Problem:
Proximity to power plants isn’t typically a selling point for urban neighbourhoods,
Solution:
Recreational power plant
With Copenhagen’s commitment to being carbon-neutral by 2025, the team of architects and engineers at Bjarke Ingels Group has completed the “cleanest waste-to-energy power plant in the world” Their design for the 41,0000-square-metre plant won an international competition in 2011, with the building breaking ground two years later and the power station officially going online in March 2017
CopenHill, also known as Amager Resource Centre, replaces a 50-year old waste-to-energy plant with one that incinerates trash, then uses catalytic filtration to remove pollutants from the resulting smoke. It converts 440,000 tons of garbage annually enough to provide over 30,000 homes with electricity and 72,000 homes with heating in an area spread across five municipalities including Copenhagen.
But this is not all. CopenHill, “the epicentre for urban mountain sport, comprises an artificial ski slope that is open all year round. Operated in partnership with Snowminds Ski School, a glass elevator ferries skiers and snowboards to the top; and at 85 m the world’s tallest climbing wall, designed by walltopia; and a 490-metre-long hiking and running trail within a rooftop bar and a “lush” garden.
Once a month CopneHill hosts a new freestyle event Friday Night Freestyle. Everyone is welcome – skiers, snowboarders, rookies and pros! The event starts at 5pm where there will be a huge freestyle session on the slope. The Middelgrunden wind farm can be seen in the distance.
This “garden” is designed by collaborators SLA Architects, and is hoped to created a “vibrant green pocket” in the city for birds, bees and flowers, while absorbing heat, remove harmful air particles and minimise storm water runoff.
Due to its location on the industrial waterfront of CopenHill is also the ground level site for the site for extreme sports from wakeboarding to go-kart racing
It is hoped the building will help Copenhagen meet its goal of becoming the world’s first carbon-neutral city by 2025.
Discover Solution 295: Polypropylene-free tea bags
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