أرشيف الوسم: Kuwait_City

Time passes over cities and leaves its impact on people and buildings alike. Time is relative, and its impact varies from one location to another. Similarly, science and technology impact the notion of time and affect the way people live everywhere. Life in the country differs from city life in terms of timing and the need for speed. In traditional societies, seasons govern the way people use space; and for Muslims, the five prayer times determine their daily activities.

With modernization and the changing nature of work, work became a routine; and the clock now rules the daily activities of people. Also, means of transport altered the way people view time. While in the past walking controlled how we perceived time, today the vehicle speed organizes how people communicate.

Additionally, the mobile phone revolutionized communication.  It removed barriers from the public and private spheres. It canceled the notion of space completely. As such, people’s activities could take place anytime, anywhere; and as a result, the physical place lost its value completely.

Even buildings that used to be designed and built to last were designed carefully with attention to minute details that allow pedestrians to enjoy their elegant facades. Today, buildings are designed, built swiftly and expected to last for 40 years only. We no longer justify the need to supplement buildings with details as the fast-moving eyes can only notice their silhouettes.

Places and buildings carry traces of memories, meaning and history. Thus, world cities preserve historical sites and buildings. Cities act beyond that and also preserve modern buildings that carry architectural and historical significance. We can import stones and technology, but we can’t buy history, memory and meaning. Such intangible qualities carry the secrets of specificity, the chests of the past and the keys to the future.

We need to replant the value of place and time through the design of our cities, public spaces and architecture. The built environment determines the quality of the places we live in. When designed carefully, it can create a lively environment that brings us to reality and enriches our daily experiences.

Kuwait as well as other GCC countries faced severe rainstorms that broke rainfall records and exceeded the capacities of stormwater networks. Further, extreme flooding on certain roads and urban areas caused tremendous damage to public and private properties and paralyzed movement and businesses, leading to direct and indirect financial losses of enormous scale. According to Kuwaiti officials, the damage resulted in 300 Million KD (1 billion USD) in damages.

Flowing and drifting stormwater carries a variety of microbes and bacteria as it reaches the shores of the gulf. In turn, this contamination leads to many environmental and health problems. The core problem is the geographic changes, the urban expansion, and construction — which covers wide areas of land. The covering of natural land with pavement, asphalt, buildings, and other civil structures also obstruct torrent movement and prevent natural soil from absorbing excess water.

The conventional solution is to construct wide networks, deep tunnels, and underground tanks at the cost of millions of dollars. However, this problem is more complex and requires a holistic solution to treat the underlying problems presented by stormwater. This holistic solution is based on three axes: social awareness, respect for the environment, and smart design.

Social awareness:

A smart city cannot be created without smart citizens. Smart citizens prioritize the protection of the natural environment. They are active and support governmental efforts to execute environmentally friendly projects.

The aware citizen — whether an individual or a member of a business — is law-abiding and does not pollute the network. In some cases, citizens may participate in the upkeep and cleaning of the infrastructure.

Respect the environment:

Smart cities respect the environment and intelligently integrate their infrastructure with the land’s unique characteristics in mind. Strategic decisions, such as the allocation of land for future cities, contain the natural terrain. Despite public and political pressures, some land must be left undeveloped. And so, respect for the environment entails understanding and acknowledging that development in some areas is untenable — regardless of these pressures.

Smart Design:

Establishing a smart city begins with a design concept based on accurate data and deep understanding of site, topography, and history. The form of the city and land-use distribution must fit with the natural land, its slopes, and torrent paths. Smart cities must allocate open spaces to collect stormwater and green land to allow the natural soil to absorb rainwater. Even walkways must be paved specifically to allow for the penetration of water to the ground. The same goes with landscaping which should use tree trenches and water ponds to collect water and allow it to be absorbed and infiltrated into the ground.

Smart city employees use the latest technology to monitor infrastructure and allocate failures into their systems. Today, the internet of things (IoT) is supported with geographic information systems that allow for smart monitoring of performance and efficient management of stormwater networks.

Architectural design can also work to contribute to the environment that it occupies. Today, most buildings are designed to push excess water toward roads and neighbors; this practice increases the pressure on the networks. Also, smart buildings use green roofs to collect water for future use, or at least, slow the flow of rainwater toward the network during storms to mitigate its negative impact during peak hours.

Cities can adapt to natural climate and become safe, comfortable places for residents to live. Although heavy rains present challenges to communities, it can also be transformed into a source of natural water. However, to meet these goals, we must raise awareness, respect the environment, and design our urban projects smartly.