Peter Head of the British design firm Arup. Head leads the 100-person team
behind the green city of Dongtan, set to be completed by 2050.
Dongtan is a new city planned for the island of Chongming, near Shanghai. The city should be open, with accommodation for 50,000, by the time the Expo 2010 opens in Shanghai. By 2040, the city is slated to be one-third the size of Manhattan. Dongtan is the first of up to four slated “eco-cities” to be designed and built in China by Arup, a British company. (Pics and Video after the jump)
The cities are planned to be ecologically friendly, with zero-greenhouse-emission transit and complete self-sufficiency in water and energy. Ecologically sensitive design will be a key element of the masterplan. The site is mostly agricultural land adjacent to a huge wetland of global importance. This will be a significant opportunity to apply our integrated sustainability and urban planning expertise to the benefit of the eco-city.
Dongtan will be located at the tip of Chongming Island, off the coast of Shanghai. Though Chongming makes up nearly one fifth of Shanghai’s total land area, it’s largely undeveloped. A new bridge connecting the two is scheduled to be completed shortly before residents begin moving into Dongtan in 2010.
Centered around South Canal, this area of Dongtan will feature full-grown trees from already-built nurseries. Integrated wind turbines will provide electricity and low-rise compact buildings will be used for offices, institutions and residences. Water taxis running through the canal will carry people from Shanghai’s mainland and then around Dongtan itself.
The proposed Dongtan site as seen from the Yangtze River. Green spaces are a integral part of the plan: all residents will be within walking distance public green areas.
Hotels, theaters, and commercial centers border Dongtan’s harbor. Water taxis let out at the harbor pier and continue throughout the island’s canals.
Green roofs and solar panels are standard features on all of Dongtan’s buildings.
Just in case people get carried away – let’s not forget that none of this exists after 8 years of talking!