By Reece Wilding
The image conjured in the mind upon hearing the words “recycling facility” tend to veer towards the depressing or the bleak.
Whether it be a mountain of waste, a horrific stench or a drab grey waste processing building the popular opinion does not tend to think of recycling as being synonymous with fun.
“What if they could become attractive and lively urban spaces in the neighbourhoods they form part of?”
“What if they could become attractive and lively urban spaces in the neighbourhoods they form part of?” – asks architecture firm BIG. Commissioned by recycling company Amagerforbrænding, they plan to change the popular perception of waste management facilities in Copenhagen. At Sydhavns, the city’s southern port, they plan to create a 1,200-square-metre facility that blurs the line between waste management facility and activities centre.
Designed as an artificial hill with recycling facilities in its centre and surrounded by grass, this integration of public space and infrastructure could be a picnic area, a running track or even a snowboarding area.
The firm plans for the facility to also be educational to the public. The open top of the hill will allow for the public to view the recycling process with ease.
The project, set to begin later this year, is expected to be completed by 2016. If successful, it could lead to a change in the way that a recycling company builds its facilities. Integrated recycling facilities serving as both an infrastructure building and a public space could well become a possibility.
For more information, watch this interview with the head architect of the project.
For more Copenhagen related news, see below:
Sustainable Cities – Copenhagen Feature
Thomas Dambo – Copenhagen’s Scrap Artist
