Table Of ContentSustainable Rural and Urban Ecosystems: Design,
Implementation and Operation
.
Gunther Geller (cid:129) Detlef Glu¨cklich
Editors
A. Otte (cid:129) R. Perfler (cid:129) L. Richard (cid:129) D. Simmering
Contributors
Sustainable Rural and Urban
Ecosystems: Design,
Implementation and
Operation
Manual for Practice and Study
Editors
Dipl.-Ing.GuntherGeller Prof.Dr.-Ing.DetlefGl€ucklich
Ingenieur€okologischeVereinigungIO¨V BureauforSustainableDesign
Augsburg BuchholzHolm-Seppensen
Germany Germany
FirstpublishedbyIngenieur€okologischeVereinigung(EcologicalEngineeringSociety)IO¨V
POBox102229,D-86150Augsburg,Germany;
www.ioev.de;[email protected]
LogoonfrontpagedesignedbyMagnusAngermeier,Eschelberg(Austria)
Formorethantenyearsecologicalexpertscouldaccompanytheintegratedecologicaldevelopmentof
thebiggestprivateuniversityinGhana:ValleyViewUniversity(VVU),Accra.
Thiswasmadepossibleintheframeoftwoprojects,financedbytheGermanFederalGovernment.The
firstresearchanddevelopmentprogramwasaboutecologicalcyclesatVVU,financedbytheGerman
FederalMinistryofEducationandResearch(BMBF),theseconddealtwithpromotingVVUasclimate
friendly university and was financed in the Frame of the Climate Change Initiative of the Federal
GovernmentofGermanybytheGermanFederalMinistryfortheEnvironment,NatureConservation
andNuclearSafety(BMU).
The experiences in research and implementation ofsuch kind ofecosystems, harvestedboth by this
specificprojectsandbytheprojectsbefore,ofIO¨Vanditsmembers,aresummarizedinthisbook.
TheecologicaldevelopmentofVVUwouldnothavebeenpossiblewithoutthecontinuoussupportof
VVU, namely by its President, Dr. Seth Laryea and the head of the Physical Plant Department,
EmmanuelKwandahor.
ISBN978-3-642-28260-7 ISBN978-3-642-28261-4(eBook)
DOI10.1007/978-3-642-28261-4
SpringerHeidelbergNewYorkDordrechtLondon
LibraryofCongressControlNumber:2012940252
#Springer-VerlagGmbHBerlinHeidelberg2012
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Contents
1 Introduction. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1
G.Geller
1.1 Background. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1
1.2 TheExampleofValleyViewUniversity. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2
1.3 HowtoUsetheManual. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3
2 HumanEcosystems. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5
G.Geller
2.1 EcosystemsinGeneral. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5
2.2 HumanEcosystems. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5
2.3 DevelopmentofEcosystems. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
2.4 RelationsandFluxesinHumanEcosystems. . . . .. . . . . . . . . . . 7
2.4.1 Matter/MassFlow. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
2.4.2 Energy. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
2.4.3 Information. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8
2.5 EngineeringofEcosystems. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9
3 Design,ImplementationandOperationofHumanEcosystem:
ConceptsandMethods. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11
3.1 TheHolisticApproach:KeyConceptsandMethods. . . . . . . . . . 11
D.Gl€ucklichandG.Geller
3.1.1 Introduction. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11
3.1.2 CommonAim“Stadtschaft”or“Townscape”. . . . . . . . . 12
3.1.3 CellModel:FunctionalandSpatialUnits. . . . . . . . . . . . 14
3.2 IntegratedManagementofProcess,Information,Quality. . . . . . 15
G.Geller
3.2.1 Generally. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15
3.2.2 ManagementofInformation. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15
3.2.3 ManagementofQuality(QM). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17
3.2.4 IntegratedManagementofProcess,Information
andQuality:ProceduresandTools. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19
v
vi Contents
3.3 VegetationManagement. .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22
D.SimmeringandA.Otte
3.3.1 EcosystemFunctionsandServices. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22
3.3.2 ConservationValueofNaturalandSemi-NaturalHabitats 23
3.3.3 FarmlandManagement. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24
3.3.4 UrbanHabitats:PublicandPrivateGreenSpace. . . . . . . 25
3.3.5 Managementmatters. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25
3.3.6 ClientandStakeholderInvolvement. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26
3.3.7 Conclusion. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26
3.4 Cycle-Management. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26
L.RichardandR.Perfler
3.4.1 WaterManagement. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26
3.5 DisciplinaryApproachesforEcosystemComponents. . . . . . . . . 29
D.Gl€ucklich
3.5.1 SelectionofSpecificFunctionalAreas. . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29
3.5.2 TheVariousFields. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29
3.6 TheEcologicalMasterplan. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33
D.Gl€ucklich
4 Design,ImplementationandOperationofHumanEcosystems:
TheExampleofValleyViewUniversity(VVU). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35
4.1 StudyArea. . . . . . . .. . . . . . . . .. . . . . . . . .. . . . . . . . .. . . . . 35
D.SimmeringandG.Geller
4.1.1 GeographyandLandscapeContext. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35
4.1.2 Socio-CulturalBackground. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 40
4.1.3 AdministrativeBackground. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 40
4.2 CaseStudyVVU. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 40
G.GellerandD.Gl€ucklich
4.2.1 TheUniversityandItsCampus:GeneralBackground. . . 40
4.2.2 TheEcologicalDevelopmentofVVU. . . . . . . . . . . . . . 40
4.2.3 VVUasaHumanEcosystem. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42
4.2.4 TheEcologicalMasterplan.. . . .. . . .. . . .. . . .. . . .. . 43
4.3 IntegratedManagementofProcess,Information
andQualityatVVU. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 43
G.Geller
4.3.1 VVUandtheAfricanSocio-CulturalFramework. . . . . . 43
4.3.2 OrganizingSustainableInformationalStructures
atVVU. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 46
4.3.3 ProvidingtheNecessaryInformationfor
aSustainableVVU. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 47
4.3.4 IntegratedQMatVVU:Measures. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 48
4.3.5 MainFindings. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 53
Contents vii
4.4 LandManagement:Vegetation. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 53
D.SimmeringandA.Otte
4.4.1 NatureConservationandBiodiversityManagement. . . . 53
4.4.2 TreePlantingProject:GreenSpaceatVVU. . . . . . . . . . 61
4.4.3 MainFindings. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 72
4.5 MassFlowManagement. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 72
G.Geller
4.5.1 StartingPosition,GeneralConsiderations. . . . . . . . . . . . 72
4.5.2 MassFlowAnalysis. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 73
4.5.3 IntegrationofMassFlowandLandUseManagement. . . 76
4.5.4 GeneralGuidingPrinciples. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 77
4.5.5 MainFindings. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 77
4.6 ManagementofCycles/WaterManagement. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 77
L.RichardandR.Perfler
4.6.1 Vision,GoalsandWaterProjectsatVVU. . . . . . . . . . . . 77
4.6.2 ABriefOverviewofWaterSupplyandSanitation
inGhana. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 78
4.6.3 WaterSupplyatVVU. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 78
4.6.4 EcologicalSanitationatVVU. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 86
4.6.5 MainFindings. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 88
4.7 EcologicalDesignandBuilding. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 89
D.Glu¨cklich
4.7.1 EcologicalHolisticConcept. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 89
4.7.2 AnalysisofSituationandConditions. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 89
4.7.3 CommonGoals. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 90
4.7.4 PartialGoals,CommonGoalsandApproach. . . . . . . . . . 92
4.7.5 CellModel:ShownbytheExamplesofWaters
andNutrients. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 93
4.7.6 TheMasterPlanandHisArchitecturalRealisation. . . . . 95
4.7.7 MainFindings. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 100
5 LessonsLearned/Relevance. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 101
5.1 FactorsInfluencingEcologicalProjects. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 101
A.HoldefleissandG.Geller
5.1.1 Cons:FactorstobeConsidered. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 101
5.1.2 Pros:SupportiveFactors. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 102
5.2 HolisticPlanninginPractice. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 103
G.Geller
5.2.1 IntegratedLandUtilisationandCycleManagement. . . . . 103
5.2.2 IntegratedInformationandQualityManagement. . . . . . . 104
5.2.3 IntegratedEcologicalBuilding. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 105
5.3 GeneralConclusions. . . . . . . . . .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. . . . . . . . 105
viii Contents
6 Authors,PartnersandInstitutions. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 107
G.Geller
6.1 Authors. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 107
6.2 BMU-ProjectClimateFriendlyVVU. . .. . . . .. . . . .. . . . .. . . 107
6.2.1 Institutions. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 107
6.2.2 Partners. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 107
6.3 BMBF-ProjectEcologicalCyclesatVVU-Campus. . . . . . . . . . 108
6.3.1 Institutions. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 108
6.3.2 Partners. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 108
7 ToolsforHolisticManagementofHumanEcosystems. . . . . . . . . . 109
7.1 TheToolsandHowtoUseThem. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 109
G.Geller
7.2 ToolsforIntegratedEcosystem-Management. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 110
G.Geller
7.2.1 Checklists. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 110
7.3 ToolsforIntegratedManagementofProcess,Information
&Quality. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 113
G.Geller
7.3.1 FlowChartandProcessDescription. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 113
7.3.2 Checklists. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 115
7.3.3 Forms. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 116
7.3.4 Methods. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 123
7.4 ToolsforNatureConservationandVegetationManagement. . . . 126
D.SimmeringandA.Otte
7.4.1 FlowChartsandProcessDescriptionsforNature
ConservationandVegetationManagement. . . . . . . . . . . 126
7.4.2 ChecklistsforNatureConservationandVegetation
Management. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 130
7.5 ToolsforMassFlowManagement. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 132
G.Geller
7.5.1 FlowChartandProcessDescription. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 132
7.5.2 ChecklistsforMassFlowManagement. . . . . . . . . . . . . . 134
7.6 ToolsforWaterManagement. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 135
L.RichardandR.Perfler
7.6.1 WaterSupplySystem. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 136
7.6.2 RainwaterHarvestingSystem. . . .. . . . .. . . . .. . . .. . . 144
7.6.3 OperationGuidelinesforWaterTreatment. . . . . . . . . . . 150
7.7 ToolsforEcologicalBuilding. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 161
D.Gl€ucklich
7.7.1 FlowChartandProcessDescription. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 161
Annex(MoreMaterials). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 163
Bibliography. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 173
Index. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 177
Chapter 1
Introduction
1.1 Background
Thesedayshumanbeingshaveanincredibleinfluenceontheplanetaryecosystem,
onclimatechange,onbiodiversity,tonameonlytwo.Manyoftheecosystemson
the planet nowadays are more or less dominated by humans and that is true
especiallyfortheecosystems,wheremenarelivingin,ruralandurbansettlements.
Thereforeitismostimportanttodesignandoperatethiskindofsystemsinaway
thatisreallysustainable,whichmeanslong-term-functioninginharmonywiththe
planetarysystemandhumanandnon-humanitsinhabitants.
How to design and operate elements of the human ecosystems like houses,
bridges, roads, sewer lines, factories is known to engineers, architects, managers.
There issomeunderstandingabout ecosystems,especiallynaturalones andpartly
about their design and operation. However there is a deficiency in understanding
rural and urban settlements as human ecosystems in a holistic way and nearly no
experienceindesigningandoperatingtheminaholisticandsustainableway.
Thisisespeciallytruefortheareaofinformation,itsunderstandingandapplica-
tioninruralandurbansettlements.Someoftheaspectsbeingacceptance,commit-
ment, decision-making, quality management, organizational structures, socio-
cultural background, training and education, to name only some few. To try to
closethisgapthismanualgivesanexplanationofthegeneralprinciplesofthisrural
and urban ecosystems and some holistic concepts and provides some methods,
proceduresandtoolsfortheirdesign,constructionandoperation.Theexperiencesit
is utilising are based principally on a practical showcase, namely the ecological
development of Valley View University (VVU), the biggest private university in
Ghana,anditscampus.
The general approach of ecological engineering and quality management is
applied and modified for settlement-ecosystem projects. Thus it encompasses all
the steps of realization, from first discussions to operation and maintenance. In
detailitconsistsofpreliminarydiscussionsinaprephase,viasurveyandinventory-
takingtofirstconceptsandthefollowingdecisionsfortheprocedureandsolutions.
G.GellerandD.Gl€ucklich(eds.),SustainableRuralandUrbanEcosystems: 1
Design,ImplementationandOperation,DOI10.1007/978-3-642-28261-4_1,
#Springer-VerlagGmbHBerlinHeidelberg2012
