" I did a lot of work to find the right architect for the project ."
PROJECTS
Verster wanted a small house and a large garden ( still a work in progress ).
" I did a lot of work to find the right architect for the project ."
PROJECT INFO
LOCATION : Lakeside , Cape Town SITE AREA : 580m 2 HOUSE AREA : 89m 2 over four levels TOTAL BUDGET : Approximately R2.5-million ( including land at R720 000 ) CONSTRUCTION START : September 2015 FOUNDATIONS , CONCRETE GARAGE AND BATHROOM FLOOR : Three months ( October to December 2015 ) STEEL FRAME CONSTRUCTION : One day ( 24 February 2016 ) TIMBER FRAME CONSTRUCTION AND INFILL : Two months ( early March to early May 2016 ) RAMMED EARTH CONSTRUCTION : 7 weeks ( May to July 2016 ) OCCUPANCY : November 2016 MATERIALS : Lightweight structural steel frame , timber walls , corrugated iron roof sheeting , rammed earth wall , concrete slabs for bathroom and garage floor
WASTE NOT , WANT NOT
Verster , who initially trained as a biochemist , says she was always interested in the idea of starting a biotech business , which explores applying a combination of technology and biological knowledge to systems to solve problems and create new products .
Her decade-long journey to becoming a specialist in water and sanitation culminated in a PhD , working with Professor Sue Harrison of the Centre for Bioprocess Engineering Research ( CEBER ) at the University of Cape Town , which investigated the possibility of harnessing human waste as a resource . Sewage is a complex waste product , Verster explains , because it is unpredictable and its contents vary all the time . “ Combined with the taboo of dealing with your own waste , thinking about sewage as a resource is a field of study that has been neglected over the years .”
With more water-sensitive living , we need to change how we think about sewage , explains Verster . “ If we can reduce the amount of water piped to our homes simply to be flushed away , then we can also remove the thousands of kilometres of sewer infrastructure needed to take it all away again . We save all the leaks , environmental harm and the health hazards that go along with it . We need to think how this can be incorporated in an urban lifestyle while keeping the dignity of the users in mind .” This is what Verster aims to do with her toilet .
If sewage can be viewed as a resource , new opportunities for innovation that contribute to the regeneration of the natural environment can be created . Simply by changing the way sewage systems are conceptualised and constructed , water pollution can be addressed at source .
// APRIL / MAY 2017 27