Green Charter
The Barry Waterfront Consortium takes its responsibilities towards the environment and sustainable development very seriously.
This document outlines the variety of innovative eco-friendly and sustainable initiatives that the consortium promises to implement if the Barry Waterfront development gets the go ahead in the new-year.
Preparing and remediating the site
The Barry Waterfront site has a long history of industrial activity and the consortium intends to use some of the latest bioremediation techniques where necessary to prepare the site for development. This is because:
• It offers a more natural way to improve soil quality that involves adding microorganisms, such as naturally-occurring bacteria, to the land in order to break down any contamination and make the area suitable for residential development.
• The process will reduce the amount of unwanted materials that would ordinarily be sent to landfill, which minimises traffic on the site and reduces the carbon footprint.
Wildlife and habitat conservation
Since the industrial site fell into disuse, it has become a habitat of rough grass, scrub and bare ground that the consortium’s surveys have found supports a number of species.
The existing wildlife habitats around the site are an important consideration as part of the development proposals, which include a range of measures to avoid, or minimise the impact of the development during and after construction.
The proposed development will therefore provide:
• Protection for key habitats, including the cliff at the island side of the development and its base
• Protection for key species such as slow-worms and rare plants, which will be moved to more suitable sites where appropriate.
• New habitats to protect any existing wildlife
• More than 1,000 new trees
• ‘Brown roofs’ on key commercial buildings that wildlife can live on
• New ‘wildflower meadows’
• A new 360m long wetland habitat
• Bird boxes
• Extensive green public open space and park areas
Low carbon footprint
The new homes will meet the BRE Eco Home ‘Excellent’ standard and the Retail and Leisure space will achieve the BREEAM ‘Excellent’ target both of which include a number of sustainable features to help minimise the carbon footprint of the new development, including:
• Sustainable travel: The layout of the redevelopment will encourage sustainable forms of travel, with cycle paths and good public transport links, including the enhancement of connections to the three local railway stations and a new bus service through the site.
• Energy use and expenditure: The buildings within the development will be fully-insulated and constructed to require less energy. Many will be south facing, to ensure that as much warmth as possible will be gained from the sun, and will have low energy lighting throughout, to reduce energy consumption, which will reduce bills and minimise the impact on the environment.
Notes
These initiatives have been laid out by expert consultants.
If the proposals are approved by the Vale of Glamorgan Council, the ecological and sustainable developments at the Barry Waterfront site will not stand still, but as new ideas and opportunities arise over the construction period, the consortium will adapt the plans to include further improvements in environmental performance and conservation.