With rising sea levels and a steadily growing population, humanity might need to think bigger to meet our ever-growing needs: that’s where floating structures and visionary architects can help.
With the ocean covering 71 per cent of the Earth’s surface, it could just be the next logical step – be it for housing, farming or even entertainment.
Not old news
Off-shore structures aren’t exactly revolutionary: kelongs (floating fish farms) have been around for centuries. More recently, oil rigs are another way humanity has begun to colonise the ocean.
(Related: Could cities floating on the ocean be the solution to land scarcity?)
Of those, only kelongs are truly floating, and they usually remain relatively close to shore. Building a true floating city out in the ocean is no mean feat: the super-structure will have to be sturdy enough to withstand the continuous torrent from the ocean (and potential storms) and be self-sufficient in food, water and power.
For now, architects are coming up with ideas that push the limits one step at a time. Take Florian Busch Architects’ concept for the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Stadium (now 2021) for example.
(Related: Book ahead for a table onboard Alain Ducasse’s floating restaurant in Paris)
What’s in the box?
His provocative critique of the controversial selection process for the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Stadium comes as a mysterious black box purportedly from the future. He posted the opening of the box on his website, unveiling clippings from famous magazines and more. Glowing headlines from The Economist and Time lauding the effort by Tokyo to push the boundaries and think for the future. The structure they’ve chosen? A floating stadium.
In actuality, “mediocrity was the last actor standing in this tragicomedy,” as was written on Florian Busch Architect’s website. The original, more futuristic design for the stadium was scrapped in favour of a cheaper one.
However, both, according to Florian Busch, were painfully docile and unimaginative.
His sustainable floating stadium could be naturally cooled by the waters it floats on and potentially infinitely reused by future Olympic hosts. This isn’t really a proposal complete with schematics and feasibility matrices. It’s a commitment to think for the future, and one that Busch was disappointed the Japan Sports Council wasn’t willing to make.
For more projects by Florian Busch, you can visit their website or Instagram (he’s even been the lead architect for several projects in Singapore: see if you can spot them.)
(Related: This floating luxury villa in Dubai offers underwater ocean view)
Here are other water-borne structural concepts from architecture firms that are slowly proving that floating cities might not be as far-fetched as we think.
Other floating structures
https://www.thepeakmagazine.com.sg/lifestyle/floating-structures-architecture/
Floating Structures
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The inaugural Makoko Floating School was built in the heart of Nigeria’s biggest city, Lagos. Makoko is a community with most of its residents living on stilt structures. It only had a base of 100 square metres and collapsed due to lack of maintenance after being handed over to local authorities. However, the idea lives on – with the third prototype having been housed in Bruges for half a year as a museum space, and the fourth coming soon to Cape Verde as a floating music hub. With every iteration, NLE contributes to research on floating architecture and the feasibility of prefabricated timber structures.
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Architecture firm Bjarke Ingels Group (BIG) has designed a lotus-shaped floating mega-city that can fit 10,000 people and, in theory, withstand a category-five hurricane. Buildings are kept low and flat-roofed, providing space for solar panels, wind turbines and water turbines. Cultural and recreational hubs intersperse the modular, primarily wood-based structures. The miniature islands can be individually constructed on land from local wood sources before being towed and anchored to the main archipelago. A combination of greenhouses and undersea seaweed-and-mollusc farms, including scallops, clams and oysters, help provide food for the off-shore community. Space (and fuel) would be saved by eliminating the need for cars and infrastructure in general, though water-taxis might become a part of your daily commute. This concept is potentially one of the most ambitious in recent memory, and looks to solve the crisis of displaced communities from inexorably rising sea levels in the near future.
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Architecture firm ADMARES is set to deliver 16 floating hotels that will house up to 1616 guests for the FIFA World Cup 2022. Each hotel comes with a restaurant and lounge bar, and only require a depth of 4 metres, allowing them to be easily shifted should the need arise. For now, the hotels will occupy Lusail City’s Qetaifan Island North, the city’s premier waterfront destination, from which Lusail International Stadium can be seen. The opening and final games of the FIFA World Cup 2022 will take place at the stadium. The hotels are designed to have minimal ecological footprint and will rely on solar panels for energy, though more details will emerge as the project develops. The firm has previously created floating 6000 square metre luxury villas similarly equipped for power generation, sewage treatment and water production.
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Based in Rotterdam’s Merwehaven Harbour, the dairy facility named simply Floating Farm houses 35 cows and is yet another example of Amsterdam’s commitment to pushing the boundaries in sustainability. Living on water won’t mean much if we can’t make food on it, and the Floating Farm is working towards that lofty goal: producing 700 litres of milk a day
The cows are fed grass from nearby sports fields, beer grains from Rotterdam’s breweries and bran from Schiedam mills; as well vegetables, fruits and bread scraps from local caterers who received milk and yoghurt in return. The cows’ manure will be reused as fertiliser. Rainwater is collected and purified, and an adjacent floating solar farm provides for half of the farm’s energy needs. Only two humans are needed to run the farm: milking, feeding and cleaning are automated, as well as the production of yoghurt on the second level of the farm. For now, cows still have access via bridge to nearby pasture to stretch their legs – though as technology and processes improve, farming off-shore might be the golden bullet to food scarcity.
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The brand new office for the Global Center on Adaptation (GCA) is to be made entirely out of wood. And it floats. Designed by Dutch firm Powerhouse Company, the Maas River the building floats on regulates the internal temperature of the building while the rooftop garden mixes greenery and solar panels to keep the building energy-neutral and self-sufficient. Overhanging floors provide ample sun shade while allowing in sufficient natural sunlight. The building will also house a restaurant and floating swimming pool. Being made of wood, the building can be dismantled and reused – shades of the circular economy, something that both GCA and Powerhouse Company embrace. The building is a true exemplar of autarky that houses an NGO committed to combating climate change.
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Designed by Space&Matter and ten years in the making, Schoonschip adds a unique floating residential area to an area already famous for its iconic houseboats. Each house boasts a unique design, though sustainability is where Schoonschip stands out. Waste water is treated with a cutting-edge converter to heat, biogas and phosphate fertiliser. Rooftops are equipped with sun boilers for heating water, solar panels and gardens. Living in Schoonschip is a pledge: residents have collectively agreed to give up their personal cars and share electric cars (and boats). Energy generated from their solar panels can be used as currency at the local cafe and restaurant. They are continuously in discussion for further community sustainability initiatives.
Photography by Isabel Nabuurs.
For now, a true ocean city might not hold water – but with architects and scientists constantly pushing the boundaries, floating structures might become the new reality sooner than we think.