Masdar City. ECOcity from the future in the UAE
The city from the future Masdar City resembles the realm of high technology. There are no cars here, and the streets where passers-by walk are only 3 meters wide! The city of Masdar, on the edge of the Arabian desert, was the first world-class global eco-experiment and was designed as the premier location on the planet for cleantech companies. And although now its original concept is being gradually revised, what has already been done is truly impressive.
13 PHOTOS
1. This "zero" city was originally supposed to become completely autonomous: to process waste itself, produce solar energy, collect rainwater and desalinate the sea. In 10 years, about 40,000 people were to live in Masdar and another 50,000 would come to work in the companies located there every day.
2. Masdar City is located near the international airport, 17 km. from Abu Dhabi and covers an area of about 6 square meters. km. The brilliant architect of world renown Norman Foster took part in the development of the project.
3. Initially, part of the city was planned to be covered with a special openwork roof that protects the streets from the scorching sun, with solar panels stacked at night, but this idea was abandoned. A terracotta wall around the city was supposed to protect from wind and sandstorms, as in medieval settlements.
4. The main founder of the city of the future is the state and the project started exclusively with its money. Another business unit playing an important role in the project is Clean Energy, an operator, and investor in renewable energy. The project is also supported by the research university Masdar Institute of Science and Technology, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and Moscow State University.
5. And now let's talk a little about the city itself ...
The city is provided with energy thanks to a nearby photovoltaic station.
6. In January 2014, the Siemens headquarters building was opened in Masdar. It consumes a quarter of the amount of water used by a similarly sized office building in Abu Dhabi.
7. The streets in the city are completely given over to the power of pedestrians. Personal transport is not needed here, because everything you need is always within walking distance, no matter where you are in the city. Most of the streets here are 3 meters wide and no more than 70 meters long, and most of the buildings are no higher than six floors.
8. However, Masdar also has two-lane streets for electric vehicles and special vehicles. By the way, they decided to leave cars with an internal combustion engines outside the city limits, and these electric cars are at the service of residents.
9. For long-distance trips, the city purchased 2getthere unmanned electric vehicles instead of buses and minibusses.
10. Houses in Masdar now use at least 50% less electricity and water than conventional buildings, and new ones will consume even less.
11. The city has been profitable since 2015 and it seems that the state has already returned the funds invested in it. More than 370 companies from various sectors are already located in Masdar: real estate, education, and research. Now, without exception, all Masdar buildings are fully leased.
12. Special façades, neutral design, a multifunctional energy-saving system, and water savings have reduced the energy consumption of current buildings by 50%, the load on their cooling system by 40%, and water consumption by 54%. And this is already a huge result!
13. Now, only 5% of the entire planned area allocated for Masdar City has been built. The completion date has been moved to 2030. Architects still have a lot of unfulfilled ideas in reserve, the implementation of which is slowed down by the constant technological growth in the world and the diversification of the economy. And while Masdar has failed (and, as the authorities have said, is unlikely to succeed) to become a 100% zero city in a realistic time and financial framework, they are at least trying and have already become part of the evolutionary process.
Keywords: Masdar City | ECOcity | Eco-friendly | UAE | High technology | Cities | Cleantech companies | Eco-experiment