Interior finishes: Paints, Protections, Wallpaper
Chemicals in paints, wallpapers and things that we choose to cover our walls with can have a large impact on the environment depending on how they are manufactured. Different paints have different ratings and different chemicals; for example many paints include Chromuium VI which is used in paints for a non-corrosive quality. This chemical however has been found to lead to breathing problems, nasal and lung cancer and ingestion can cause anaemia and stomach tumours. This chemical has been Red Listed by the LBC and must be avoided. When thinking about coating walls in paint, decorative or protective finishes, the potential damage could be visualise through gases and water toxification.
Accessibility: ramps, outdoor cover, handrails.
When addressing the accessibility of your building you could have a example of how people would interact with the space with people walking through the entrance of middle of building. You could test the accessibility of these spaces to create an equitable environment for all.
Insulation: Potential Dangers, Corositon, Shrinking
Many types of insulation are harmful to ingest and many in the past have been found to be extremely hazardous. Asbestos for example has been Red Listed by the LBC and is found in wall insulation, and heat resistant fabrics. Insulation is very important for passive heating and can create or solve many problems in the future for the inhabitants of the building. Insulations are often assessed by their R-value which is how the material resists heat flow and effectively their effectiveness. The compounds made to produce these materials however can be severely damaging for the environment. Different insulations have their pros and cons and these could be visualised to help the designer make and informed decision about the insulation they choose.
Transportation: Carbon emissions, where the products are being sourced from.
Transportation cost is a huge factor when we have so many products now to choose from with importing for competitive prices. Transport cost contributes heavily to the carbon footprint of the material in a space. This could be quite easily visualised with a release of gas which demonstrates how much carbon emissions are releases to get the material to where is is in the building. The options for pine for example would display a much less impact if your sourced the material from Aotearoa/NZ.
Water conservation: Rainwater tanks and wetback systems.
Including these systems in the plan for a building can greatly impact the amount of energy that it uses for external sources once it has been created. A element of the LBC is that the building have NET positive water which means that it could run without having to be connected to the grids water system. The rain water being collected could also be distributed to other houses next door and reduce the energy used on water cleaning systems. This could be visualised through the down pour versus the amount of water being used in the building as an estimate and example of how effective these systems are.
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