Author Archives: RonCopper

4/6/16 Reading Response

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  1. The Urban stability index is a tool that is proposed to address discrepancies between the increase in GDP and the decrease in resources.  It addresses 5 areas of stability: Needs of citizens, efficiency of resources, cleanliness of environment, built environment and commitment to future stability.
  2. The index has 18 components are Water supple, housing, health education, power, water demand, water recycling, % GDP from heavy industry, air and industrial pollution, waste treatment and management,  urban density, mass transit and public green space usage, building efficiency, green jobs, and investment in environmental protection.
    1. Access to water seems like it should be achievable, but we consistantly see news stories about more and more cities having water shortage.
    2. Building efficiency is achievable, AND it will create a lot of job opportunity as well as space for innovation technology.
    3. Mass Transit usage is great here in NYC, and Bike lanes/jogging is becoming more commonplace.  I think people will see the benefits of alternate methods of travel.

Brooklyn Navy Yard

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I was very excited to go to the Brooklyn Navy Yard.  It seemed to be a very mysterious place, as it is closed off to the general public and maps of New York City display the BNY as taking up quite a bit of space.

The BNY is a self sufficient industrial park that was originally a Naval base of operations.  Many of the structures were maintained and repaired to resemble their original architecture.   Despite maintaining the older look, the BNY has made many technological advances and this new tech is all over the place.  There were large almost outdoor facilities for large scale manufacturing of modular homes.  There are solar powered trash compacting garbage cans throughout the facility.  The BNY also has its own power plant, which runs the facility using a mix of steam and electric, to the point that excess energy is sold to ConEd.

There is a Dry Dock, which allows for repairs of the portions of ships that are usually submerged.  There were oyster beds that are being used to determine if water can be filtered naturally, to help with the NYC waste problem.  Also, there are tons of companies that are producing innovative technology.

 

All in all, I was very happy with the visit, I only wish we could have seen more.

Photos: Dry Dock, Power Plant and historical repairs

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