The Brighton Earthship was the first earthship built in the UK and was constructed by Low Carbon Trust, a not-for-profit organization that sets up, manages and promotes environmental projects.
Earthship Brighton was one of their first building projects and, as they say, “despite the name, the aim of this project was not to build a ‘ship’ in the conventional sense, but to construct a building that would be used to demonstrate how a low carbon and low waste future could look. Earthship Brighton is an environmental education center and after winning numerous awards is being showcased as one of the most progressive eco-buildings in Europe. Our book Earthships in Europe covers the project in detail. Also, click here for an interactive demonstration of the structure and function of Earthship Brighton.”
The photo above and this one below were taken by Dominic Alves and show the front and back exterior.
What makes this Earthship more sustainable? As Low Carbon Trust describes it, the Earthship Brighton embodies the five core elements of sustainable construction to create a building with outstanding ‘green’ credentials.
The five core elements are:
- Use of low impact materials in construction – using local, recycled, waste, natural and renewable materials
- Passive solar design – enjoying the sun’s free energy for space heating
- Renewable energy – zero fossil fuel consumption for day-to-day running with on-site generation of power for electricity and water heating using solar panels and a windmill
- Rainwater harvesting – free water from the skies with no mains connection and subsequent groundwater depletion
- Using plants to treat waste water – no sewage infrastructure with on-site ‘waste water’ treatment using plants and natural processes.
Further information:
Sustainable Development Commission
Photos courtesy Dominic Alves /CC by 2.0
