Green Zone, Umea

In Umea there is a unique environmental area and it is not a housing area. It is an innovative, sustainable platform for providing service to motorists. It is unique because it is entirely designed with the environment in mind. The project offers service for both cars and drivers with a complete service facility, an energy station with food store plus roadside restaurant. The public/private project has been developed with the support of the Ford Motor Company, McDonalds and Statoil and is known by the name Green Zone.

The first thing one notices when driving into the Greenzone is that the roofs are green, with grass growing on the roofs of the McDonalds, Ford and Statoil gas station. Not only are they more attractive, but Ford has found that the green roofs eliminate the need for air conditioning, thus reducing cooling energy needs by 100% compared to a typical dealership. In addition to the insulation benefits for both heating and cooling, the inside air temperature is dropped by the evaporation of rainwater.

Instead of a typically paved parking area, there is a permeable surface with pavers inserted in grass.  This allows rainwater to penetrate into the earth where it is collected in cisterns, from which it is biologically filtered in a series of attractive streams and ponds and then released as clean water.  This is in contrast to typical parking lots from which rainwater is contaminated by oil, car exhaust and atmospheric pollutants which then run-off directly into our waterways.

The benefits have been remarkable compared to a similar-sized facility:

• Electrical consumption has been reduced by 60% and only renewable energy is used, coming from solar heating panels and a coastal windmill.

• There is 100% re-use and recycling of materials. There is 90% reduction in the use of fresh water from the public supply. Rainwater is collected and used for washing cars and flushing toilets and there is a vacuum toilet system that only uses 1.2 litres for every flush.

• 100% of nutritive substances are used, with toilet waste going to tanks outside where it is composted for use as fertilizer on farms.

• The whole building is bolted or screwed together so it can be completely deconstructed and all the materials reused.

The aim of the Green Zone is to increase interest in environmentally sound technology and in doing so strengthen the demand for, and supply of, such products.  This leads to sustainable product development, higher volumes and lower prices.

Green Zone was developed with a holistic view of how we can, in the best possible manner, conserve natural resources within the building sector, without compromising function or comfort.