Wretched Excess Dept.: Dubai Tower Has 57 Swimming Pools
by Lloyd Alter, Toronto on 08.25.08
Now under construction, 23 Marina sets a new bar for wretched excess: 57 of its 288 apartments have private swimming pools on the balconies. They are not huge at 5.2 meters (17 feet) by 2 meters (6-1/2 feet) but multiply that by 57 and you have a lot of surface area evaporating fresh water into the dry desert air. One of these puts paid to all the so-called "green" buildings going up in Dubai.
The 89 storey building is half-built now and will top out in early 2009; plan of main floor of the two-storey units below. via ::Skyscraper News
More TreeHugger on incredible architecture in Dubai:
Dubious Dubai
Rem Koolhaas's Dubai Deathstar
Dubai Jumps the Shark
Construction Starting On Dubious Dubai Twirling Tower?
Koolhaas Loses His Marbles Again
"Green" Dubai?
Construction Starting On Dubious Dubai Twirling Tower?
Dubai Gets Less Dubious with Xeritown by SMAQ and X-Architects
The Lighthouse: An Innovative Green Skyscraper
Self-Sufficient Skyscraper
Glenn Howells' rotating "sustainable" Dubai Condo
Survey: Are You an Ant, a Grasshopper or a Worker Bee?
|
Colorado Poised To Become Green Jobs Central: Vestas To Employ Over 2,000
|
Dubai is actually fairly humid. Not to say there won't be evaporation, but it's humid enough that Burj Dubai has a sytem to collect condensation that will be used to water the landscaping.
I think it's a great idea, each owner is responsible for their own wading pool, as opposed to having several massive pools that may only get used from time to time. At least on a deck the pools may be shaded and may get used more often.
Seconding the observation that Dubai is humid! If you've ever been there, it's quite a surprise.
Also, UAE runs one of the largest desalination plants in the world... it may be wretched excess, but at least they're making their own water.
Oh and one more thing - before someone starts whining that we're financing Dubai's excess with the high price of oil... Dubai makes it money off of being a trade and spices hub, not off of oil exports.
5.2m x 2m = 10.4 sq m x 57 pools = 592.8 sq m = 42% of one Olympic size swimming pool (50m x 25m = 1250 sq m)
89 floors, 288 apartments, one mediocre pool equivalent
OMG the excess!!!