This year’s 2008 Beijing Olympics has been termed “Green Olympics“. But how green are the venues that will be hosting the Olympic games?

Lets take a look at three of such venues. Firstly, the National Stadium, known as the “Bird’s Nest” for its latticework of interwoven steel. Secondly, the National Aquatics Centre, or “Water Cube,” the rectangular swimming venue that sits by its side. These buildings are considered among the world’s most architecturally adventurous new buildings. Lastly, the Olympic village.

The National Stadium : “The Bird’s Nest”

Robert Watson, CEO of green building consultancy EcoTech International, said that the Bird’s Nest is an iconic structure but it is not a green building.

The stadium features non-flush toilets equipped with sewage treatment systems, a rooftop photovoltaic system with a capacity to generate 130 kilowatts of power, and facilities to collect 58,000 cubic meters of rainwater annually.

But to Watson the structure itself, which used some 42,000 tonnes of steel, is the problem.

“The fact that it uses 10 times the materials of a normal stadium, any green virtue is inundated by that,” he said.

“Ninety percent of the structure does nothing but hold itself up,” said Watson, who founded the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) rating system for green buildings.

The National Aquatics Stadium : “The Water Cube”

The $143 million venue’s playful facade, which evokes giant soap bubbles, is made of ETFE, a durable plastic that allows natural light into the building and is a better insulator than glass.

“It’s super lightweight, so it allows us to cut a lot of the structural load out of the building as a result,” said Haico Schepers, leader of the sustainable buildings group at Arup, the engineering firm that was a partner in the Cube’s design.

The daylight that the material conducts into the building is also harnessed to heat the swimming pool, reducing the pool enclosure’s energy consumption by 30 percent.

Part of the building’s success, said Schepers, was that its green aspects were not afterthoughts, but integrated into the design.

“What we tend to find with sustainability is if you make it an add-on item, there’s a large risk it gets costed out through the process,” he said.

Olympic Village

The Beijing Olympic Village includes solar heating to supply hot water to its more than 16,000 residents, a rainwater collection system and a heating and cooling system that will cut electricity by 40 percent by using recycled water.

From my point of view, I think that to be able to construct these spectacular buildings is a no mean feat and the fact that some environmental aspects have been thought through while designing these buildings is commendable. Its a small step but at least, its a step forward.

Via - Reuters