Passive Houses in Malmö by Kjellgren Kaminsky Architects

The Swedish city of Malmö is really the world wide poster child for sustainable urban development in cities. The municipal web site states that by 2020 Malmö will be climate neutral; by 2030 the whole municipality will be run on 100% renewable energy—impressive claims, which I can't imagine would ever be made by any city in this country. An article I previously linked to at TreeHugger examines the city's amazing revival from dying shipping town to ecologically-friendly example, and wonders why cities in other countries can't do the same.

These “passive houses” from architects Kjellgren Kaminsky are designed from the ground up to not only meet, but greatly surpass the strict Swedish building energy usage regulations. These designs were chosen as the winner of an open competition to fill the remaining vacant plot in the city's Bo01 housing expo project, which showcases sustainable development.

As you would expect, the houses have many features designed to reduce consumption and retain and recycle energy and heat. The press release states that solar panels will provide forty percent of the hot water needed in a year; green roofs and walls help to insulate and retain heat, while also reducing Co2. The houses are even able to recover energy from the interior air, through the use of heat exchangers.

Impressive stuff: it's encouraging that I'm seeing more and more architecture which takes the environment into account. Hopefully other countries and architecture firms can learn from Sweden's progressive attitude.

Via DesignBoom