Mr Vishwanath's Residence & the BIOME Solutions Office
16/05/2023, Tuesday
On the second day of site visits, the interns visited Mr. Vishwanath’s residence, followed by a visit to the Biome Solutions office, both located in Vidyaranyapura, Bengaluru. We commenced the day by reporting to Vishwanath sir’s house at around 11AM, which is a model of sustainability and environmental consciousness at every level. The home is self-sustaining, taking into account the essential trinity of soil, water and food in order to create an independent ecosystem that flourishes in the absence of polluting technologies and inputs.
Mr. Vishwanath kindly gave us a tour of his home, and the following are the various components of the house:
Soil:
The house is built entirely with bricks made out of the soil and dug for laying the foundation. The topsoil, rich in nutrients and organic matter, is used for gardening and planting. The rest of the soil below the topsoil is then carefully dug out and used as construction material. The advantages of this are,
Easy Availability of the material to make earth blocks
Blocks can be made on-site using a manually operated machine.
Requires no plastering or painting and blends with the environment.
Requires less energy compared to burnt bricks.
The entrance gate is constructed using Bamboo sticks taken from the trees grown on the house's premises.
Water:
Bengaluru gets its water from River Cauvery, which requires 2 units of energy for every 1,000 litres (travelling 95km). At the same time, sir explained that Rainwater harvesting would require 0.1 units. Bengaluru gets an average of 970mm of water for 8 months, and a significant amount of household’s requirement can be met by harvesting the rainwater in tanks, aquifers etc.
We observed that the house's water requirements are fulfilled entirely via repurposed rainwater and grey water. Sir explained the rainwater harvesting system installed within the house, from the overhead drums on the roof, which collect and store the rainwater, to the pipes that transfer it to the kitchen and other parts of the house. In the kitchen, the rainwater pipes were connected to an R.O. filtration device, making it fit for consumption. We also saw the tanks intended for grey-water filtration and treatment to make it fit to be repurposed for household activities, terrace gardening etc. Furthermore, Mr. Vishwanath also created a composting toilet on the other side of the roof. The waste mixed with grey water is used as fertiliser for terrace gardens.
Food:
The home's rooftop contains a small plant zone, wherein crops like rice, green vegetables, fruits etc., are grown. The topsoil from the site, rich in organic matter and nutrients, is used as the bed for crops. The kitchen garden is well-lit with natural sunlight. Likewise, many vegetables were grown in polythene bags, used bins, and drums as a part of recycling. A schematic diagram of the rooftop, taken from a book at Sir’s house, is attached below.
Other Interesting Features of the Building:
Energy:
We saw photovoltaic panels fitted on the rooftop. A 10sq.m roof area with PVC (PhotoVoltaic Cells) can typically generate 1KW of energy sufficient to fulfil daily requirements. These PVCs run the water heater, solar cooker and other electric devices. The home is well-ventilated and needs no cooler or fan.
Nurturing nature:
The home is self-sustaining and yields a positive net benefit to local ecosystems, firstly by recharging groundwater and rejuvenating overall water availability and also via caring for local animals and insect species. A small bowl of water in front of their home allows stray dogs and wandering birds to quench their thirst. The weeds in the terrace garden serve as food for insects. Caterpillars feed on leaves and thereby enhance butterfly breeding. We, therefore, learnt that even a small step from our end can reach out to different strata of the environment and facilitate the benefit of all species that surround us. Ecosystems are fundamentally interconnected, and small actions of one species can and will significantly impact the life and health of all other species.
Million wells for Bengaluru
The ‘Million Wells for Bengaluru’ campaign was started by the Biome Environmental Trust in July 2015 and is expected to run till 2025. The explicit objective of the intervention is to increase the groundwater table in the city while providing livelihood to the local community of traditional well diggers (called Mannu Vaddars) in Karnataka. The home is a part of this ambitious Million Wells for Bengaluru project. A recharge well was constructed in front of the house to capture the stormwater and positively impact the aquifer level in the area.
The interns then sat down for a discussion with Mr. Vishwanath regarding BIOME’s work in water conservation all over Karnataka. This was a thought-provoking discussion with Sir where we were asked some basic questions as to who owns a common property resource, how rain harvesting is beneficial, the conflicts arising between the government and the local communities over a natural resource and balancing the same, etc.
The discussion was highly stimulating, whereby we understood how our various disciplines would come into play during our tenures at BIOME. It also provided us with an opportunity for internal debate and discussion, which served the dual purpose of acting as an ice-breaking exercise and an intellectually provoking thought experiment. During the discussion, we learnt that a 40 sq m area can generate the following and sustain on its own :
Energy for its own consumption
Water needs through harvesting and recharge
Absorbing and recirculating all wastes
Enhance Biodiversity.
The interns also received clarification from Sir about our prospective roles and responsibilities during our tenure at BIOME in accordance with our respective fields and technical skills. Later we were served a delicious lunch, ending the day's first half.
Biome Environmental Solutions Office:
Following this, we visited the office of BIOME Environmental Solutions, an architectural firm devoted to sustainable housing construction in various regions around India. The firm offers simple solutions such as rooftop rainwater harvesting, recharging groundwater wells, and natural & low-energy systems like the root zone treatment (Biome design) placed on the terrace.
We were explained the office's water harvesting and management systems, including the rainwater storage sump and transport systems. The office building was designed by Mrs. Chitra Vishwanath, who heads the firm. Similar to Mr. Vishwanath’s residence, also designed by Mrs. Chitra, the design of the building was such that the interior remained cool and comfortable without external cooling devices such as fans or air conditioning units.
We had a brief interaction with Chitra Ma’am, wherein she explained to us the office's design and structure and numerous other houses constructed by BIOME. She elucidated the various architectural nuances and feats of engineering that go into constructing a cool and comfortable home yet environmentally conscious and sustainable. We were told the story behind the cutting of numerous trees in American and European countries that led to the scarcity of green cover in the region and how the Tyranny of Small Decisions would impact the environment and biodiversity.
The fruitful discussion ended up with a few suggestions that can be implemented at an individual level while efficiently constructing a building. Some of them are,
Building the home on the ground floor, under the shade
Usage of Smart Roofs
Giving sunlight a priority - planning day-lit interiors
Rainwater harvesting and Recharge wells
Overall, the day was enriching and inspiring as we saw a living example of sustainability. We were happy to be part of realising this green dream of Biome Trust and Biome Solutions.
Important Links:
Designing a Rooftop Circular Food Garden- Vishwanath S
An article from Sowing Sustainable Cities - A book by IIHS;
Report prepared by:
Apeksha Deshpande and Keerthana Panchanathan, Interns at Biome Environmental Trust (Summer 2023)
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