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Green apartments turn rubbish into energy

29th June 2009 Print
Green apartments turn rubbish into energy 100 eco flats are to be built in Luton by the end of 2010 as part of Milieu Architects’ environmentally sustainable project. The apartments will use solar collectors and wind turbines, and would turn waste materials into energy to keep heating bills down to around £100 per year.

It is all part of Milieu Architects’ ambitious plans for ‘Luton’s first environmentally responsible development’.

Peter Lunter, The Project Architect, said:

“The project has been designed to achieve nearly all Zero Energy Development standards, and hence the block has minimum space heating requirements. The scheme employs a wide range of sustainable features that contribute to its code 5 for Sustainable Homes rating where the grade 6 is the zero carbon level. However, the project has a pre designed upgrade path to full Zero Energy status.”

The plan involves developing the derelict, recently crime-ridden site on the northern side of Collingdon Street in Luton, and could spark an ‘urban renaissance’, according to businessman Jan Telensky whose company has proposed building the apartments.

The scheme, formally known as ‘Low Energy Apartments (LEA) project’, is already receiving the support and co-operation of Luton Borough Council as it has been submitted to approach the planning stages, and Milieu Architects, which is made up of former University of Luton students, is confident that it will become a reality by the end of 2010.

The idea of the innovative project is that it will provide environmentally sound housing and social facilities at an affordable cost and make a considerable contribution towards environmental sustainability, while enhancing the sense of community by regenerating the site into an attractive residential area.

The building would be topped with visually attractive green roofs whose structural function is designed to protect the waterproofing layer from extreme temperature and abrasion, produce oxygen and reduce carbon dioxide production.

Other key sustainable features include construction from thermal materials that store heat during warm months and release it during the colder months.

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Green apartments turn rubbish into energy