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Description
Vertical gardens are a part of nature that comes into our immediate environment and improves its climate. Our project concerns the development and implementation of vertical gardens with the use of micro-farming. The filtering panels made of plants will clean the air of substances that are most typical or dangerous in a given space. These plants do not require any special protection products or fertilizers, and they do perfectly well in rooms with no sunlight access.
The panels will have a higher absorption rate of substances harmful to human health compared to currently available panels. A simplified closed-loop irrigation system powered by renewable energy will be built into them. The panels will be equipped with a mechanism to count and display its impact on the surrounding environment.
The project covers development works consisting in the design of filtering panels with the selection of plant species/varieties in terms of pollution reduction, and the analysis of physiological state and growth of plants in the panels, as well as comprehensive renovation of the building intended for the headquarters of the project, i.e. the office and the greenhouse (microfarming) plant cultivation, purchase of photovoltaic installation and greenhouse with equipment (including irrigation system). Also, I will purchase advice services in the area of communication and website creation, and the preparation of construction documents with a mechanical ventilation design.
My project partner, Green Transformation AS, will provide mentoring during the development stage works, and later – when preparing the product for commercialization in terms of building market potential.
The installation of photovoltaic panels will reduce annual CO2 emissions by approximately 144 kg.
Summary of project results
PROBLEM: According to the estimates of the European Commission, about 43 000 inhabitants of Poland die prematurely each year from air pollution. For comparison: every year 3300 people die in road accidents in Poland. In the so-called ''heating'' season, i.e. autumn and winter, the air quality in Polish cities, from the point of view of harmful substances, can be worse than in the most industrialized parts of China.
A radical increase in green areas which would perform filtration functions by transforming hazardous substances in the air into oxygen had been planned as the solution against the identified set of problems. The air filtration process belongs to the basic functions of plants, especially when concentrated i.e. as the vertical gardens (the VGs). Their effectiveness reaches an absorption of about 2.3 kg of CO2 from the air per year and simultaneously, they produce about 1.7 kg of oxygen by 1 m2 out of the green VGs. In addition, plants absorb sunlight, i.e. 50% of the light is absorbed by the plants and 30% is reflected by them, resulting in the possibility of lowering the air temperature in an urban area by approx. 4,5°C compared to the surrounding areas. An additional effect of the plants’ application has a form of the noise reduction and a positive psychological and physical impacts on human beings.
The project aimed to make use of the natural properties of the plants by filtering from the air substances harmful to humans and the environment.
The so-far solutions existed on the VGs market emphasise this property of plants, mainly as an element of marketing campaigns but in practice, the products currently offered on the market actually contribute to the
deepening of environmental problems. This is due to the fact that the vast majority (99,9 % of the market) of the construction of vertical gardens uses materials which are harmful to the environment, i.e. plastic
(pots and plant fixing structures) and electricity from traditional sources - minerals (for irrigation and fertilisation system propulsion). In addition, the vertical gardens currently offered on the market, especially those containing mosses, are artificially coloured – thus providing a wide range of colours for such ''gardens''. In addition, they are artificially prepared with e.g. glycerine, which allows maintaining a longer effect of ''fresh look'', the visual attractiveness of such products. However, this has nothing to do with taking care of the environment, and plants treated with glycerine instead of purifying the air from the pollutants, collect dust, dirt and harmful substances, and thus become unhealthy for the environment and humans.
The planned activities included the development and implementation of innovations in the area of environmental technologies.
The objectives of the project have been achieved by the implementation of the following actions:
Task I was related to the project promotion and dissemination, i.e.:
- Placing a noticeable and significant commemoration table with information about support received from the Norwegian Fund,
- Project opening event organisation,
- Workshops/seminary-type events organisation,
- Promotion and information on-line – design and organisation,
- Project website design,
- Participation in trade fairs,
- Project’s closing event organisation.
The development and implementation of innovations (Task II), which included a number of business meetings with the aim to learn about Norwegian best practices in the horticultural market, with particular emphasis on vertical gardens (VGs) and micro-farming.
Task III. Focused on the innovation development, including micro-farming constructions for both external and internal structures. The aim was to prepare prototypes which then have been commercialised. The task consisted of R&D work conducted both independently and jointly with the R&D institute. These efforts resulted in five innovations elaboration, i.e. four innovative products and one innovative solution. Among them are the air filtering panels, the VGs supported by renewable energy, the VGs combined with the micro-farming, an innovative educational programme.
Task IV. Included building and preparation for overhaul.
Task V. was about implementation of the innovations i.e. starting the production of innovative products and offering them for sale.
Task V. included:
- Overhaul work,
- Purchase of equipment (fixed assets) and intangible assets necessary for project’s proper functioning,
- Production and sale.
- partnership with a Norwegian entity - Green Transformation AS.
- partnerships with R&D institutions - University of Bologna & Agricultural University of Kraków,
- energy efficiency - thermo-modernisation - construction of local energy sources - renewable energy,
- circular economy of materials - in prototype construction & office organisation,
- education - ‘Green Transformation’ + acceleration programme ‘Circular ClimAccelerator Poland’,
- student internship programme dedicated to the development of vertical gardens combined with microfarming,
- developed series of prototypes including technical specifications,
- marketing of the project results,
- project website,
- adaptation of the green area in the surroundings of the project buildings to the project needs – trees fruit and ornamental trees, shrubs, flower meadows,
- implementation of energy conservation principles,
- care for sustainable development through implementation of measures planned in the project proposal.
Implementation of information and promotion activities planned in the project proposal.
Summary of bilateral results
The project benefited from having a project partner by:joint results have been achieved e.g. a specific problem has been solved by sharing experience, knowledge, know-how,increased knowledge and developed mutual understanding between the actors involved, bilateral cooperation has generated greater interest in our project on the part of our stakeholders,the bilateral cooperation has had a wider impact beyond the project (e.g. our results are used in other contexts.Main results of the partnership:1.mentoring – it contributed to the growth of the entrepreneur''s knowledge, skills and competences necessary to maintain and develop business activities, 2.Consultancy services for the development of a new garden planning service. - New service related to planning of vertical gardens. - Addressing the need to work with local authorities to ensure coordinated plans and public policies in relation to local building regulations and planning zoning to enable large-scale implementation of vertical gardens.First with the Norwegian project partner Green Transformations, and then with two academics researchers from the Wroclaw University of Economics (PhD and post-doctoral) services were developed for local authorities to build capacity and enable them to adopt new and innovative policies and approaches to support the large-scale adoption of these new technologies large scale and to build the capacity to calculate the benefits for the key public services for which they are responsible (air quality, flood prevention, protection and enhancement of biodiversity, reduction of CO2 emissions, reduction of the heat island effect, energy savings, etc.).An innovative systems approach was taken into account.An offer has been developed for the City Council of Wrocław. Plans to continue the bilateral cooperation: contact may continue, but to date there are no concrete plans for cooperation.