Belize Eco-Village Housing Program
Overview
Ecovillages are people-based initiatives to model sustainable, low-impact, human settlements. They are applicable to both rural and urban settings and accessible to all. Eco-villagers utilize green energy technology, ecological building techniques, and human-scale design to reduce exploitation of natural resources, facilitate community self-reliance, and improve quality of life. Medical clinics will be included in the development of each village. These medical clinics can assist in the care management of other local villages and expand the Belize Healthcare footprint.
They are about the creation of new settlements as well as retrofitting existing villages and urban areas. An ecovillage is designed in harmony with its bioregion instead of the landscape being unduly engineered to fit construction plans. By thinking in terms of bioregions, sustainable settlements are planned considering water availability, the ability to grow food, and accessibility.
Many projects use the principles of permaculture for creating integrated, interactive and efficient systems for structural planning, food production and social needs in their community. Ecovillages are human scale, (somewhere where you can feel you know the others in your community), fully featured settlements, (comprising housing, businesses, agriculture, culture, etc. as appropriate to the local setting), in which human activity is integrated harmlessly into the natural world, supports human development and can be continued into the indefinite future.
There are hundreds, maybe thousands of ecovillages around the world that have been living true to their values, even if it means not quite meeting the building codes or zoning laws according to their local government. Global Ecovillage Network defines ecovillages as “Alternative experimentation laboratories, with food production, ecological buildings, a resources center, a reception place, or artistic workshops. The aim is to create, together, a convivial and fair way of life, with a minimal ecological trace becoming more socially, economically and ecologically sustainable.”
There are examples of Ecovillage Zoning and Sustainable Development Testing Sites in Taos, NM, Portland, OR, Eugene, OR and British Columbia. There are many more with pending legislation across the globe.
There are a number of benefits in using ISBUs – inter-model steel building units – for home building or residential projects. Otherwise known as shipping container houses, these sturdy, steel structures are a captivating idea.
Shipping containers are made from special steel in order to be strong enough to withstand rough conditions at seas and long exposure to outside elements while being able to protect the goods stored inside. They are made to a standard set of measurements in order to be stackable the world over. There are three sizes – 20 feet long or 40 & 53 feet long. Each shipping container has a width of 8 feet and a height of 8 feet 6 inches or 9.6 in high cube versions.
Because of their uniform size, large number, and the fact that they were built to last, it became important to consider alternative uses for containers that began to stack up in back lots and shipping docks. Years ago, the military explored their potential for portable operation centers. It wasn’t too long, however, before their low cost and ready availability attracted the attention of architects and builders with a unique need – safe, fast, inexpensive construction for hospitals, office space, apartments, and homes.
Shipping containers are made from special steel in order to be strong enough to withstand rough conditions at seas and long exposure to outside elements while being able to protect the goods stored inside. They are made to a standard set of measurements in order to be stackable the world over. There are three sizes – 20 feet long or 40 & 53 feet long. Each shipping container has a width of 8 feet and a height of 8 feet 6 inches or 9.6 in high cube versions.
Because of their uniform size, large number, and the fact that they were built to last, it became important to consider alternative uses for containers that began to stack up in back lots and shipping docks. Years ago, the military explored their potential for portable operation centers. It wasn’t too long, however, before their low cost and ready availability attracted the attention of architects and builders with a unique need – safe, fast, inexpensive construction for hospitals, office space, apartments, and homes.
Besides the obvious quality of building material, there are several eco advantages to the use of this component. Globally these containers are discarded after their service life is finished. They are then used for artificial reefs, thrown in landfills or melted for scrap. The availability of these containers globally reduces our need to manufacture from virgin materials which are precious resources for the future of the world.
Benefits
The benefits of using ISBUs for home building are hard to ignore:
· Environmentally friendly approach to building as you make use of existing materials rather than require additional trees to be cut down for building lumber.
· Less expensive than wood construction – particularly if you use used shipping containers.
· Faster build times as containers are pre-fabricated.
· Easily expandable – often compared to building with Legos because the containers can be stacked on top of each other or side by side. One or more walls of a container can be removed to increase a home’s interior space.
· Fire resistant
· Mold resistant
· Resistant to insect damage
· Ability to stand up to strong winds and heavy storms and have been tested category 5
The thought of living in a shipping container home evokes images of cold, tight quarters in ugly, metal boxes but the finished product is usually anything but ugly. Add other elements such as stone and glass and complete the outside with special paints or coverings and you easily end up with sleek, sophisticated, styling and crisp lines.
All of our projected use containers will be painted with an exterior ceramic particle paint which blocks UV rays and deflects 94% of all heat from the sun. The interior will be painted with a similar paint which will have greater anti-microbial shielding from all forms of bacteria and fungus growth. This micro coating will help maintain comfortable temperatures inside the homes.
The placement of the containers can be performed in several ways to accommodate local surroundings and to reduce the impact on its precious flora and fauna. The units can be placed on top of pre-stressed concrete pillars, poured foundation, on top of a block foundation or on a wooden platform with walk around decking.
Large sqft of interior space
Reclaimed water containment
L.E.D. Low impact 12v lighting
1-5 bed rooms
1-3 bath rooms
Sliding glass doors and Hurricane Shutters
Community provided hot water
Community provided potable water
Community provided electricity
Community provided Biogas
Direct community sewer access
Community Provided Services
Geo Thermal hot and cold water
Geo Thermal heating and cooling
Methane Digester for human, animal and community waste
Methane processor for converting waste into bio gas, fertilizer and fuels
Recycling center for breakdown and separation of all materials
Food production and farming facilities
Medical care facility and village wellness center to assist other villages locally
Job training and educational center for visitors and residents
Eco Village management training center
Property and Housing location
This is prime real-estate located very close to the capital city of Belmopan. This will be used for the pilot project. The village phase 1 will be the main entrance from the Western Hgwy. This facility will be cleared for staging of materials and the setting of foundations for the first houses to be placed. The first phase of the project will encompass the following core utilities ;
Medical Clinic Community Methane Digester Geo Thermal heating/cooling
Power generation center Fresh and waste water processing
Summary
A model village of this type of construction has been utilized in over 70 countries for everything from public and student housing, to office buildings and schools. The idea is not new; it has been accomplished since the 1960’s when military engineers first deployed entire hospitals in interlocking suites. Since then, the shipping container has been servicing all forms of housing for millions of people globally.
The village becomes a training facility which enables other local groups to be trained to perform certain aspects of the construction where jobs will be created. The strategy of expanding the villages to remote areas is very possible with the help of surplus military transporters which are designed to carry these units across most terrain. Once a village is proposed, a team will be trained in all aspects of maintaining, constructing and delivering these homes.
SEED Foundation will provide a complete package of all that is needed to build our model village including a list of donors and special tax forms for US and EU donors.
