the total energy consumption. As the demand for buildings and constructions continues to rise with limited land availability, growing population and increasing income, there is a concern that GHG emissions from this sector will also increase with the felling of trees. Hence, the roping in of sustainable architects for constructing 'Green Buildings', encompassing the use of eco-friendly materials and processes, and minimising the use of resources from the design, construction and maintenance to demolition stages, have been recognised as an important pathway. This design approach promotes long-term socio-economic benefits and reduces the carbon footprint. Key benefits of constructing resilient and adaptable buildings include energy efficiency by optimising natural lighting, ventilation and insulation as well as environment-friendly features such as protecting precious flora and bio-diversity and integrating green spaces like rooftop gardens and vertical green walls. This approach incorporates renewable energy sources and uses cost-effective materials like recycled, reclaimed and locally sourced materials. Additionally, it practices rainwater harvesting and greywater recycling. However, implementing sustainable green architecture involves numerous challenges such as higher upfront costs of material and technology, their limited availability due to the early stage of development, lack of standardisation and certification leading to confusion and inconsistency, lack of public awareness, resistance from the stakeholders accustomed to traditional methods and materials and from policymakers.
Kulwant Singh Phull
Tree transplanter machines are helpful
The recent protest over felling of trees is genuine because once the sapling is planted it takes years to become a big tree. The axing of trees for development works can be granted permission from the competent authorities. India is heading towards becoming a developed country with the introduction of latest technologies but why has the Forest Department not purchased 'Tree Transplanter Machines'. The tree transplanter machine works on hydraulic pressure generated by truck engine, the conical shaped four blades are arranged in such a way that it penetrates deep in soil. Once all the blades penetrate inside soil, then the earth ball is lifted above ground level, thereby a pit is dug or a tree with root stock is lifted. This is one of the successful tree transplanters that can be used to change the place of the tree whereas growing a full-fledged tree right from the stage of sapling can take years. In foreign countries, machines are used for pruning and cutting the trunk of the trees. Because infrastructure developments works have to be carried out, sometimes big trees are axed and the wood of the tree is sold at a reasonable price without going into the fact that the axed tree released oxygen throughout the day, keeping pollution at bay. The protection of our precious flora should be the priority of the Forest Department, and before axing the tree, the officials should go in detail whether the plant is to be axed or can be migrated to another place or not . It is necessary what Prime Minister Narendra Modi has done: Appeal to plant a sapling in the name of your mother. The forest cover is shrinking and the jungles are being converted into industrial and residential areas. To keep the ecological balance intact, forests are the need of the time. Population explosion is also responsible for axing of trees but if these trees are transplanted to another place, it can be a better option to preserve the ecological balance and keep environment free of pollution.
Rajat Kumar Mohindru
Conserve old trees of heritage value
In the recent few days, the sentiments of the people have been badly hurt because of axing of so many heritage trees with people protesting strongly.
The question is, rather than cutting, these trees should be saved. For this, engage architects with a focus on sustainability and environment conservation who can help save trees and minimise the ecological impact of construction. They should visit the site for analysis and identify trees and other natural elements worth preserving and design the building accordingly. They can design the building around these trees instead of axing them. So many architects are skilled in green building technology, they can propose designs which minimise environmental disruption and build natural landscape around these trees which look beautiful.
These old trees can be integrated into courtyard and made an essential part of the building itself. By working with architects, an eco-friendly perfect design can be made more harmonious with nature and reduce the need to cut down trees and conserve the old heritage trees and also eco-system.
Shashi Kiran
Fast-track courts, tree census needed
Development without protecting trees and environment can prove to be disastrous for humanity. There must be zero tolerance towards cutting and uprooting the mature trees to pave the way for the construction of roads and buildings, irrespective of location and size. To overcome the problem, architectural planning needs to be innovative in such a way that existing mature trees are incorporated in the design, not only to save them but also for enhancing the beauty of the structure through the benefits of trees and their resultant bio-diversity. Moreover, the state government must bring out a comprehensive legislation to save, protect and preserve the trees with the provision of fast track courts to punish the criminals heavily and expeditiously. A special provision for carrying out tree census on an annual basis in the state should be incorporated for their numbering and proper records. The mature trees of a certain age should be identified to declare them as 'Heritage trees', to be considered as national assets. Special financial and expert support can be provided to those maintaining such trees.
Jagdish Chander
Plant literacy may help preserve trees
Long before modern civilisation, flora and fauna was the key to survival. As modernisation gradually took off, the importance of these unreplaceable gifts of nature has decreased. But recently, some light was shed on the topic and the responsible environmental activists of Punjab grieved and performed "Antim Ardas" for the 20 axed trees near the City Hospital which highlighted the criticalness of this topic and woke the government from its slumber. The administration should definitely look into the matter and try to preserve nature as much as possible. Some ways to do that include, "plant literacy". The masses of Punjab need to be aware of the importance and necessity of plants and trees. The number of benefits from them is almost infinite; they give us fresh air, save groundwater, provide shade and are home to a variety of wildlife. The preservation of biodiversity can be significantly enhanced if the government effectively communicates the importance of plants to the public. Another way is to apply a strict ban and prohibit cutting of trees. In addition to this, strict punishment should be given to those who don't follow this rule. This will instill fear among the wrongdoers and reduce the chances of such incidents. The significance of planting trees at appropriate places should be an important aspect in the architectural design of any buildings in the city. Preservation of nature is the best gift we can give to our coming generations.
Lakshit Jindal
Categorise land properly
Oxygen is the prerequisite for survival of humans. If every tree and green belt is destroyed in the name of economic development, then man will certainly lose his health and life will end forever from earth. According to the National Forest Policy, a minimum of 33 per cent area of every state should be under forests. Unfortunately, this has not become the practice till date. While preparing master plans of cities, land categorisation should be done properly with the help of geo-information satellites. Terms like common land, green belt, forest land, private land, land for future planning, reserved land etc should be properly defined in state town planning Acts and depicted in the individual layout plan/map of every colony or village. Every village and colony should have the latest labelled guide maps based upon the latest planned layout plans/maps. Similarly, before approval of any building plan on any type of land, whether it is common panchayat land or private land, approval of the Forest Department should be made mandatory. Before architects or civil engineers make any building plan, sustainable criterion of the area should be properly assessed and approved by the Forest Department. Similarly, if any state has an area less than 33 per cent under forests, planting of trees on private land should also be made mandatory. Unless we humans become serious about the environment, problems like climate change which includes excessive temperature during summer or erratic rainfalls will tend to increase and survival of humanity will become impossible. Hence, urban development authorities, Public Work Departments and Municipal Corporations should work together with the Forest Department to implement sustainable environment policies so that economic development should continue to happen, but not at the cost of environmental degradation.
Harvinder Singh Chugh
