#growingfreshair

[growingfreshair-blog-blog]

Fresh Air For One

Fresh Air For One is an indoor garden designed to fit in a small home.  We first worked with a group of women from the area discussing perceptions of air quality and introducing them to the Fresh Air studies.  In smaller groups we brainstormed designs for space saving ideas to figure out how exactly all ten plants could be kept inside the home.

Our first prototype includes a combination of two ideas; one, to create a shelving unit; and two, to keep plants on mobile bases so they can be shifted around the home to make space as needed. We worked with a local metal-worker to create an easily reproducible design made with commonly and locally found and affordable materials.

[growingfreshair-blog-blog]

Living Screen

The Living Screen is a simple intervention to use creeping Money Plant as a living air filter and space divider.  In this case, the project focuses on altering the common terracotta pot to better suit the needs of the plants and save space.

Money Plant produces Oxygen and is one of the most effective plants at removing toxic agents such as benzene, formaldehyde, xylene and toluene from the air.  Additionally, we selected money plant because it is very low maintenance, grows quickly and trellises well.

The terracotta pots were altered so they fit together more efficiently, making the addition of a cane and rope trellis simple and easy, and draining water effectively during the monsoon.

[growingfreshair-blog-blog]

Developing pot designs for the Outdoor Screen and Fresh Air for One installation

Pots for the Outdoor Screen were adapted from common pot designs the potters currently make in large numbers. 

We adapted the screen pots by perforating the top edge in order to allow for coconut coir string to be threaded through to create a climbing trellis. Small indents down the sides allow for cane poles to be used as support for the coir trellis.

We adapted the pots for indoor use by curving the top edge inwards to reduce the area of soil visible on the top surface. The bottom surface has no holes in, and a thick layer of broken terracotta pieces line the base to create water storage space.

[growingfreshair-blog-blog]

Artbox with ladies from SNEHA

Artbox with ladies from SNEHA to collectively design the ‘Fresh for for One’ installation. The Fresh and Local team brought home made food herbs (Lemongrass and Mint) from Flyover farm for herbal tea. Together we discussed the benefits and drawbacks of growing plants indoors. The ladies unanimously agreed that they felt plants were beneficial to their health, but that space inside is an issue. They also brought up pests and mosquitos as a potential deterrent to keeping plants indoors.

[growingfreshair-blog-blog]

Fresh Air Plants

Areca Palm: Produces large quantities of oxygen during the day, and removes xylene and toluene from the air.

Snake Plant: Produce large quantities of oxygen at night, and removes benzene, formaldehyde, trichloroethylene, xylene and toluene from the air.

Money Plant: Most efficiently removes benzene, formaldehyde, xylene and toluene from the air.

Along with these three plants, there are another forty-seven indoor plants that have been identified as being particularly good at growing fresh air.

Which toxins do these plants remove from the air?

Benzene, Formaldehyde, Trichloroethylene, Xylene and Toluene

Where do these toxins come from?

Cosmetics, glues and adhesives, paints, paint thinners, leather tanning, rubber and plastic cements, wood stains, automobile exhaust, tobacco smoke, wood burning, gas and kerosene stoves, pressed wood products, synthetic fabrics, evaporation from gasoline service stations.

What is their effect on our wellbeing?

In most cases, short-term exposure results in: drowsiness, dizziness, headaches, coughing, as well as eye, skin, and respiratory tract irritation, and, at high levels, unconsciousness. Long-term or chronic exposure may result in: impact fetus development; increase incidence of leukemia (cancer of the tissues that form white blood cells), and contribute to the development of cancers of the kidney, liver, cervix, lymphatic system, nose and throat.

[growingfreshair-blog-blog]

Kumbharwada of Dharavi

The Kumbharwada community live and work in Dharavi, in a close-knit series of buildings linked by winding narrow lanes and courtyards, that act as work spaces, public spaces, and pathways. These courtyards are often also adjacent to the kilns used to fire clay pots.

The Kumbarwada is of particular interest as it is the firing of terracotta plant pots, among other things, that greatly contributes to the poor air quality in the area. In this project we look to engage the community of clay potters in discussions on air quality and using their craft to design solutions.  In addition, we hope to develop sellable products, made in Dharavi, to address this issue and appeal to both the immediate community and city at large.

[growingfreshair-blog-blog]

Introduction

 Growing Fresh Air in Dharavi is a UCL Grand Challenges collaborative research project in the field of Human Wellbeing between the Development Planning Unit and Global Health Department and Mumbai based Urban Farming initiative Fresh & Local and NGO SNEHA for the Dharavi Biennale 2015. 

The project is based on Kamal Meattle's research, along with learnings from NASA, TERI and IIT, which show there are three common houseplants that produce enough fresh air for one person to be healthy.  Each person requires four Areca Palms, four Snake Plants and two Money Plants to have clean, fresh air indoors.