Corridor to become testing ground for green tech
CORRIDOR Manchester has announced that is working in partnership with consultancy firm Wood Holmes to develop the first phase of what will be known as a “Low Carbon Laboratory”.
The organisation, which is responsible for the development of the Oxford Road area of the city, has said that it will become a place where innovative technology designed to tackle climate change and reduce carbon emissions will be developed and tested.
Corridor Manchester said that a number of scientific studies are already underway with the the area’s universities and private sector research firms being encouraged to experiment with new technologies.
Jackie Potter, chief executive of Corridor Manchester, said: “The Low Carbon Laboratory will play a very important role in our vision to reduce carbon emissions on the Corridor.
“The Corridor is the research and innovation hub for Manchester and is ideally placed to deliver such a ground-breaking initiative that has the potential to benefit not only Manchester but also cities all over the world”.
One of the studies already underway is i-trees – a series of nine plots gathering quantitative data to compare the impact of trees and green space with asphalt on temperature and rain water runoff, which is a cause of flash flooding.
Several retro-fitted green roofs are also testing the effects of different types of natural covering on a variety of issues such as the amount of heat escaping from buildings and attracting wildlife into the city.
Wood Holmes director Paul Connell said: “We are very pleased to be working with Corridor Manchester on this fascinating and exciting piece of work which is at the forefront of current global thinking on how cities can work to drive reductions in carbon.”
