City Sand Tower is the name of an audacious concept desert city intended for the Sahara desert and envisioned by French architecture firm OXO Architectes. This proposal aims to make sustainable high density possible in the desert, and envisions a tower run using renewable sources such as rainwater collection, solar power and geothermal energy. The concept will rise to a height of 450 meters and occupy a floorspace of 192 acres.
The sustainability technology tipped for the concept is pretty spectacular. It is claimed that 45,000 cubic meters of rainwater will be collected annually and injected deep underground, where the earth's heat would convert the water into steam. The steam would then be sent to the surface and used to power a generator that produces electricity and heats water. Rainwater would also be used to irrigate an indoor vertical garden.
The City Sand Tower project is admittedly audacious, but in an age where energy resources are depleting and the population is expanding, a bit of audacity is welcome, and this vertical desert city project certainly lives by that.
Sustainable Saharan Cities
The City Sand Tower Concept is Envisioned For the Sahara Desert
Trend Themes
1. Sustainable Desert Cities - There is a growing trend in designing environmentally-friendly cities in the world's most arid regions, like the Sahara, using renewable technologies and indoor vertical gardens.
2. Rainwater Collection - A trend of collecting rainwater and injecting it underground to produce steam and power generators, while also irrigating indoor vertical gardens.
3. Renewable Energy Tower - The City Sand Tower project is an innovative trend in creating renewable energy sources, such as solar power and geothermal energy, to power a tower in the middle of the desert.
Industry Implications
1. Green Building - The market for sustainable, green, and eco-friendly buildings and urban design is on the rise, creating a disruptive innovation opportunity for architects and urban planners to create environmentally-conscious cities in the world's most arid regions.
2. Renewable Energy - As the world's energy resources continue to deplete, the market for renewable energy sources such as geothermal energy, solar power, and wind turbines is growing, providing innovators with the opportunity to produce alternative energy sources for cities in regions like the Sahara Desert.
3. Vertical Gardens - An emerging industry trend of indoor vertical garden design and technology with the potential to irrigate crops and produce food and plants in the world's most arid regions while also providing sustainable habitats for humans and animals.