[Scpg] Ecological Design of Waste Treatment Workshop at Arcosanti, Arizona July 21 - 26, 2002
Wesley Roe and Marjorie Lakin Erickson
lakinroe at silcom.com
Sun Jun 23 23:49:27 PDT 2002
Ecological Design of Waste Treatment
Workshop http://www.arcosanti.org/workshop/eco_design.html
at Arcosanti
July 21 - 26, 2002
How an Arcology would deal with its sewage and
other
waste-water is an important issue. To explore
answers to this question
the Cosanti Foundation and the Ocean Arks Institute
will be hosting a
collaborative Ecological Design Workshop.
In nature there is no "waste" from
organisms, only nutrients to
be used for another organism. Led by research and
experimentation by
John Todd, author of "Eco-Cities", the Ocean Arks
institute teaches
how to construct "Living Machines".
"Living Machines" are not as much a
technology as a technique
on how to use natural, biological, process to treat
sewage and
waste-water. In using this technique one balances
various flora and
fauna in a container, the plants and animals then do
what nature has
done for millennia, use biological process to turn
"waste" from one
organism into nutrients for another.
Living Machines share the tenets of
Arcology in several ways:
1) respect for the environment; the
effluent from a Living
Machine is organically cleaned and full of nutrients
so that the ejected
water can be used by the local flora and fauna to
bolster the local
eco-system.
2) aesthetics; by using plants Living
Machines inherently create
garden like spaces that are both aesthetically
pleasing as well as
functional.
3) education; by using Living Machines
as part of ones
infrastructure one becomes aware of and learns how
humans can work
with nature together for each others benefit.
4) multi-use of resources; by taking
waste water and cleaning it
that water can then be used for domestics,
aesthetics, recreation and
finally agriculture.
In this experiential learning workshop
participants will learn the
concepts and techniques of bio-remediation, using
living systems of
plants and organisms, to treat the sewage waste of
Arcosanti. The
workshop will culminate in the hands-on construction
of a working
system integrated into Arcosanti's current waste
treatment, the oxidation
pond.
Tuition for the workshop is $370.00
Room and board at Arcosanti for the week is $175.00
for meals and
an available guest room or dormitory housing.
To apply click here. In the registration form please
check "One Week
Seminar" and in the "Interest" section please write
"Eco-Design
Workshop" plus a statement as to your interest in
this workshop. After
we confirm your application is received please send
$50.00 deposit for
a non-refundable registration fee. The application
deadline is July 8th,
2002.
Workshop Itinerary
Sunday [July 21]
3:00pm Arrival, registration and housing
Monday [July 22]
7:30-9:30am Arcology Concept Introduction
9:45am Morning Meeting with residents
10:00am-12:00noon Planning introduction
12:00 Lunch served in the cafe
1:00-5:00pm Seminar on Living Machines
(including integration into
Arcology idea)
Tuesday [July 23]
7:30-9:30am Meet by Oxy Pond
9:45am Morning Meeting with residents
10:00am -12:00noon Sketching and talk
12:00 Lunch served in the cafe
1:00-5:00pm Surveying the "boneyard" for
recyclable materials
and assembling equipment list
Wednesday [July 24]
7:30am leave for Prescott Field trip
visit Living Machine in
Prescott and purchasing run for
materials
2:00pm further design work looking at
the materials,
assignment of jobs
4:00-5:30pm School of Thought with Dr.
Paolo Soleri
Thursday [July 25]
8:00am Nature Walk, around site to
gather Living Materials
12:00 Lunch served in the cafe
1:00-5:00pm Start assembling
Friday [July 26]
7:30am bright and sharp start assembly
of the system
12:00 Lunch served in the cafe
4:00 Presentation of system to the
Arcosanti residents
For more information, please contact:
Wes Ozier, Workshop Coordinator
Arcosanti, HC74, Box 4136
Mayer, AZ 86333
tel: 928.632.7135
fax: 928.632.6229
arcosanti hc 74 box 4136 mayer az 86333
tminus at arcosanti.org
The Arcosanti Project
Suburban sprawl, spreading across the
landscape, causes
enormous waste, frustration and long-term
costs by depleting
land and resources. Dependancy on the
automobile intensifies
these problems, while increasing pollution,
congestion, and
social isolation. Arcosanti hopes to address
these issues by
building a three-dimensional,
pedestrian-oriented city.
Because this plan eliminates suburban sprawl,
both the urban
and natural environments should keep their
integrity and thrive.
Arcosanti is a prototype: if successful, it
will become a model
for how the world builds its cities.
In 1970, the Cosanti Foundation began
building Arcosanti, an
experimental town in the high desert of
Arizona, 70 miles
north of metropolitan Phoenix . When
complete, Arcosanti will
house 7000 people, demonstrating ways to
improve urban
conditions and lessen our destructive impact
on the earth. Its
large, compact structures and large-scale
solar greenhouses
will occupy only 25 acres of a 4060 acre land
preserve,
keeping the natural countryside in close
proximity to urban
dwellers.
Arcosanti is designed according to the
concept of arcology
(architecture + ecology), developed by
Italian architect Paolo
Soleri. In an arcology, the built and the
living interact as
organs would in a highly evolved being. This
means many
systems work together, with efficient
circulation of people and
resources, multi-use buildings, and solar
orientation for
lighting, heating and cooling.
In this complex, creative environment,
apartments,
businesses, production, technology, open
space, studios, and
educational and cultural events are all
accessible, while
privacy is paramount in the overall design.
Greenhouses
provide gardening space for public and
private use, and act as
solar collectors for winter heat.
Arcosanti is an educational process. The five
week workshop
program teaches building techniques and
arcological
philosophy, while continuing the city's
construction.
Volunteers and students come from around the
world. Many
are design students, and some receive
university credit for the
workshop. But a design or architecture
background is not
necessary. People of many varied interests
and backgrounds
are all contributing their valuable time and
skills to the project.
Week-long silt sculpture workshops and
Elderhostel programs
offer other ways to be involved. At the
present stage of
construction, Arcosanti consists of various
mixed-use
buildings and public spaces constructed by
4000 past
Workshop participants.
The residents of Arcosanti are workshop
alumni, who work on
planning, construction, teaching, computer
aided drafting,
maintenance, cooking, carpentry, metal work,
ceramics,
gardening and communications. They produce the
world-famous Soleri Bells, as well as hosting
50,000 tourists
each year in a Gallery, Bakery, and Cafe open
every day
except Thanksgiving, Christmas, and New Years
Day . Guided
tours introduce visitors to the philosophy ,
history, planning
and ongoing construction of the site.
Concerts and other events in the Colly Soleri
Music Center
also allow visitors to experience Arcosanti.
Shows include
dinner, and are often followed by a
Pictograph 2000 light show
on the opposite mesa.
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