Designed by Boeri Studio (Stefano Boeri, Gianandrea Barreca and Giovanni La Varra), this green vertical towers project integrates plant life into their façade, but unlike many others green facade designs, they will go beyond. Bosco Verticale, Italian for “vertical forest” will become the first vertical forest in the world. Located in the Porta Nouva district of Milan, Italy, these pair of residential towers has a height of 119 meters and 87 meters and will host more than 900 trees (From 3, 6 and 9 meters tall) on 8,900 square meters (96,000 sq. ft.).
Milan is on of the most polluted cities in the world, and the Bosco Verticale project aims to mitigate some of the environmental damage that has been inflicted upon the city by urbanization.
Is a system that optimizes, recuperates, and produces energy. Covered in plant life, the building aids in balancing the microclimate and in filtering the dust particles contained in the urban environment. The diversity of the plants and their characteristics (chosen by botanists) produce humidity, absorb CO2 and dust particles, producing oxygen and protect the building from radiation and acoustic pollution. Plant irrigation will be supported through the filtering and reuse of the greywater produced by the building. Additionally, wind and photovoltaic energy systems will further promote the tower’s self-sufficiency. This not only improves the quality of living spaces, but also gives way to dramatic energy savings.
Finally, as Stefano Boeri said, is a project for metropolitan reforestation that contributes to the regeneration of the environment and urban biodiversity without the implication of expanding the city upon the territory. Bosco Verticale is a model of vertical densification of nature within the city.
The project is expected to be finished before 2014. All the innovations involved in this project make me wonder about two issues. First the maintenance needed for all the vegetation in the building, and second how will they stop the trees from ripping through the concrete?.
Most videos about the project are in Italian, but I found one in English:
Here’s a video about the project made by discovery science channel.
Here’s a rendering of the project.
Sources:
Bosco Verticale in Milan Will Be the World’s First Vertical Forest
http://inhabitat.com/bosco-verticale-in-milan-will-be-the-worlds-first-vertical-forest/
Bosco Verticale: The World’s First Vertical Forest Nears Completion in Milan – NEW PHOTOS
Stefano Boeri Architetti website
http://www.stefanoboeriarchitetti.net/?p=20
WIKIPEDIA
IIT Building Science Blog 