Φυτεμενοι τοίχοι για να αντιμετωπισθεί αποτελεσματικά η ατμοσφαιρική ρύπανση

Φυτεμένοι τοίχοι   για να αντιμετωπισθεί αποτελεσματικά η ατμοσφαιρική ρύπανση

Living Walls Effectively Mitigate Air Pollution

Photograph by Bertrand Garbel, Hemis.fr/Getty Images

Air pollution in cities is rapidly increasing but living walls on buildings can help to mitigate the damage to human health.

Over the past couple of weeks, London has experienced extreme air pollution including high nitrogen dioxide levels and heavy photochemical smog. Polluted air can cause severe health problems. In addition to triggering asthma attacks, it can cause irritation of the eyes, nose and throat, bronchitis, pneumonia, and over a longer period, lung disease, heart attacks, and damage to the liver, kidneys and brain.

Using what is called a ‘street canyon,’ a recent study has shown that green walls reduce airpollution by a significant amount. Living walls planted in street canyons, or corridors between tall buildings, are not only visually pleasing but offer several benefits including reducing noise, improving the energy efficiency of the building, and cooling city blocks.

Photograph by Sandra Raccanello, Grand Tour/Corbis

Air pollution is reduced when green walls lower extreme summer temperatures through photosynthesis by capturing gases and trapping particulate matter. Vegetation-laden walls also provide buildings with thermal insulation which results in less of a dependence on power and a reduction in harmful emissions.

Biochemist Thomas Pugh and colleagues at the Karlsruhe Institute of Technology inGermany conducted the street canyon study by utilising a computer model of a green wall with vegetation generic to a Western European city. Noting factors such as building placement and wind speed, they recorded the chemical reactions taking place on the living wall.

A clear pattern emerged showing the street canyon absorbed large amounts of particulate matter and nitrogen dioxide.

Photograph by Carol Sharp, Eye Ubiquitous/Corbis

“Compared with reducing emissions from cars, little attention has been focused on how to trap or take up more of the pollutants,” said Pugh, adding “[the green wall study] is putting forward an alternative solution that might allow governments to improve air quality in these problem hot spots.”

Taking advantage of under-utilised spaces in urban areas, leafy green walls could very well be integrated into every city block.

These days air pollution comes largely from diesel engines. Photograph: Edmund Sumner/View

Pugh hopes the study will show policy makers a viable way to reduce pollution that is neither overly expensive or complicated, providing a clear and simple strategy to mitigate negative health effects caused by polluted air.

By Kristen Avis

πηγη:designbuildsource.com.au