Engineering & Future
Skyscraper Farming
Vertical farming in the big Apple
scientists at Columbia University are proposing an alternative. Their vision of the future is one in which the skyline of New York and other cities include a new kind of [skyscraper]: the “vertical farm”. The idea is simple enough. Imagine a 30-storey building with glass walls, topped off with a huge solar panel.
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That means there would be no shipping costs, and no pollution caused by moving produce around the country. It’s all the brainchild of Columbia University Professor Dickson Despommier. He and his students took existing greenhouse technology as a starting point and are now convinced that vertical farms are a practical suggestion.
An intriguing idea. It seems hard to believe this would be practical but perhaps engineers will create such structures in the future. It certainly could greatly reduce transportation costs. Read more at the Vertical Farm Project web site.
June 6th, 2008 at 12:43 pm
“Limited growing space means growing upwards, with stacked pots for strawberries, and vines that grow up to the ceiling and are then folded over to grow back down. Instead of using pesticides, pests are kept in check using ladybugs, parasitic wasps, and other predators as needed…”