Open sesame

摘要

Did you know that the city of New York is one of the most environmentally sustainable places in the US? Surprising, isn't it? But the Green Building Council has found, empirically, that New York has a smaller ecological footprint than any other US state, despite having a population that is larger than all but 12 of those states. How can the city of excess also be the city of environmental restraint? The answer is very simple: density. The Green Building Council has shown that even a town full of the oldest, draughtiest accommodation in a dense urban centre will almost always provide a more environmentally efficient form of living than a new town full of eco-homes in a greenfield location. The trump cards are embedded energy and sustainable transport. Intensifying the use of an existing urban area means that we are optimising the use of the buildings and infrastructure that are already there, rather than building anew. And, of course, the more people we have living in an area, the closer the distances between amenities, so many more people walk and cycle and public transport is more viable.