A Sustainable Approach to the Prevalent Problems in Tactical Urban Construction of Temporary Structures

Abstract

It is essential to make a check on extraneous usage of concrete in construction to reduce the urban heat island effects. As a step towards sustainability, small or temporary structures can be constructed by reusing a variety of rigid materials that are found in abundance in scrapyards. This paper emphasizes the sustainability aspects of reusing scrap materials for constructing a bus shelter using the principles of tactical urbanism. The selected materials include scrap steel pipes, wasted foam sheets, gypsum board, plastic cans and bottle caps. After minimal modifications (cleaning, sizing and shaping), they were converted to suitable panels and members of designed dimensions. The embodied carbon analysis showed that 130.23 kg equivalent of carbon dioxide is saved by not using new materials in construction. By this approach, the net embodied carbon for the entire structure is turned to be negative (-85.23 kg equivalent of carbon dioxide). On another aspect of tactical urbanism, a suitable construction methodology is designed to utilize minimal time and manpower for construction which also could reduce the carbon and energy footprints substantially. The innovative provision for using clamps on the skeleton frame enabled direct insertion of panels, thus minimizing the requirements for fasteners or adhesives. The entire structure is found to be light in weight and portable but strong against pulling loads. The social and environmental aspects of sustainability were evaluated using checklist, sectoral matrix and checklist methods. We envisage this approach in making security homes, isolation wards at times of contagious outspread, locomotive stalls etc.