Melbourne is set to host the “world’s most sustainable shopping centre” complete with rooftop farm and zero carbon footprint.
According to Broadsheet, Frasers Property Australia is not only planning to convert east Melbourne’s Burwood Brickworks into an oasis-like mall with a rooftop farm but is striving to develop it with a zero carbon footprint.
If done successfully, the mall will produce more electricity and water than it uses, generate zero waste, grow agriculture on more than 20 percent of site, be constructed using only non-toxic and recycled materials and pick up the rigorously tested Living Building Challenge (LBC) certification – something that never been achieved by a retail space before.
The developer has enlisted eco-pioneer, florist and designer Joost Bakker – best known for his sustainability-focused projects Silo, Brothl and Greenhouse – as a creative consultant to help turn the site’s 2000-square-metre rooftop into an urban farm and restaurant space.
The farm will feature dedicated crop areas and greenhouses and will grow around 55 to 60 kinds of seasonal plants.
“There will be lots of lemongrass, lemon verbena and herbs, but also a lot of cucumbers,” Bakker says. “We’re growing crops that are water and nutrient-hungry because we will obviously have a lot of recycled water and compost.”
All the property’s organic waste will be mulched for the rooftop farm, and coffee waste from its cafes will go to mushroom cultivation.
Construction is expected to begin in mid-2018.
