Let’s start a green revolution-1 in Bangladesh

Let’s start a green revolution-1

DhakaLive's Faizul Khan Tanim thinks it is time to take stock of the situation and face up to reality. Climate change is not a joke and we must adapt or die!

Bangladesh faces many problems. The inability to generate and supply sufficient energy, especially gas and electricity has everyone scrambling to find better alternatives.

The need to incorporate new ideas and technology has been slow to catch on in Bangladesh. People who should know better tend to mock and ignore the consequences of lifestyle choices they make. Across the world, when petrol prices rose, followed by the recession and financial markets collapsed, people were forced to rethink how they lived. For instance, a Hummer is not a badge of pride anymore; gas-guzzling monstrosities have been abandoned and left to die! But you would never know that judging by the number of four wheel drives on our roads.

The world’s finite fossil fuel resources are running out, they cost much more and supply is limited. We can no longer sustain our wasteful lifestyles. Gadgets, technology and appliances for homes and offices as well as new and improved materials to build with are causing a buzz. From solar panels to energy efficient bulbs, fans, air conditioners and fridges to washing machines and toilet fittings that use less power and water, conserving and harvesting rainwater, opting for bio and other natural gas, wind farms and planting trees are more popular then ever. But sadly not in Bangladesh, at least not as much as we’d like.

Buildings of the future

Rising energy costs and a growing acceptance of the concept of climate change make eco-houses viable and fashionable. We should all aim to become carbon neutral. Traditionally eco-houses were expensive to build and impractical to maintain. However, advances in architectural technology means that these are truly the buildings of the future.

In Bangladesh, Habitat for Humanity International makes cost-effective and environmentally friendly housing. These structures are built out of concrete interlocking blocks or concrete hollow blocks with a clay tiled roof, which are eco-friendly components. These structures are easier and quicker to build. Many local companies are making concrete blocks locally.

The METI School of Rudrapur in Dinajpur is a structure that has been hailed as a breakthrough in architectural design. It won the prestigious 2007 Aga Khan Award for Architecture. This two-storey building was built by traditional methods, incorporating techniques that made the best use of locally-available materials, combining them with modern and improved techniques. For the walls for instance, loam and straw was mixed with bamboo and nylon, and lashed into shape to create the structure that is both sustainable and strong. Using such elements makes the building not just environment-friendly but also cuts down on the use of bricks, and that means less pollution from the brick fields.

A young architect called Prithula Prosun designed and constructed a house called the ‘Lift House’, which stands for low income flood-proof technology. This eco-friendly- house was designed to provide sustainable housing for low-income communities in flood-prone areas. It floats upwards with rising water levels during floods and water logging and returns to ground level as the water recedes. The self-sustaining design collects rainwater, which is filtered using a service spine, and recycled through a bio-sand filtration. An underground pipe sends urine, a good source of nutrients, into the garden, and shared composting toilet allow residents to use human waste to fertilise the vegetable gardens.

The sun shines for us

We can not emphasise enough on the benefits of using solar power in homes and offices. The glass-enclosed high-rises that have mushroomed across the city are perfect green houses, with practically no ventilation, they trap the heat and so these buildings need more electricity to power the air conditioners, which must work harder to cool the rooms and so lets out more heat and so makes the atmosphere outside hotter and so the buildings need... you get the picture. It’s a vicious cycle so why not cover them with solar panels?

Homes and offices can easily be fitted with solar panels to generate enough energy to reduce the pressure on the national grid. Solar panels convert sunlight into electricity.

In Bangladesh, IDCOL promotes solar energy use, especially in the rural areas and companies such as Grameen Shakti, Solar Pac, Bestway Powertech, Rahimafrooz Renewable Energy Ltd, Energypac Power Generation Ltd and many more are ready to help you install and use solar energy. So what’s stopping you?

Tomorrow we’ll tell you about a few more renewable and eco-friendly ways to remodel your home, office and lifestyle.