If there ever was a touch of irony to something, then this would be it. The economy of the Middle East is driven by the rich oil resources in the area. Yet, the ultramodern community of this desert land has opted to move in to the future using a lifestyle that is clean, green and powered by renewable sources of energy. The irony of it all is that the funding for this innovative and amazing eco-friendly project is probably derived by supplying oil barrels to the world. Well, at least one cannot complain about the way money made from oil wells is being put to use.
Groundbreaking is scheduled this Saturday for Masdar City, a nearly self-contained mini-municipality designed for up to 50,000 people rising from the desert next to Abu Dhabi’s international airport. The city is aimed as a pilot project in testing the design for green cities which are self-reliant and self sufficient. The 2.3-square-mile community, set behind walls surrounding this model green town to divert hot desert winds and airport noise, will be car free and emission free according to the design by Foster + Partners.
The entire city is energy efficient with water supply coming from the sea using the process of desalination. The power for the city is derived from solar panels that are going to be almost endlessly placed over the shade that continuously covers the pathway across the city. The city will take several years to be completed in its entirety with a $15 billion investment in new energy technologies by Abu Dhabi. While the entire project looks great in theory, it is far more difficult to actually bring it into reality. Plenty of progress needs to be made on the practical front to achieve the desired target. For the sake of environment, on just hopes that reality is indeed nothing more than perception!
