From 2023, new building developments in England will have to boost plant and animal life by at least 10 per cent. How will this work in practice? "WE HAD A vision to create the most sustainable, carbon-efficient building that we could develop, and also to deliver as much net gain in biodiversity as well," says Emma Payne, project manager at Eden, an office block in Salford which is set to complete next year. If the architect's renderings are anything to go by, it will make a distinct departure from more traditional glass and steel office blocks. Instead, Eden will be draped head to toe in what will be Europe's largest living wall. Payne says some 350,000 plants will attach to the building on grids (the plants are currently sprouting in a nursery in Chichester). There will also be numerous bird boxes and insect hotels.
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