An interview with Clínica Verde architect Bill Bylund, LEED AP.

Q: You’ve been an architect for over three decades.  What attracted you to the Clinica Verde project?

With the Internet, people have more access to information regarding events around the world as they occur.  People are no longer fettered by entities beyond their control that hamper the ability to know and/or research the truth about the conditions of humanity witnessed around the world.  This freedom has caused an urgency among those who want to have a hand in helping people in need improve their living condition.  I saw this project as my opportunity.

Q: What does “green” mean to you?  How do you envision the sustainable elements of the clinic prototype working?    

Green is the color of a healthy forest when you fly over.  Trees turn carbon dioxide into oxygen.  We, as inhabitants of the earth, are in the process of managing the biosphere in order to insure the continuation of life as we know it.  Matter can neither be created nor destroyed, thus everything we make, use, then discard has to be transformed by natural processes back into the biosphere, the thin layer of life surrounding the earth.  For example, the burning of coal in order to make electricity puts tons of debris into the atmosphere that is adding to a blanket of harmful substances that deplete the ozone.  The ozone is an integral part of the biosphere that protects living things from radiation from the sun.  You may ask, how does this affect our project?  In the United States, over 50 % of the energy consumed is due to the construction and operation of buildings.  We want to emphasize conservation measures in the design of our clinic prototype in order to reduce the demand for energy that is produced by means that contribute to the problem.  To accomplish this, our design will conserve water, utilize solar power to pump water – heat water – and provide backup power, provide for passive cooling and utilize local goods, materials and services.

          
Q: How does the ventilating roof system function to conserve energy?

When sitting under a tree you are feeling the coolness of the shade, but more specifically, the absence of the sun.  The leaves of the tree block the sun from warming your body. We are adopting this principle on the roof of the clinic.  The roof panel is placed at the top chord of the roof structure with the insulated ceiling panel attached to the bottom chord, thus creating an air space between. This is where the ambient air can dissipate heat buildup from the roof panel instead of it being transferred to the ceiling panel below.  The roof structure allows the panel to be cantilevered beyond the walls to provide shade on the walls during the hottest period of the day.  This describes one passive cooling procedure we are incorporating into the design of the clinic prototype. 

Q: Talk about the rainwater collection system.  What is its purpose?

Rainwater collected from the roof provides a means of utilizing otherwise wasted water.  The intention is to offset irrigation needs as well as uses where non-potable water is appropriate, such as flushing toilets.  As you know, when water is short of supply, the floors don’t get mopped and cleaning in general is limited. Nicaragua has little if any rainfall in the dry season so the idea is that the below ground rainwater cistern will be topped off by a solar powered pump fed by a well during that time period.  The rainwater charge will be most useful augmenting the system during the large demand in the spring months, thus preserving the aquifer for later use during the mid-summer season.  We recently visited an ancient cistern located in Istanbul, Turkey originally built to serve the citizens of the city of Constantinople, circa 600 AD.  The structure was the size of a football field and 30 feet tall.  Cisterns are still in use all over the world today and are currently being built with the notion that water is a valuable resource that should be captured when possible.

Q: Why earthen or masonry walls?

Adobe or rammed earth walls are an ancient means of creating walled buildings.  This method of construction requires little expertise and materials can be found in most cases on the building site, which warrants high ratings on a sustainable or green building checklist.  You find this type of construction in arid climates where protection from the heat of day is desired.  A thick earthen wall has the advantage of slowing down the change in temperature between the inside and outside.  In our building we will design the thickness of the wall to resist the hottest days of summer.  In concert with the thick wall technology, we will incorporate nighttime cooling and shading of the wall surface. Courtyards create outdoors cool zones that help with airflow around the building.  By positioning windows and cross ventilation at each room or area we will let in cooler night air that will cool down the mass of the floor and the walls over an 8-hour period.  In the morning the windows will be closed to keep out the warmer daytime air and the walls and floor will slowly absorb heat produced by the occupants, lighting and machinery, thus maintaining the desired comfort level by passive means.  To attain this balance it is imperative that we maintain a certain mass inside the building, employ shading techniques to cut down direct heat gain and insist on good building management practices.  To reduce heat gain by lighting loads we are introducing day lighting techniques through the implementation of clerestory windows that let in indirect light and insulated sky lights in enclosed areas.

Q: There are some novel parts to your design – the vendor kiosks, the café and demonstration kitchen, the café and community room.  What kind of challenges did this present to you as an architect, and how do you see the elements working within the whole?

The Clínica Verde prototype is an enclave designed to promote health and hope to people in need anywhere in the world.  From this idea we, as a group, have developed a program that shapes the functions and social aspects connected with the facility and surrounding area.  The need for a demonstration kitchen, for example, is driven by the program for improving diet and nutrition in families. The organic garden becomes a viable means of demonstrating techniques for producing a larger array of crops utilizing safe organic means for growing and handling fresh produce. Partnering with Nicaraguans to form a united campaign that makes a difference locally with people to improve their capabilities for preventative measures to maternal and infant health problems.  We will provide the facility and coordinate the interface with other clinic functions.  Management of these ancillary elements that make up the full functioning body of the clinic will present the most important challenge.  The clinic must grow with the user and be effective in providing services to the community that make a difference and this may change depending on the location. Our goal is longterm benefits to the individuals and the families of the communities with maximum flexibility and diversity. Social sustainability is a subject that is getting evermore attention as LEED certification becomes more prevalent as a design tool. 

When visiting the Hospital in Boaco it was pointed out to us that people come from such distances that they and their families sometimes stay for long periods of time.  A comfortable place to wait both inside and outside was an obvious requirement.  Also, at the hospital there was a food stand set up to serve mostly the hospital workers who could afford the food.  We see a prototype clinic having a café that would accommodate the needs of a patient and their family for inexpensive healthy food while they wait for services.  In the case of our prototype, it seemed appropriate to piggyback the responsibility of the full-time caretaker with the task of operating the café.  The café would draw raw food products from the garden and animals the caretaker raises on the premises. Breaking through the psychological stigma local people may have, regarding feeling comfortable using the clinic, is a concern.  Providing auxiliary services, we feel, will be helpful getting people familiar with the facility.

Q: How did your trip to Nicaragua (for the annual meeting of the board) and meeting the women and children your building will serve effect your vision for the clinic?