Sustainable City | Fully Charged

Summary

In 'Fully Charged', Robert Llewellyn explores Dubai's Sustainable City, a net-zero energy development. The city's design reduces energy intensity through north-facing villas, UV reflective paint, and efficient windows. It repurposes grey water for irrigation and integrates solar panels into architecture, generating 10 megawatts of solar energy daily. The city offers free services funded by rental revenue, promoting economic and social sustainability, and encourages electric vehicles with subsidies. The community is a model of future-ready, eco-friendly living.

Takeaways

• 🌱 The Sustainable City in Dubai is designed with a net zero energy goal, focusing on reducing energy intensity through various eco-friendly strategies.
• 🏡 Villas in the city are north-oriented to maximize shade and minimize air conditioning costs, which is crucial in the hot climate of the UAE.
• 🌞 UV reflective paint and thermal-efficient windows are used to reduce heat gain, contributing to lower energy consumption and carbon emissions.
• 💧 Greywater from showers and washing machines is treated on-site and used for irrigation, showcasing an innovative approach to water conservation.
• 🌳 The city incorporates a farm that utilizes greywater for irrigation, promoting sustainable agriculture within an urban environment.
• 🚗 Solar panels are used to shade parking lots, generating 10 megawatts of solar energy daily, which is fed into the grid and used for various city services.
• 🏊‍♂️ A community pool is maintained as a closed system with environmentally friendly treatment, emphasizing the importance of sustainability in leisure facilities.
• 🌿 The landscape is designed with both aesthetic and utility in mind, including date palm trees for harvest and other fruit trees that benefit from the shade.
• 🔄 The city features recycling stations and uses treated sewage for irrigation, demonstrating a comprehensive approach to waste management.
• 🏢 A mixed-use area within the city generates rental revenue, which offsets service and maintenance fees for residents, ensuring economic sustainability.
• 🚗 The city provides incentives for residents to purchase electric vehicles, including charging stations and cash subsidies, to promote green mobility.
• 🌡️ Innovative cooling techniques using treated greywater and fans are employed in agricultural areas, highlighting the use of low-tech solutions for sustainability.

Q & A

What is the main goal of the Sustainable City in Dubai?

The main goal of the Sustainable City in Dubai is to have a net-zero energy development, reducing the energy intensity of the city through various sustainable design elements.

How are the villas in the Sustainable City designed to reduce energy consumption?

The villas are oriented towards the north to benefit from shade, reducing the need for air conditioning and thus lowering energy consumption and carbon emissions.

What is the purpose of using UV reflective paint in the Sustainable City?

UV reflective paint is used to deflect sunlight and reduce the thermal heat gain, further contributing to energy efficiency.

How does the Sustainable City manage water resources?

The city separates water into two streams: black water and gray water. Gray water from showers and washing machines is treated on-site and used for irrigation and cooling pads, reducing water waste.

What is the significance of the shaded carpark with solar panels in the Sustainable City?

The shaded carpark with solar panels serves as a solar farm, generating 10 megawatt hours of electrical energy per day, which feeds into the grid and powers various services within the city.

How does the Sustainable City utilize treated gray water for landscaping and cooling?

Treated gray water is used to irrigate the landscape and keep cooling pads moist, providing fresh air into the biomes and contributing to the overall sustainability of the city.

What is the role of the community pool in the Sustainable City's sustainability efforts?

The community pool is a closed system with filtered water, replenished only due to evaporation. It uses an environmentally friendly treatment system, reducing the environmental impact of water usage.

How does the Sustainable City ensure economic sustainability for its residents?

The city generates rental revenue from commercial spaces, which is used to cover service fees and maintenance costs, ensuring residents pay zero service fees and maintenance fees.

What incentives are provided by the Sustainable City for residents to adopt electric vehicles?

The city provides charging stations and a cash subsidy of up to 10,000 euros or 40,000 AED towards the purchase of an electric vehicle for villa owners, encouraging the adoption of electric vehicles.

How does the Sustainable City manage waste and recycling?

The city has recycling stations throughout, and some furniture and structures are made from construction waste, demonstrating a commitment to reducing waste and reusing materials.

What is the impact of the Sustainable City on carbon emissions compared to global averages?

The Sustainable City has estimated that its residents emit approximately 3.1 metric tons of carbon dioxide per person per year, which is significantly lower than the global average of seven metric tons.

Outlines

00:00

🌿 Sustainable City Design in Dubai

The script introduces the concept of a sustainable city in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, with a focus on net-zero energy development. The city's design elements aim to reduce energy intensity, such as north-oriented villas for shade, UV-reflective paint, and energy-efficient windows and roofs. A unique feature is the use of treated grey water for irrigation and cooling, demonstrating an integrated approach to resource management. The city also boasts a solar-powered car park with 10 megawatt-peak capacity, contributing to the energy supply for various services within the city.

05:02

🌱 Green Living and Economic Sustainability

This paragraph delves into the green initiatives of the city, including the use of biofilters for water purification and the cultivation of fruit trees and date palms irrigated with treated grey water. The city's landscaping is designed for both aesthetic and practical purposes, with an emphasis on economic sustainability. Rental revenue from commercial spaces within the city is used to cover service and maintenance fees for residents, ensuring a zero-fee living experience. The script also highlights the community's greenhouse gas inventory, which shows significantly lower carbon emissions per capita compared to global averages.

10:04

🚗 Promoting Electric Vehicles and Sustainable Agriculture

The final paragraph discusses the city's efforts to promote electric vehicles, offering financial incentives for villa owners to purchase EVs and providing charging stations. The city also employs sustainable agricultural practices, such as using treated grey water for irrigation and experimenting with various herbs in a controlled environment. The script emphasizes the importance of being 'future-ready' and adapting to climate change by reducing environmental footprints and personalizing solutions. The city's architecture integrates solar panels seamlessly, showcasing an innovative approach to sustainable living.

Keywords

💡Sustainable City

A sustainable city is an urban area designed to have a low impact on the environment and a high level of sustainability. In the video, the 'Sustainable City' in Dubai is highlighted as an example of such a development, aiming for a net-zero energy footprint. The city's design elements, such as the orientation of villas for shade and the use of UV reflective paint, contribute to reducing energy intensity and carbon emissions.

💡Net Zero Energy

Net zero energy refers to a building or community that produces at least as much renewable energy as it consumes over the course of a year, effectively having no net energy costs or carbon emissions. The video showcases the Sustainable City's goal of achieving this status through the use of solar panels and energy-efficient design.

💡Villas Orientation

The orientation of villas in the Sustainable City is a strategic design choice to maximize shade and reduce heat gain. Villas are oriented northward to avoid direct sunlight, which is crucial in Dubai's hot climate to minimize the need for air conditioning and thus lower energy consumption and carbon emissions.

💡UV Reflective Paint

UV reflective paint is a type of coating that reflects a significant portion of the sun's ultraviolet rays, reducing the amount of heat absorbed by surfaces it covers. In the script, it is mentioned as one of the features of the Sustainable City that helps in deflecting sunlight and reducing thermal heat gain, contributing to energy efficiency.

💡Grey Water

Grey water is the wastewater generated from household activities such as showering, washing dishes, and laundry, which can be treated and reused for purposes like irrigation. The video explains how the Sustainable City treats grey water onsite and uses it for landscape irrigation, showcasing an efficient water management system.

💡Solar Panels

Solar panels are devices that convert sunlight into electricity. The script describes the extensive use of solar panels in the Sustainable City, particularly in the parking areas, which generate a significant amount of the city's electricity, contributing to its net-zero energy goal.

💡Economic Sustainability

Economic sustainability refers to the ability of a system to maintain its financial viability and affordability over time. The video discusses how the Sustainable City generates rental revenue from commercial spaces, which is used to cover service and maintenance fees for residents, ensuring the long-term economic viability of the community.

💡Carbon Emissions

Carbon emissions are the release of carbon dioxide (CO2) and other greenhouse gases into the atmosphere, primarily from the burning of fossil fuels. The video emphasizes the Sustainable City's efforts to reduce carbon emissions per person, significantly lower than the global average, through its energy and environmental strategies.

💡Electric Vehicles

Electric vehicles (EVs) are vehicles that are powered by electricity, reducing reliance on fossil fuels and associated emissions. The script mentions the Sustainable City's promotion of EVs through the provision of charging stations and financial incentives for residents to purchase EVs, aligning with its broader sustainability goals.

💡Biofiltration

Biofiltration is a process that uses living organisms, such as plants, to remove pollutants from water or air. In the video, biofiltration is employed in the water treatment system where plants like papyrus are used to filter and improve the quality of treated grey water, demonstrating a natural and sustainable approach to water purification.

💡Greenhouse Gas Inventory

A greenhouse gas inventory is a comprehensive record of the amount of greenhouse gases emitted by a specific entity or area. The Sustainable City conducts such an inventory to measure and manage its carbon footprint, as mentioned in the script, showing its commitment to transparency and environmental responsibility.

Highlights

Introduction to the Sustainable City in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, aiming for a net zero energy development.

Design elements to reduce energy intensity, such as north-oriented villas for natural shade.

Use of UV reflective paint and thermal-efficient windows to reduce heat gain and air conditioning costs.

Innovative water management system separating water into two streams: black water and grey water.

On-site treatment of grey water for reuse in irrigation and other purposes.

Solar panels shading parking areas, generating 10 megawatts of solar energy per day.

Grid connection allowing for energy production and consumption balance within the city.

Community pool designed as a closed system with environmentally friendly treatment.

Use of treated grey water in landscaping and for cooling purposes.

Integration of biofilters like papyrus to further improve water quality.

Economic sustainability through rental revenue offsetting service and maintenance fees.

Residents pay zero service and maintenance fees, supported by rental revenues.

Incentives for villa owners to purchase electric vehicles, including cash subsidies.

Greenhouse gas inventory showing reduced carbon emissions per person compared to global averages.

Transformation of mobility with electric vehicles, buggies, and bicycle tracks.

Use of low-tech desert technology for cooling and air conditioning, powered by solar energy.

Community involvement in farming and the use of construction waste for furniture.

Mixed-use area open to the public generating rental revenue for city services.

Personalizing the problems and solutions of climate change through community engagement.

Transcripts

hello and welcome to fully charged my

name is Robert the well in this is a

series about the future of energy and

transport electric cars all kinds of

cool stuff like this and today I've just

come along to see this normal town just

another town in Dubai Dubai in the

United Arab Emirates and I don't know

it's very nice it's very quiet as you

can tell not a lot of traffic track none

in fact it's amazing this is the

sustainable city first of all thank you

for coming I mean this is a it's a

delight to show you all of this so this

is the sustainable city and we we regard

it as our goal is to have a net zero

energy development so everything you see

first of all the principle design

elements is to reduce the energy

intensity of the city and so if you

notice as we drive through those streets

the orientation of the villas you know

these villas they benefit from the shade

we decided to design and to orient all

the villas towards the north so all

these villas are north orienting which

means they get a lot of shade and we

avoid the Sun and that is so important

in this part of the world because

otherwise your air conditioning cost is

going to go up through the roof and

that's not good for carbon and carbon

emission yeah we also have UV reflective

paint which means you deflect a lot of

sunlight and you reduce the thermal heat

gain right the windows also have

tremendous thermal value and the roof is

well just it's such it's such an

attractive place to live I mean we're

now going to have the beautiful pond

yeah these are these are the water

features this is actually great water

and this comes out of our wash basin

this is water from the shower right and

the the washing machine and we actually

treated we we separate the water which

enters the city into two streams so we

have lock water and gray walls right so

wait what you just saw is the grey water

that is treated when we treat it here in

site or on-site in the community and you

will see that in a bit and then we pump

it up through that stream and we have

these storage ponds

and all along this farm we're now

driving through the farm which runs the

length of the city we tap into the gray

water system to irrigate the landscape

and we also use the grey water to keep

these pads if you can see the trailer

right oh sweet marks you know those pads

we keep the moist with treated gray

water and those are pads that we utilize

to cool the bottom right so they

actually provide fresh air into the

biomes then we can enter one of those

and see what's inside and then this is

the thing that I first saw when I

arrived is that all the carpark

yes shaded with solar panels so she's so

sensible yeah was it walked into point

first of all all the cars are assembled

so we wanted to keep the cars away from

the clusters which means when we drove

through a cluster it is completely car

free right that's amazing for kids a

training ground exactly this is their

space the entire source is their space

so we have all the cars in one location

and under a roof panel and so we have in

the city we actually have 10 mega watt

peak installed let me put that into

perspective that's 40,000 panels PV

panels we're so far we've installed

26,000 and of those 10 megawatt three

megawatts come from the parking areas

wow that's a lot of electricity yes so

we can produce 10 megawatt hour of

electrical energy solar energy per day

Rock and this leads into the grid yeah

this feeds into the grid because we are

grid connected and then we tap from the

grid view no we take it back and to

supply energy in different sections of

the city right all the services the

cooling pads the farm the streetlights

the water features all of that is

actually utilizing electricity from the

car park right yeah so there is one

community pool and this has always been

a contentious point about sustainability

but right you know we've designed in

such a way first of all this is a closed

system so the water is filtered yeah and

we just pump it up replenish it because

of the evaporation during the summer and

we have a very environmentally friendly

treatment system as well installed it's

also extremely very popular don't

editorial figure you know living in

Dubai without a pool at least one pool

is difficult it's become expected if

it's such beautiful weather here today

in January you know so I have been in

this area before the midsummer I know

that it is extremely hot collecting yet

yeah exactly so now the weather is

beautiful we're at 25 degrees Celsius if

you come back in 4 months it's going to

be 45 yeah so then the story is

different so the water that you see here

the sports are streaming down this is

this is gray water right treated and we

have a little bit of slope so we utilize

the slope to have that movement of it

offer a ninja is it clean does it oh

it's treated it is first of all it is

treated and then we can we improve the

treatment if you notice needs these

these grass yeah this is papyrus right

that's what they had in Egypt right to

make paper for example and those are

called bio fizzes so we planted those

and they are actually soaked they're

soaked down in the water and they buy a

filter the water runs because they

there's a lot of nutrient uptake yeah so

they improve the water quality even more

the trees that you see now the landscape

here is only two years old so what you

see is only two years old so we've tried

to balance between the amenity and the

utility value of a landscape we don't

just want beautiful trees the landscape

or shrub we also want to have trees that

are going to bring something back to us

so the date palm needs we pollinate in

the spring and then we're going to

harvest we harvest the dates in August

and then the trees scattered along the

farm we have avocado papaya pomegranates

mulberry fig trees so those are spreads

and they will benefit from the shade of

the palm trees and all of that is

actually irrigated with treated to

adjuster one so these pipes that you're

going to see everywhere right this is

actually treated sewage actually and so

right here on our left now why are you

going to see other buggies is the gray

water treatment us so it's under ground

and you know it just makes to the villa

yeah people are not offended by you know

odor is whatsoever that's the water that

we very lovely plants right now that's

the water that we treat and then we

store it in the lake and then we pump it

up and then it trickles down again and

we tap from the lake for irrigation

purpose and I we have recycling stations

right throughout the city so we have a

ratio we actually have nine of these for

every 90 minutes so this is the farming

that we try to have

for the cooler climate for about six

months of the year we can grow food

outside and this is actually managed by

the community by resident right now some

of that furniture that you see scatter

these benches the picnic tables in this

giant back table or a chair this is made

of construction waste this is all

construction waste from phase one wood

pallets and around the clock and plus

exactly other senses this area is really

at the entrance of the city and as part

of the master plan this is the mixed use

area which is open to the public and so

here we have 15,000 square meters of

space of rental space and this is only

for rent and the idea behind it is that

this is going to generate rental revenue

and a portion of the rental revenue is

going to pay all the service fees and

making seeds in the city so we have

promised all the residents in the

community that they will pay zero

service fees and zero maintenance fees

Wow hang on let me get my head round you

move into the city yeah whether you're a

tenant or a homeowner of an owner so you

can't you can buy one of you can buy

yeah this is called freehold invite oh

you can you can buy property or you can

rent you out right in both both options

in both cases you will not incur service

fees or maintenance fees it's zero so

when you look at a concierge service or

sweeping the street for sweeping the

panels we actually dryclean the panel's

of solar panels all the landscaping the

water features the gray water treatments

the security outside the mosque etc all

of that is provided for free running for

free meaning it is offset by revenues

that come from this Plaza and this this

you know this is related to ensuring

that there is also economic

sustainability and social sustainability

it is not only about the energy features

that are also features the economic

dimension also has to make sense and I

mean has the general sort of public

response to what you've done here been

tremendous I mean it's been tremendous

some people were there was a lot of

skepticism right if we go back four or

five years when the timing started most

people kind of just brushed us aside

right even even you know bankers and I

mean there was little interest we did we

did draw attention but I don't think

many people believed in this concept and

the design that was both financial

crisis global financial analysis

things have really picked up and now

when you demonstrate with what we've

done so far in phase one I think it's

becoming more and more obvious that this

is doable and it is not more expensive

you know Apple right apple or orange in

general for this is a Miss and you know

when you design sustainably from the

start yeah from the start it's not an

afterthought yeah and after solid

expenses but when you plan it right from

the beginning and you also capture the

latest technology or the latest you know

features from the market then it's not

more expensive right

and we've demonstrated that all the way

down to social sustainability and

economic sustainability

we've brought down just talk about

carbon on average in the world each one

of us from UK to Dubai to Lebanon to

Australia we emit on average seven

metric tons of carbon dioxide per person

per year

here we've we did our estimates because

we're doing a greenhouse gas inventory

of the city we are at approximately

three three point one metric tons per

person per year time that applies for

residents living in the city Wow

including commute outside the city Wow

so I'm not sure and you're talking

people who've got you know a lot of

people have quite substantially large

vehicles in Devon fortunately or not

we're not all in supérieur so this is

this is something we have we have our

own targets as well to transform the

mobility not only inside the sea because

that's you know we've achieved that

already with electric vehicles and

buggies and and bicycle tracks and

jogging track cetera so we've provided

that but more importantly we want people

to begin to switch to electric vehicles

and so we've done two things so far

we've provided charging stations seconds

and that's really unique as a developer

we are actually providing an incentive a

cash subsidy to Villa owners who wish to

purchase an electric vehicle right and

we live in the city so if you live in a

city and you are a villa owner you will

receive up to ten thousand euros or

forty thousand at home towards your

first IDI for our so that's the idea so

that is that's part of your sales

contract and also whether you you make

use of it or not that that's your choice

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this is amazing

yeah so we have 11 of those right and

this is our you know sm2 to grow food we

started with her

we now have we spent both of last year

2016 experimenting with different herbs

and different temperatures so we've now

selected 40 herb what you see here in

this photo we have we have leak we have

Farsi we have mints

we have bubbles chicory spinach Volusia

coriander cherry tomatoes lettuce and

it's much cooler again outside but then

the facts are the fans are blowing air

so they are alive this is the beauty of

having a low-tech solution this is a

desert technology right this has existed

for more than 40 years in farms all

across the Arabian desert right and the

system is very simple we actually have

we call it fans and pods like land and

thugs so we have four fans blowing air

out then you have a negative pressure

inside so possibly air is going to come

the wing trees I'm going to throw it

right now is just blowing air out

yeah here's a cold path it's like

cardboard corrugated cardboard and then

we wet them we moist them all the time

was treated gray water so if you see

them you have these peaks of water and

just need some drips coming back here

and your sign in front of it it's like

an air conditioned fire so the

temperature is going to drop on 45 so

about 30 so the other thing is if you

were doing this 10 years ago you would

be you know burning some form of fossil

fuels in order to run the motors that

drive the fan but all that electricity

is all coming from the solar so this is

coming from the car parks that we saw

yeah that's what we call the solar farm

and these are just motors so I take a

lot of how a temple or area so quite hot

that's loaders loaders

so there's no air conditioning tonight I

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think that's my argument really for the

British property development sector if I

want to watch this is pull your finger

out guys because you because there's a

huge amount of this technology could be

used in the UK it's not it's not all

everywhere I mean every country has it

has an opportunity I mean there are

things you can do in the UK that we

cannot do in Dubai and vice-versa for

but it is about you know being future

ready that's what we say we want to be

future ready meaning the climate is

changing things are getting more

difficult and we all have the

responsibility to bring down our

footprint and so we try to personalize

the problems and the solution here you

know by getting everybody involved and

then presumably like in them even in

summer at night I think what it is quite

get colder I get a new perspective now

yeah you could eat that you could have a

meal up here me

oh yeah evening when it wasn't wasn't

quite well we can use this space you can

use this space for about eight months

well then you have four months you don't

want to be L not interested yeah that

would be mid-june through mid-september

right it's it's you know upper mid 40s

lower to mid 40s and then it's humid as

well towards the end of the summer but

otherwise you know eight months and so

if you notice a feature we have here is

that now we tend to associate panels

solar panels lid on you know put it over

the garage I don't want to create it

smells it's unsightly but we've actually

incorporated it it's part of the

architecture because when you look over

there you wouldn't think Oh all those

roofs that solar panel yeah because you

know you're expecting to see something

like that

ah

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you

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