FEATURES
T
he task of the Living Future Collaborative SA is to
advocate and work collectively with all stakeholders
towards a Living Future. As such, the voluntary
organisation has set itself the task of promoting strategies
and approaches that operationalise regenerative design by
creating awareness and contextualising the Living Building
Challenge in South Africa.
BELIEVING IN A ‘BETTER WORLD FOR ALL’
This is a future that many professionals cannot accept and are
actively seeking to change. The Collaborative believes in the
Living Building Challenge philosophy and comprehensive
approach because it holistically addresses the multiple challenges
faced by cities.
Timber iQ (TiQ) caught up with Marloes Reinink (MR), sustainable
building consultant and founder and director of Solid Green
Consulting to find out more about the Living Future Collaborative
SA’s vision of bringing change beyond individual buildings,
integrating urban systems and communities with nature, and what
this means for timber construction in South Africa.
TiQ: The core underlying principle of the Living Building Challenge
(LBC) is that buildings should mimic nature and natural systems
– what role can timber play here?
The South African built environment faces numerous challenges
and risks. These include cities that are riddled with spatial planning
issues; projects currently underway that inadvertently reinforce
spatial injustice; scarcity and mismanagement of valuable
resources; and a lack of climate resilience planning to mitigate the
effects of extreme weather impacts such as drought and flooding.
Officially opened on Earth Day, April 22, 2013, the Bullitt Center is
a six-storey, 4 700m² office building that aspires to be the world's
greenest commercial building.
indoor air quality of spaces, and also on the health of people
working in spaces. By using low-VOC and no-formaldehyde
sealants and treatment products, this impact can be mitigated.
[Note from writer: Also see our article ‘Timber inside: low-carbon
options for healthy buildings’ in this issue of Timber iQ (page 30),
to read more about Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs), and the
MR: Timber plays an important role. If you look at LBC certified
buildings, the majority have some element of timber in the structure.
Part of the challenge is that the project has to offset the embodied
carbon footprint of the building, meaning that you need to calculate
the carbon that is associated with the harvesting, manufacturing
and transporting of the materials in the building. Timber has a
relatively low carbon footprint and is a renewable resource. As such
it fits in really nicely with the Living Building Challenge philosophy.
Timber is also great for recyclability, as it is usually bolted and can
be unbolted and reused at the end of the building’s life.
TiQ: Are there any examples of projects in South Africa which
predominantly use timber for construction that are actively
seeking the certification? If so, can you provide more detail?
MR: Our new office is pioneering a Cross Laminated Timber
structure. As a sustainability consultancy we do need to walk the
talk, and compared to a concrete structure, timber has a much
lower carbon footprint. As such, it was a no-brainer for us. At the
same time timber provides a more natural feel to the space.
MR: There is no one recipe for building a regenerative building,
and as such there are many different solutions. However, timber
ticks boxes naturally, due to its nature. Timber is renewable, it is
structurally sound, and it has a low carbon footprint. However, we
have to ensure the timber is sourced from responsibly managed
forests, which is indicated by the FSC (Forestry Stewardship
Council) logo. Also, we have to focus on using local timber
materials, not only to stimulate the local economy but also to
minimise on transport impacts. And lastly, the treatment of the
timber must be taken into account, as this has an impact on the
www.timberiq.co.za
TiQ: Part of the Living Building Challenge’s mission is to advocate
for a regenerative future by providing a platform for thought
leadership in the area of regenerative design principles and
application; to what extent has timber as a construction material
been considered?
Under the Living Building Challenge, the environmentally-conscious
Bullitt Center demonstrates that carbon-neutral office space can be
commercially viable and aesthetically stunning.
// APRIL / MAY 2020
27