002
Watermarks
LOCATION
MUMBAI, INDIA
PROGRAM
THESIS PROJECT
YEAR
2016
STATUS
IDEAS FOR ADAPTION TO CLIMATE CHANGE
The project has its outset in Mumbai, India, which is one of the megacities that is predicted to be among the most affected by the rising sea level by the end of this century. The topic inhabits a strong duality, as the city's water stress is one of the aftershocks of the “green revolution” in the late 1960's that was driven by groundwater irrigation, water-intensive crops and chemical fertilizers. Over the next 50 years, India is expected to undergo an “urban revolution” which projects that 90 % of further population growth will happen in urban areas and will put yet an additional pressure on the water system. The project aims to approach these challenges by looking at how to adapt with a holistic and incremental approach, creating a catalyst for change where the water itself sets the design parameter.
Watermarks zooms into Khar Danda Fishing Village and enhances its hydrologic cycle. It shows how fundamental needs connected to water can create new public places where the inhabitants can meet, create awareness and knowledge about the topic, and live their everyday life. The added structures show how the water is collected, filtraded, stored, used and cleaned, and mangroves are replanted in the tidal zone to protect the neighborhood from storm surge. Short-, medium- and long-term strategies show how Khar Danda slowly can adapt and coexist with the changing water conditions. “Khar” comes from the Marathi word khara, that means salty, and mangroves and seawater that once covered large parts of Mumbai area are re-introduced after almost 400 years of reclamation of land projects.
