Spacetime
Metro Forest
Location: Prawet, Bangkok Client: PTT Reforestation Institute Structural Engineer: H Engineer Area: Exhibition Building 500 sq.m., Skywalk 200 m. long, Observation Tower 5 m. dia. X 23 m. high. Year: 2015
09
“We should plant the trees inside the peoples’ hearts first, then the people will go out and plant their own forest.” - King Bhumibol Adulyadej PTT has been working on reforestation projects throughout Thailand for over ten years, and their continuing commitment to this initiative is reflected in the establishment of the PTT Reforestation Institute, which will oversee the next 1,600 square kilometres of reforestation and serve as a center of knowledge for the public. Recognizing the significance of Bangkok’s residents in their effort, they dedicated a 19,000-square-metre plot of land within the city area to a ‘Metro Forest Project’. This project will serve as a learning venue for Bangkok’s residents of all ages to experience the beauty and value of the indigenous forest first-hand. The Metro Forest Project focuses on using the ‘Akira Miyawaki Method’, which restores the forest by using only indigenous species and random planting locations to imitate nature. The land use has been divided into seventy-five percent forest and ten percent water. The remaining fifteen percent includes a 240-square-metre exhibition room, a small theatre, offices, a plant nursery, and a twenty-three-metre high observation tower with a 200-metre long skywalk. The project aims to blend in with the environment and serve as an example of green building innovation. The main walls are created with rammed earth, and the building’s roof is converted to a garden. Both strategies provide insulation to reduce the building’s energy consumption. A wood composite is used for the skywalk, while the rounded steel column supports are painted to blend in with the trees. The observation tower is constructed to be a light element of the landscape rather than a massive intruder. In addition, the project aims for LEED Platinum certification by using locally produced and easily recyclable materials such as rammed earth and bamboo.
74