THE 2003 PROGRAMME
OF ACTIVITIES
Ongoing
Project Activities
Ongoing activities, around which further development continues to
take place, can be classified as follows:
1. Controlled irrigation and reuse of grey water;
2. Recycling and composting;
3. Use of renewable energy;
4. Alternative building materials such as mud-bricks, pressed mud
blocks, straw bales and papercrete;
5. Research and dissemination of information.
Controlled
Irrigation and Reuse of Grey Water
Project activities initiated in 2002 continue to progress, the garden
program (Fig. 7) having already yielded interesting results. Both
the grey water scheme and the drip or controlled irrigation for the
vegetable garden have successfully demonstrated that limited water
resources can be stretched for a maximum yield. A new experimental
system for controlled irrigation using ODE geotextile wrapped around
perforated pipes was set up in 2004. Mehmet Ekmekçi and Harun
Aydin from the Department of Hydrogeology at Hacettepe University
have studied the water resources of the area and a scheme for the
management of water and the use of wind pumps awaits funding. Geologist
Tuygun Savaci from the Yozgat Köy Hizmetleri has conducted surveys
in an attempt to resolve the seasonal water crisis in the village.
Recycling
and Composting
Solid waste is separated at Kerkenes. Organic waste is composted in
a discrete feature within the garden while a shelter has been built
to store bottles and cans for reuse in construction of walls. Plans
to recycle paper in the village are being considered. It is to be
noted that the lack of local recycling plants makes recycling impractical
in many cases, as the waste collected has to be transported to remote
facilities at great cost.
Use of Renewable Energy
The advantages of using a solar water heater were clearly attested
when the first unit was installed on the bathroom building roof in
2002. A second unit was purchased before the 2003 fieldwork season
for installation above the roof of the main building to serve the
kitchen and bathrooms within the house.
Alternative Building Materials
Other activities included the production of mudbrick (Fig. 9), the
recycling of waste (Fig. 10) and the construction of a small mudbrick
building to house the Village Association and its first activities.
The key to the success of the Kerkenes Eco-Center is its sustainability.
It is anticipated that the center can become self-supporting through
the activities and enterprise of the Sahmuratli Village Association.
Small-scale workshops with local labour would help regenerating the
rural areas of Turkey. Sahmuratli has the potential to be a shining
example on a regional and even perhaps a national scale.
Research
and Dissemination of Information
During the 2003 fall semester, a poster (Fig. 11) on ‘Comparative
Studies of Traditional and Contemporary Construction in Turkey’
was prepared for the PLEA (Passive and Low Energy Architecture) 2003
conference in Santiago, Chile. This presentation summarised the 2002/03
studies conducted by Françoise Summers, Nevin Gezer and Ömer
Tugrul Karagüzel from METU (Ankara) and Simos Yannas and Yasemin
Somuncu from the Architectural Association (London). Ongoing studies
are funded by the British Council Britain-Turkey Partnership Programme
between the METU Department of Architecture and the AA Environment
and Energy Studies Programme. In addition, a paper entitled ‘The
Future of Rural Housing in Turkey: Back to Earth?’ was presented
by Françoise Summers at the ‘Modern Earth 2003’
conference in Berlin. The Kerkenes Web Page is also used to disseminate
results and information on the Kerkenes Eco-Center and associated
environmental studies through the world wide web.
