By R Acharya, S Puthran and Megan D'Souza - Marian Projects Pvt Ltd
Mangaluru, Jun 5: "Air above me, earth below me, water flows in me, fire consumes me, nature surrounds me". Our very life source is the environment. The infinite amount of gifts it bestows upon us is the sole reason for the prosperity of human kind. The main factor behind earth being hospitable to life is the existence of atmosphere and environment. All these years later the poignant question is what are we as individuals doing to save the environment?
Mangaluru is a coastal town which has been thriving due to the sheer number of infrastructural endeavors that have come to existence. But as we see, the scenic beauty that once used to adore every inch of Mangaluru has been depleting over the years. Where once upon a time, we used to find trees in every other corner, today concrete jungles have taken their place. The harmful byproduct of this expansion has been the rising temperatures in Mangaluru which as of late has made summers brutal to tolerate. The water scarcity has led to frequent power cuts plaguing the city. From time immemorial all we have done is take and take from nature. But seldom is it that we think of giving back. This environment day let’s turn introspective and explore all the little ways in which we can make a difference.
One such task has been undertaken by Marian Projects (P) Ltd., who believes in giving back what they have taken from our mother earth. With their keen eye on being Environment friendly, the projects undertaken are clotted with a palate of eco-friendly initiatives. The wide array of initiatives include the following:
a. Rain Water Harvesting System
A religious pattern of rain water harvesting system is automatically induced in all projects undertaken. Most common one traditionally used is collection of rain water from roof top areas and directing the same through a patented mechanical filter to the natural source (well/bore well). This in turn fills up the capillaries underneath the ground to a large extent automatically bringing up the water table in that particular area. In situation wherein ground source is not available then the water is directed through traditional filter media to a specified depth (around 10’) to meet the recharge criteria.
Rain Water Harvesting System installed in Marian Projects Pvt Ltd
b. Solar Water Heater System
Yet another free natural resource given to mankind by the creator is that of the sun.
Electricity being an expensive commodity when it comes to heavy duty usage, solar power chips in as a savior. An array of solar heat absorbing panels through which cold water circulates and becomes hot water, when arranged through a designed system of plumbing relieves the consumer of the high wattage power consuming geysers. A plus point in solar water heating system is zero carbon emission.
A 100 litre per day capacity system suitable for 3-4 people can save upto 1500 units of electricity in a year depending on the amount of hot water used.
Following table gives an approximate savings data on electricity consumption for a typical 100 lts per day system located in different parts of the country:
Solar Water Heating System installed in Marian Projects Pvt Ltd
c. Solar Powered Lights for Common Passages
Hybrid inverters commonly used in developing world are making their way into daily use in order to stabilize energy availability, which convert DC power generated from the solar array into usable AC power. Hybrid inverters go a step further and work with batteries to store excess power as well.
Most of the applications in Marian projects have been in the common passage areas wherein a part of the illumination is catered by this system.
A step further, the government is taking up keen interest to educate people into use of solar energy as a power house generator by installing roof top solar absorbing arrays connected to hybrid converters and this simply could be either consumed or given to the local electrical grid.
d. Sewage Treatment Plants
With increasing load on the not so modernized sewerage network of Mangaluru, a call has been given to prospective builders and establishments to install sewage treatment plants (STP) wherein the number of apartments exceed 2000 m sq of builtup area. It’s very much mandatory to install STPs wherein there is absence of sewerage network. A typical STP is based on the SBR process or sequential batch reactor process wherein the regime undergoes an activated sludge process in six discrete periods. The sludge formed could be used as a solid manure for agriculture and gardening. A step further is the tertiary treatment wherein the decant water is further sent through pressure sand filter and activated carbon filters to contain turbidity and BOD. This water is further treated with chlorine for disinfection and the water could be used for agriculture, gardening and also in the apartment complexes for flushing process in toilets. Thus water conservation criteria is met.
Flow diagram of sequential batch reactor process
Marian Projects have installed STPs and in some projects have used the tertiary treatment to recycle the water.
e. Use of Hydropneumatic Pumping System
Water and sanitation are critical to survival of people and the planet. With focus on minimizing environmental footprint through innovative and energy efficient pumps, one can achieve sustainability in water conservation and energy saving.
A concept established towards such pumping system is the hydropneumatic pumping system used both for domestic and industrial applications, wherein the entire plumbing network works as a pressurized system and the pumps function on demand. These types of pumps also eliminate the construction of overhead tanks and their maintenance. These pumps have been widely used in the world and have saved a lot many energy units in terms of electricity consumption.
Marian team has installed the world class 'Grundfos' hydropneumatic pumping system in its high rise structures.
Benefits of the Pump:
• Constant pressure
• Low life – cycle costs
• Hygiene through Stainless steel solutions
• Proportional intelligent pressure control modes for water system with relatively low static height
• Plug and pump booster system
• Energy saving
f. Use of Machine Roomless Elevators (MRLs)
Buildings consume about 40% of the worlds energy and elevators account for 2 to 10% of energy consumed by the building MRL’s use a gearless technology in which a permanent magnet synchronous motor, frequency control and Low friction gearless construction motors is employed. It requires less starting current, consumes less power and needs no oil. Less starting current means a smaller back up generator which saves cost. Gearless machine solution means no losses due to inefficient gears resulting in savings in energy running costs.
Facts:
• Consumes upto 70% less energy than hydraulic drive and 50% less than traction drive
• Due to variable frequency drives used, peak starting current is 30 to 40% of that of hydraulic and traction units reducing energy consumption
• Thin and light weight requires less raw material and space compared to traditional hoisting machines.
• Eliminates the construction of a machine room, thus saving construction cost.
Energy Saving:
• 4000 kw h/per year compared to hydraulic technology
Carbon Footprint Reduction:
• 2240 kg CO2 per year compared to hydraulic technology.
Marian projects have incorporated these lifts in all their recent projects, thus saving remarkable energy consumption.
g. Use of UPVC Doors and Windows:
Most of the Marian projects have been installed with UPVC French doors and windows.
UPVC is an ideal recyclable material. At the end of service life, it can be successfully converted into other useful products. Even the waste material generated during manufacturing can be reprocessed, thereby helping in creating a sustainable future.
UPVC has replaced wood one world over as a popular framing material. Use of UPVC eliminates dependence on wood in turn leads to forest conservation.
When used in lieu of aluminum, they contribute towards energy saving as they use a lot less energy to manufacture aluminum.
Installation of UPVC products as windows, French doors have excellent insulation towards heat, dust, sound and gives a cozy atmosphere in living spaces.
UPVC being a poor conductor of heat and by using efficient airtight glazing systems, there is a considerable saving on energy consumption as the temperatures in the living spaces are maintained at a lower level.
h. Household Waste Handling System:
Waste management is viewed as a part of generation, collection and disposal system. The move to a sustainable society requires greater sophistication to manage waste. The most important reason for waste collection is protection of environment and health of mankind.
With importance on segregation of household waste into dry and wet, MCC has launched a waste management system to cater to the woes of Mangaluru city garbage handling system. Marian has installed a garbage handling system in which residents are educated to segregate waste as dry, wet and recyclable. For this, a colour code system is adopted and educative display boards are installed for the benefit of the residents. This in turn helps the garbage handling contractors to save time in segregation and identification of waste.
With all the above initiatives, Marian team has taken up a small step towards green and sustainable environment, though a lot has to be done.
"The Woods are
Lovely dark & deep
But I have promises to keep
And miles to go before I sleep" - Robert Frost