QM News 60 (pdf 1305KB) - Queen Margaret University

PAGE 02 - MAIN FEATURE
BUILDING A SUSTAINABLE CAMPUS
When we hear the word
“sustainability”, what does it actually
mean to most of us - probably not
much! But to Nick Bowen, from Ian
White Associates, the landscape
architects responsible for designing
the grounds around QMUC's new
campus at Craighall, East Lothian, it
means a great deal. Nick has
responsibility for ensuring that the
grounds in the new campus
development fit with QMUC's vision
for the project - to “develop a
sustainable community for learning
and life”.
Nick explains: “Sustainability is all about
minimising the impacts that
development will have on the
environment, and maximising the
potential environmental gain. For
instance, designing buildings which
utilise natural light and ventilation
decreases their requirement for
electricity, whilst creative solutions to site
drainage can also result in creation of
ecologically valuable wetland.”
When the decision was made to move
to East Lothian, students, staff and the
local community were consulted to find
out what was important to them and
what they would like to see incorporated
into the design. The overwhelming
request that came back was for “a
green environment in which to live and
work”.
Building a sustainable campus impacts
on every aspect of design and
construction. From the materials used,
to the design of the buildings and the
exterior landscape, everything must be
considered from an environmental
perspective. So what sort of things will
Nick be incorporating into the landscape
design? Well, in addition to providing
homes for about 800 students, homes
will be provided for a diverse variety of
wildlife. A big part of creating an
environmentally-friendly landscape is
ensuring that as many opportunities as
possible are created for local indigenous
wildlife to share the site with people.
Four of the most important types of
lowland Scottish habitat - wetland,
woodland, meadow and hedgerow - will
be incorporated into the design.
Woodland will provide screening from
traffic noise and a green transport policy
will ensure that the core of the campus
will be a car-free zone, making it a haven
from traffic congestion and pollution.
Hedgerows and meadowland will
provide additional habitats and will
create buffer zones to separate human
and wildlife traffic. As well as natural
habitats created by clever landscape
design, Nick has also made provision for
a few other, man-made (but no less
popular) homes to encourage some
more unusual local residents to move in
- pipistrellus pipistrellus, or the common
pipistrelle as he is better known, is one
local resident who will find he has fourstar
accommodation ready and waiting -
in the form of a number of strategically
placed bat boxes! In fact both these and
some of our feathery friends will find a
range of ready-made roosting boxes
available for immediate occupancy.
Within the campus woodland planting
will also be nesting opportunities for the
likes of hedgehogs and insects, in log
and brash piles.
The wetland habitat to be created will be
an environmentally-friendly addition to
the site for a number of reasons. No
ordinary pond, this will be part of a
“sustainable urban drainage system” or
SUDS for short. The pond will capture
rainwater draining off roofs and paved
areas, holding it back on site rather than
contributing to downstream flooding.
So, as well as providing a solution to the
problem of excess surface water, there
will be an attractive feature that will
provide a pleasant spot which can be
used for recreation, and will be an
excellent habitat for wildlife.
The provision of an area of decking and
appropriate signage will ensure that
there is an educational benefit to the
pond. This will provide a facility where
local schools can come to teach
children about the environment and the
wonderful range of creepy crawlies that
inhabit the pond area - everything from
the reclusive common newt to sparkly
damselflies and chirping linnets and
bullfinches.
According to Nick, providing as wide a
range of habitats as possible is
important because it “helps to replace
some of the local diversity which has
been lost from our intensively farmed
countryside, and gives the campus a
further function besides accommodating
the human activities to which it will be
home”. So when QMUC moves to
Craighall in 2007, there will be more
than just students, staff and the local
community sharing the campus. There
will be a diverse range of plant and
animal life too - QMUC really is
“developing a sustainable community for
learning and life”!
Main picture:
An example of a bat box
Inset:
Nick Bowen of Ian White Associates