The Zediquette of Life: Inspiring Guide to Sustainable Living

The Zediquette
of Life
To count what counts

Factor4 Foundation
# 31, Vyalikaval Main Road, Off Bashyam Circle,
Bangalore, India 560 003.
Call: +91 80 4018 4018 Or sms ‘ZED’ at 56767.
email: zed@zed.in www.zed.in www.factor4.in
Factor4 Foundation is a not for profit trust enabling conservation research and practices.
‘Copyleft’. Rights are not reserved. Every part of this publication may be
reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any
means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without the
prior permission of Factor4 Foundation. We only claim the moral right to be credited
where possible.
Printed in India on unbleached paper to offer texture and to save on chemicals that
bleached paper use.
On the cover. The Tree of Life is a powerful symbol universally acknowledged for
its poignance and its silent appeal to people to soften the eco footprint.

4
It’sbeen a longhaul…
Biodiversity Conservation India was founded in 1995 with a desire to offer solutions to
the massive urban challenges of water, energy and waste management. It took us 10
years to convince our customers, bankers, and even our own employees that green was
the only way to go. The tide changed around 2005, and a new generation of young and
awarecustomersrespondedin largernumbers.
Today, we offer a variety of sustainable alternatives—recycled or sustainable solid
surface materials and insulation, low-VOC furniture and paints, CFL and LED
lighting, and many other things that go beyond the capacity of most builders in India.
Eventheworldhas acknowledgedthatZED directionsarefarahead of thefuture.
We must admit, though, that not all our clients walk in with the intention of building or
buying a sustainable home. Despite this, in many cases, ZED Habitats has standardized
green practices into basic design templates. There are a lot of green building materials
nowand theyarenot differentfroma coststandpoint.
Producing a successful, sustainable result is often a matter of educating and
negotiating with the clients. Finding out what you want and then offering green
alternatives, has been part of our research. For example, a client who wants to use
graniteforcounter-topscan substituterecycledglassorplasticthatlooks likegranite.
We had to turn into experts…. The first step in choosing green materials that work for
you meantdigging outinformation throughfocusedresearch.
So we built our own capacity, instead of depending on external professionals for
architecture and designing resource use for water and energy. We then launched a
serious campaign to research green distributors and materials available in India and
outside. We got to many types of options that work for our homes and for our residents
now.
This book is an appeal to you to make ZED or zero energy development, a way of your
life.To us,believingisseeing and not theotherwayaround.—
Z e d i q u e t t e o f L i f e

Whatwe have beforeus in the next 10years is notsomething youhave ever seen before.
The cost of power has risen three times in the last 12 years. The cost of water has
remained the same but there has been a drop of 70 per cent in availability of this
precious liquid.
We have before us at least a doubling, and in some states, a tripling of the energy tariff in
this decade.Water will costus atleastthree times whatwe arecurrently paying.
Besides, there will be strict legislation on water usage. New Delhi already has a law that
penalizes people forusing running water forwashingcars.
This book is not just a collection of features that ZED homes offer. ZED is Zero
Energy development and is used as a powerful and effective substitute for ‘green’ or ‘eco’
development. It's a kind of survival guide if you actually get down to reading the
‘boxes’and ‘inserts’presented here acrossthese pages.Practisethem.
What can you do?
5
You can do well while you do good…
Not every pound of profit has to come at the cost of the environment. It is
possible to do well by doing good. ZED has proved this over 17 years by
treading a challenging path to green and energy-efficient construction and
building urban communities.
As an investor or buyer, it will help if you can save the planet in some ways
while you save up for the future.
If you are a well-directed investor, you will find an investment made in BCIL
working to profit you. If you like strength in numbers, there are dozens of
statistics and figure presentations that this book offers. By investing
wisely, you will help join an organization dedicated to promoting such
deeper values that resonate with your own concerns over climate change.
What can you do?
What can we say? You will inspire your children by your act, while you
protect their future. You will help the world combat global warming. You will
turn your money into good value. You'll see the value of these ZED
offerings many years ahead.

By simply buying a pretty piece of property you are not going to enjoy the quality of life
that you could have perhaps had 20 years ago. There are different ways you can help if
youwanttomake life comfortable foryourself, yourfamily—particularlyyourchildren.
There are small steps you need to take that can make a very big difference. There are big
steps,too.And then there aresteps thatwill be necessarywhen all else fails.
This is not just an upgrade of your lifestyle. The most discerning of citizens are
starting to see beyond that. What ZED homes offer is a different way of life—one that
will become the norm some time in the future, may be as quickly as 2020 if the world and
our cities realize whatis goodforthem.
What ZED offers is a vision that is ahead of time. Participate in it. Savour the joys it
offers. Make a quality shift to the ZED way of life. Make the most of your and your
children's future.
6
That PC on your desk . . .
If you think cars, refrigerators or incandescent lights are great
energy-guzzlers, think again. Your personal computer is a
major exhaust pipe. Electricity used accounts for 1/5th of a
computer's lifetime energy cost. The rest comes largely from
the tremendous amounts of fuel—usually coal—burned to
power its manufacture.

Go the ZED Way
We call it ZED because there is a combination of 'zero energy development' approaches,
directions, and the strength of unity of every ZED Community that bring savings in use
of naturalresources.
When you look at a ZED building, it is as good as any other. It does not have anything to
distinguish it as an 'eco home'. It has the same columns and walls for the basement and
upper floors.
These pages unravel the elements that go into making a home into a ZED home. However
in telling the story of how you can go ZED, we’ve to take examples from the ZED homes
we’ve created, designed and built over twodecades.
7
Don't pay a sin tax
Have you heard of carbon credits? People call it sin tax. You pay
extra money and keep driving your SUV. That is not on. It abuses
the global ecosystem. Carbon offsets should be used to
compensate for that last little bit of carbon emissions you cannot
eliminate any other way. They are a supplement to the effort, not
a substitute. If you are investing, put your money in projects that
will create clean energy—wind farms, solar plants, and biomass
facility that capture methane and so on.
You'll do well to have your money supporting energy-efficient
and eco-friendly construction. If you have investible surplus,
please help launch clean energy education programs. The
Factor4 Foundation does promote many such initiatives. Check
them out. We have planted over 4.5 million trees in the last 20
years as part of our own carbon sequestration programs. You
can help such programs.

You can inspire!
Make yourhome inspired.
Have the unusual privilege of being a member of a ZED Home. You and your
family should be part of a front-running group of citizens with homes that offer
features unheard of anywhere else in the world in as much depth and
comprehension.
You have in your hands The Etiquette of Life and Living. It’s a monograph to
help you get started on the path to create a sustainable life for you and your family.
It’s a valuable and practical reference on how we can go green around the house
and collectively make a huge difference in many simple ways—home
improvements, gardening, energy, lighting, and a host of such things you’ll love
tomake partof your home habits.
In your ZED home, you can enable toxin-free paints, chemical-free fertilizers, and
selection of sustainably produced materials. You can make most productive use
of natural light and ventilation through every part of your home. There are
many impressive little stories of innovation and commitment to the environment
thatyourZED home caninspire.
With this accessible format, lively approach, and proactive tone, Etiquette is the
perfect tool for anyone looking to reduce his or her carbon footprint. Keep this
over the kitchen cabinet or the refrigerator top: use this handy reference. It’ll give
youinsights thataresimple,startling,effective.
Timely and smart, Etiquette is an actionable guide with easy-to-implement,
homespun, and eco-friendly solutions to safeguard our overstretched
environment. It has been a labour of love and is an example of how we all can
integrate environmental productsand services into alittle apartment.
Here is your chance to inspire city residents to go the ZED way as you enjoy the
benefits of long-term, secure supplyof energyand water.
Be inspired by what you can achieve. It could be the start of the change our
world needs.
8

It’s in our nature, dear!
The ZED philosophy centres on the idea of imitating systems and principles of nature
while considering the consequences of long-term design. We work to eliminate waste,
relyon renewable energyand diversityin ourdesign.
Children at school are learning these days how human beings are part of a web of
interconnected life. We can’t arrogate to ourselves the power to change ecosystems of
the world. In terms of building design, this means going beyond the traditional
standards of environmental efficiency and making buildings more positive. Not just
“lesswasteful”or“lesspolluting”.
Even as we read these pages before they go to print, we are pleasantly surprised at the
number of things we have been able to introduce into a ZED home. Our hope is that,
over the next five years, many other families and builders will either be inspired into
doing what we have already done, or the Government will bring in laws making many
of thesethingsmandatory.
ZED is one of the most forward-looking developers in India with clear focus on
ecology and environment. Not so only in the often-discussed sense, but in very deep
ways like material science, soil management, temperature, autonomous utilities, etc.
We know there's a lot for anyone in the responsible progress space to learn from our
work. ZED is reshaping the way the world views green architecture and people-
approachestoliving.
Here are some basic green building guidelines defining the core of our sustainable
philosophy.
Track the Sun’s path. We have pursued design values that let you use the sun’s path
tokeep trackof timeduringtheday.Anyviewof theoutdoorsisgreat,anyway.
Have a plan. In every ZED home, before we set out to go green, we understand what
our residents want to achieve and how that goal could evolve as time passes on. Every
good designhas tounderstandtheprinciplesand goals of theinhabitants.How
9

designcan determinethesevalueswillchangeovertime.
Strategize. First, we focus on the broad categories involved in any green architectural
project. These include water, air, building site, materials, and indoor air quality. How
people commutefromthisZED Campus isalso important.
Have a plan. In every ZED home, before we set out to go green, we understand what
our residents want to achieve and how that goal could evolve as time passes on. Every
good design has to understand the principles and goals of the inhabitants. How
designcan determinethesevalueswillchangeovertime.
10

Ah, those basic lessons
Every ZED home should come with landscaping that conserves water, limits grass
lawns, and maximizes planting of drought-resistant shrubs. So what are those basic
lessonsthatcan driveyou towardsachievingthesegoals?
Usethejusticelens
Choosing to make any green decision whether in a community housing project or in a
swanky luxury home is just and equitable in two ways. One, it is just for the
environment; and two, it’s just for the people who will be living in or using the facility.
Considerthejusticelenswhenmaking greendecisionsin yourownhome.
Goforthegold
When we are talking green, initial costs may seen high at ZED homes. But look at the
savings you make as a resident in the long run. As a ZED resident you typically save
about one-third of the costs of a regular home on your maintenance bills. Every ZED
home comes with green certification at the Platinum level. Remember the higher the
certification(betweenSilver,Gold, and Platinum),thegreaterthesavings.
Hang tough. The planning stage of green building can be daunting, but enjoyable
too as we have found over two decades. Discussing costs and green additions with our
designers and our project teams claims much more time than what a normal builder
spends. But we do our research and we stand our ground. Our investments have paid
off in theend.Foryou.
11

Don’t buy just ‘cos it’s green!
ZED homes substitute practicality for green points. We have no fetish of green. We
don’t make things that people should buy simply because they are green. This means
workingon designelements,making thempurposefuland asaffordable as possible.
Green furniture is not something that occurs to people often. Even those interested
in incorporating sustainabilityinto home don’tthinkof it.
We have realised at ZED over 20 years that there are sustainable equivalents to every
single aspect of anything we buy. It is only a matter of balancing design, the thought
process,reliabilityand costs.
12

We have always considered ourselves to be environmentally conscious. Still, it came
as a surprise to us when the world’s first Platinum rating for an apartment block
(post-construction) went for one of our creations, T-ZED. That was in 2007. It was
the first such residential enclave in the world that was completed well before people
seriously considered going green. Every ZED enclave is Platinum-rated—that
means high savings and greater reliability for you.
‘Green washing’ is a phenomenon that refers to the tendency of companies in the
building industry to falsely market themselves as green or exaggerate their green
attributes.
As design professionals, we have constantly done our research and asked a number of
questions before committing to a green value. You will do well to check out a ‘green
company’ thatmaynot bea realdeal,beforeyou begintoprizewhatZED homes offer.
13
Watch out for green wash!

Green’s the name of the game
The times they are a-changin, Bob Dylan strummed in that immortal song. Green is definitely
the name of the game when it comes to buying homes. Smart investments are getting
smarter—literally. “Smart houses”, “green homes”, and “sustainable lifestyle
communities”arepopping upeverywhere.
ZED homes have made a huge difference since 1994. Through our passion and
determination, we have tried to be the change all of us want to see. People in other parts
of the globe can’t believe it when we say that certain green concepts are already working at
ZED enclaves.
Instinctively, we know that you want to do these things at home as part of your daily life.
“We want to go green, but we don’t know how,” has been a fair and common reaction
frommany ZED families.
There are many ways. And it’s always a combination of some scale-down from
extravagant lifestyles, to more simple living. It means dropping unnecessary lifestyle
props whenyou don’treallyneedthem.
From achieving natural airflow and temperature control to sensitively stewarding the
land, from vegetating the place around the building to carefully placing windows to get
the maximum of natural sunlight—we have done our best to give you a home that relates
witheasetoNatureand theelements.
14
Your Car . . .
A car burns an average of 1900 litres of fuel a year, while a light van burns
3500 litres a year.
About 4500 kilograms of CO are emitted on an average by every single2
petrol-powered car each year.

Startling saving
So what can make your ZED home so different, so startling in its carbon-saving
approaches? Take ZED Collective. It saves as much as 47 per cent on carbon emission,
thankstoacombination of interesting design inputs.
It's a result of the attention we paid to the science of embodied energy in materials, apart
from an array of design approaches that offers residents quality 24x7 energy, long-term
water security without depending on the unreliable Mains water supply, and many
elements thatimprove quality of airand health.
Most green buildings in the last decade have scratched the surface of such building
management-energy savings in lighting or air-conditioning or water efficiency. ZED
goesfarbeyond these asyou will see from these pages.
Fly, only if you have to?
The most fuel-efficient flight length is about 4,500
kilometres.
Fly direct whenever possible.
Fly to your destination during the day and not in the
night. One study shows that night-time contrails
create more warming.
Pick a newer, more fuel-efficient plane like the
Airbus or the Boeing. More demand for such aircraft
will bring more efficient planes.
15

The 'black and grey' of water
Closing the water loop
What you see in apatchof garden at aZED enclave is alsoawastewater treatment system
that purifies 80,000 litres of water every day. This unique system has two streams of
water that is treated separately—sullage [or grey water] and sewage [or black water].
Grey water from wash basins and showers is treated separately to a level of purity that
you caneven drink! Butwe use it forflush tanksonly.
Such treatment reduces fresh water demand by 7000 litres a day or nearly 2.5 million
litres a year. At the treatment plant, you will see a set of water and energy metres that
monitor flowof water and energy efficiency.
For example, at ZED Collective, the treated grey water is directed to all flush tanks in all
136 washrooms by a network of overhead tanks on the terrace. The quantum of water
needed for flush tanks for all 72 homes is about 7500 litres a day at full occupancy—the
sameaswhatis generated astreated grey water daily.
Sowe growthe loopand avoid fresh water forthese needs.
Think about it . . .
1.1 billion people do not have
access to safe drinking water.
2.3 billion people are projected
to live in countries affected by
chronic or recurring shortages
of fresh water.
16

Those whirring fans
Ceiling fans are an attractive, quiet and inexpensive option for cooling needs. Apart
from the natural air-conditioning we offer you at every ZED home, we also ensure that
these fans are installed for you to make optimum use of the air-conditioner.
Conventional fans work by circulating cool air around the room and run at about 200
units a year of energy. We install fans that work at 50 watts against the regular 75 watts.
This meansa saving of about 75unitsa year.
The evaporative cooling system if used for 12 hours consumes 1560 units for the
entire year for any ZED campus comprising 100 homes. Remember there is no cost
you pay personally at your home for the natural air-conditioning. The cost per person
per month is no more than a maximum of `300-400. That is a massive saving in your
energy bills for air that is pollen-free, treated to a high degree, and which offers you
cooling comfort as good as that regular AC on the market that burns three times more
energy.
17

The wash-up
An energy-efficient dishwasher typically uses one-third less water than average
models. If you have to use a dishwasher, ensure it is not power-hungry by checking its
green rating label. If you are buying a new machine, look for a five star-rated model,
which uses40percentlessenergythan conventional ones.
Since most of the energy required to operate a dishwasher is devoted to heating water,
choose a model that allows you to reduce the amount of hot water used. Opt out of
the automatic air-drying mode and choose fast or economy cycles when you can.
Please try to run the dishwasher only when you have a full load. That helps save
energy.
18
Detox your home
House plants can help remove toxins from
indoor air. Some are effective in removing
carbon monoxide (spider plants, peace
lilies). Other plants (aloe vera) are good for
absorbing formaldehyde often found in
adhesives and furnishings.

Ovens that waste
Those electric ovens may be comfortable, but 50 per cent of the energy used by them
iswasted.So consideralternativeslikemicrowave,fryingpans,orpressurecookers.
Use your oven efficiently; ensure the seals are tight so that heat doesn’t escape. Make
sure the inside light works so that you don’t have to open the door too often to check
on yourroastorcake.
Go clean and avoid using toxic chemicals to clean your oven. Wipe it down with a
soapy cloth when it is still warm. Or, fill a roasting tray with water and heat the oven on
medium until the water is almost evaporated. Wipe it down and scrub stubborn spots
withbaking soda.
19
Is bottled water any safer?
Worldwide, we drink about 155 billion litres of bottled water
every year even though it is often no safer or better-tasting
than tap water. It also wastes fuel and water for bottling and
transport. If you want to drink smart, refill a durable, portable
bottle.

Making waves
Microwave ovens are very efficient cooking appliances, largely because they use a
relatively small amount of energy to heat. Choose an appliance with automatic sensor
controls, a rotating turntable, and a computerized control panel to ensure precise
cooking time and power. Keep in mind that regular maintenance will help it last
longer.
A unit with a ‘ruined waveguide cover’ which may spark a burn is expensive to fix
because of the labour involved. Many machines are thrown out because of this.
Ensure this part is kept clean according to the manufacturer’s instructions. It can
extendthelifeof yourappliance whilesavingenergy.
20
Turn ‘em off
Turn the lights down low and fire up a pair of soya candles. Soya
candles burn cleaner than paraffin and they are not petroleum-based.
So no fossil fuel regret.

Cleaning the hood
Without a kitchen chimney or hood, it is likely that more than just a smattering of
cooking fat will end up on your walls. Kitchen hoods are great for riding the air of
grease,steam,and odour.Buttheycan bemajor energyeaters,too.
Choose a unit with fluorescent overhead lights which last longer than traditional
halogen ones and ensure it is installed between 2-2.5 feet above the stove top for
maximum efficiency. If you have a re-circulating hood as opposed to a ducted one that
transfers air outside, make sure you clean the outside filter as well as the inside carbon
filterregularly.
21
Avoid water bottles
In the US alone, three million tons of plastic is used to bottle water
each year, and more than 86 per cent of the bottles end up in
landfills.

Tools of the trade
To avoid unnecessary disposal in landfills, ensure that everything in your kitchen lasts
a lifetime. Don’t buy cheap tools that can bend, break or melt quickly. Invest in quality
plates, cutlery, pots and pans. Choose energy-efficient toasters, kettles and other
appliances withlong warranties. Wooden spoons can be rejuvenatedand sanitizedbya
good boil in a pot of water. Invest in wooden chopping boards from recycled sources
and ensuretheirlongevitybyoiling themdownwithlinseedoroliveoil.
22

A natural mattress
Synthetic materials used to make mattresses are not only energy-intensive to create,
but are also non-biodegradable and add to the problem of waste. They also contain
harmful glues, foams, pesticides and flame-retardants. Natural fibers have built-in
protective properties and readily absorb and release the moisture we emit while
sleeping.So,theyarelessvitaltoattractdustmitesand bacteria.
Look for products made from wood, organic cotton, and sustainably harvested wood.
Airoutnaturalfibermattressesin thesuntogetridof dustmitesand otherorganisms.
23

Plants need no fresh water
At ZED Collective the second part of the wastewater treatment system is dedicated only
to treating black water from the kitchen and toilets from all 136 bathrooms. This is
wastewater from toilets, kitchen and utility faucets. The treated water is pumped back to
a network of four overhead tanks on the terrace to water the gardens in your homes as
well as the atrium gardens. These overhead tanks are maintained with periodic doses of
micro bacteria to keep them clean and odourless. This is part of the simple and low
maintenance of the water management loopatZED Collective.
The black water treated per day is 7500 litres a day [that's 2.7 million litres a year] which
feeds the gardens.
Bangalore gets about a metre of rainfall annually. We plan to ensure that an equal
quantity of water is given to the plants in addition. This will amount to about 750 mm of
water a year for the plant areas, or about 1.5 million litres. This translates to about 3,000
litres of water every week. At ZED Collective, we have adequate water to meet this need
from just this componentof treated blackwater.
Harvest it
About 100,000 litres can be collected from every 1000 sq ft of
roof that receives one metre of rainfall annually.
Redoing your driveway? Consider permeable pavements which
filter water into the ground instead of jetting it into the sewer. You
will see this in every ZED enclave.
24

We cut water use by half!
Between the use of treated grey water, treated black water, and the RWH tank, the
campus secures a net reduction in fresh water demand of 6.5 million litres. Add to this
the saving of about 35,000 litres per house, thanks to aerators and flow-restrictors
[which is again a unique ZED feature], and you have an additional cut in demand for fresh
water of 2.5million litres —atotalof 9 million litres of net fresh water reduction.
The total demand for water of these homes is 20 million litres a year. Nearly 50 per cent
of the annual demand is thereforemet outof suchvalue-engineering.
This is the future. At present, there is no campus in India which has achieved such a
stupendous saving. ZED Collective is inspiring a change in policy at the government
level.
The Bescom Managing Director, when he visited the campus, said, “I am so enthused by
what ZED is achieving that I can see many policy shifts that the government can do to
make for better energy and water management into the future, with active participation
from residents.” Canthere be better testimony?
25
Tyres pollute
Billions of scrap tyres wallow in piles around the world. Tyre
dumps can contaminate surface water runoff. They are fire
hazards that can self-combust and take months to burn out,
all the while emitting toxic smoke. They are breeding
ground for rodents and insects like tiger mosquitoes.

Waste stone that adds value
In many ZED buildings, you’ll see textured walls in soft grey all through the apartment's
external face of walls. This texture is made of waste stone debris collected from
quarries. The advantage of this external stone clad is that the campus avoids the cost of
painting forever.The carbonemission reduction onthis accountalone is 30tonnes.
In some parts of these surfaces, you will see a yellow shade. This is another variety of
stone that comes from Rajasthan called Jaisalmer. Again, it is debris collected from
traders of these stones in the city. This color tone has been chosen more for aesthetic
value and visual relief. Only about 40 per cent of external surface is painted normally. It
has cost the company thrice as much as regular paint cost. But we chose to do so for these
reasons: [a] the resident's maintenance cost on external painting is reduced to zero; [b]
the potential carbon emission arising out of such annual or periodic painting in the
future is avoided.
This again is a higher green value that ZED strives to achieves in the larger interest of
reducing use of materials,thoughit costsus more.
Go composting
In the UK, seven billion tonnes or over 25 per cent of the
country's food goes waste each year.
Go composting with waste. Your garden will love you.
Compost improves plant, and root growth helps the soil
hold moisture, binds nutrients in the soil, and inhibits
plant diseases.
26

Windows and sun-shades
At ZED homes, sunshades for all windows are light-weight, aesthetically appealing and
functional. They reduce structural load and bring efficiency in overall use of steel,
cement and concretein the building.
Talk to your kids
They are the future. The problem is kids learn from your
behavior including when and how much to freak out. If
you are constantly fretting over global warming, how can
you keep them positive about their future?
Provide your child with information. With so many
newspapers speaking alarmingly about climate change,
and yet others not agreeing with it all, it is important for
you to discuss how multiple views can coexist.
Highlight to your kids all that they do not have to worry
about. Donating time, effort and ideas will give your
children a sense of control. Remember you are preparing
your kids for a lifetime of approaching problems
constructively.
In the US alone, 25 billion polystyrene cups are thrown
away by Americans each year. How do you avoid using
these? Sure, it keeps your coffee hot, but 1000 years
after your last gulp, your empty cup will still be around.
You are dealing primarily most often with strangers. So,
how do you tell them of what they need to be doing to go
eco-friendly? Of course, 99.9 per cent of the people you
meet are interesting, responsible, environmentally
concerned like yourself. If you think you may be dealing
with the other 0.1 per cent, just politely decline.
27

A triple wet canopy that's rich
The atrium as some ZED apartments are part of our architectural plan to ensure that
each home secures the luxury of stepping out to a rich bed of plants and flowers. It has a
variety of flowering and edible species. This area alone has over 2,000 plants that will
offer atriple canopy of grass,shrubs and plants.
The plant species are all indigenous, subtropical species. Some of them offer high
medicinal value and have deepreligious significance.
They do not use much water. They grow without fertilizers and other growth-
promoters. The plants have been chosen for their color, texture of leaf, fragrance,
seasonality,use athome and medicinal properties.
They have also been chosen bearing in mind their ability to absorb carbon, exude
oxygen, and cool the immediate surroundings of each home. The total carbon
absorption these plants offer everyyearis about60tons.
Remember that your urban home and lifestyle as a family accounts for an average of 4.8
tonnes of carbon emission every year. That's a total of 300 tons for all 68 families. Our
regret is that we are covering only about a fifth of the carbon emission of typical urban
families,like yoursand mine.Itshowshowgrim is the challengethatthe world faces.
ZED, the place to be in!
If you are someone who wants to create the first self-
disassembling, fully recyclable computer, or train as an
environment planner and help create a model city, then ZED is the
place to be in.
28

Saving on 'hidden energy'
Walk through the daylight basement of any ZED apartment, and reflect on the quantum
of steel and concrete that the materials would have absorbed. Reflect on the energy used
for manufacturing the concrete and steel, and their transport to make this building
happen.
This is the science of embodied energy, and ZED is among the rare few specialists in the
world who understand such solutions to mitigate carbon emission and use of 'hidden' or
'embodied' energy.
The grid of columns and network of beams in the daylight basement have been
designed to drive structural efficiency. We have tried our best to offer greater
maneuverability for cars. You will notice that right through the basement, there is no
artificial light needed during the day. Every ZED apartment offers such daylight
basements asadesign norm.
In the way we engineered the use of these materials, the carbon saving that emerged
from onlythe basement in terms of construction material is astaggering160 tonnes.
Know your campus
Every location has an abundance of free
energy to tap into—sunlight, wind, and the
earth. Building or buying a new house in the
right place and facing the right direction are
crucial.
29

Low-carbon roads that last a lifetime
The roads in the basement and those flanking the building to the east and the west are
based on ZEDLite technology for roads. We have used them for over 14 years in various
projects. They offer 70 per cent reduction in use of concrete. The remarkable feature of
these roads is that it is guaranteed to last a minimum of 12-15 years with no
maintenance costatall.This saves forthe residents in the longrun.
The technology offers higher dimensional stability of concrete, is more durable,
enhances strength, and has zero cost for maintaining annually for nearly 15 years. These
roads use only composite cement and very little sand [since sand destroys river beds in
the longrun]. The carbonemission saving comparedtoaregularroadis 160 tonnes.
Don't idle it away!
Nearly nine billion litres of petrol is idled away each year by cars stuck in
traffic.Think about it.
Set a goal of saving one ton of annual carbon usage every year. This book
will show you how you can actually do that.
The densest metros [Mumbai, for example] are already in many ways the
world's greenest places, far more efficient in their use of energy, water,
and land, and producing far fewer carbon emissions than suburban
sprawls [NCR and Greater Bangalore]. Still, major cities could be even
greener.
Single passenger cars are not the best way to move people in and around
dense streets. Many other best policies for minimizing car use in cities
can also make them into healthier, more pleasant places to live and work.
30

The architecture of energy
Energy for lighting and powering home appliances has been carefully planned and
implemented at ZED Collective. The simple expedient of avoiding use of geysers in all
homes reduces the demand load by as much as 408 KW. That's a saving of 150,000 KWh
for ZED Collective alone every year! In general terms, that's half a million energy units
saved annually for Bescom & 10 times that figure saved for KPTCL, the power
generating company.
Here is another remarkable ZED feature that has won discerning admiration from the
Electricity Board and the government: Against the total of 200 KW that is now the
demand load designed at ZED Collective, a regular apartment of this size would have had
atotalof 360 KW aspower demand.
Every kilowatt of demand load reduced by such private action as ZED does, reduces
demand load for the Power Corporation or the government by as much as 10 KW, thanks
to the cascade of savings that comes out of such drop in demand—losses in transmission
and distribution, and in the efficiency of generation of power at hydel and thermal
stations. The financial saving for the government is up to Rs 5 lakhs per KW, or Rs 5
croreper MW.
Edison didn’t know . . .
If Thomas Edison knew how much his
light bulb would some day contribute to
global warming, he perhaps would have
kept on going until he invented a solution
for carbon emission. He was an inventor,
not a soothsayer. That leaves it to us to
solve man's biggest challenge.
31

Engage on the energy challenge?
As a responsible citizen, you can see that only such voluntary action and compliance from
builder-companies can make for viable solutions into a future where cities will reel under
energy shortages without private sector and individual home-owners taking initiatives.
One important step we urge you to take compulsorily is to exchange or replace all your
electricalapplianceswith five star-rated ones beforeyoumove into your ZED homes.
This is critical for you to be a member of any of ZED campus properties and
communities. This is why we call them ‘ZED Communities'—for we believe in your
willingness to take to a way of life where you do your bit to move towards zero-energy
living.
The annual saving at ZED Collective for the resident out of this ZED plan amounts to an
average of 1440 units a year for every home. That is a total of 100,000 units or 100
tonnes of carbon emission reduction for ZED Collective alone with a mere 72 homes it
hosts! Can you imagine the impact such savings can make if all apartments in the
country chosetogothis way?
Every 10,000 tonnes of such carbon saves the government the hassle of investing in one
MW of conventional power. That's a saving of Rs 5,000 crore for every single MW of
power generated.
The implications on the economy are staggering. Energy shortages will disappear with
suchconcerted campaignsfrom every housing project.
Much to save
Water heating can add 25 per cent to your home energy use.At ZED
homes, you save on both water and water heating without your
having to make any effort. The showers that you have in ZED homes
use flow-restrictors that have already done the job of low flow.
32

Lighting that saves
All external lighting consumes only 0.5 kW of power per month as against three KW
had it been designed in a conventional manner. This amounts to a carbon saving of 3.14
tons straightaway every year. We have achieved this through a strategic combination of
CFLs or one-watt LEDs and with motion sensors in some places like entrance to your
homes,commonbridges and corridors.
A relentless and healthy obsession at ZED has been the design of homes with diffused
sunlight penetrating them pleasantly. We extend such concepts to our basements, too.
Very rarely would you find basements as well-lit as in ZED doing away with artificial
lighting.
It’s not ‘in’at all!
Non-rechargeable batteries are
so old-fashioned. If you throw
them away, you are adding
mercury, zinc, lithium and
cadmium to the landfill. Make
sure they reach authorized
recyclers.
33

Saving that's staggering
A regular home normally consumes about one KW for lighting and fans. At ZED, the
energy demand for lighting is less than 50 per cent. To ensure this, ZED installs at its
own cost, an entire set of CFLs in every house before people occupy homes. The
residents are expected not to use incandescent lamps, halogen lamps, or regular
tubelights. This cuts power demand by as much as 70 per cent. The annual reduction in
energy bill forahousehold is asmuch asRs.2500 onthis one aspectalone.
The UPS you sport in your home should be designed to power lighting and fans. This
ensures that lighting at your home is not dependent on the campus genset. You can shape
your destiny with only the batteries coming up for replacement once in three years. You
pay onlyforyourown use,and notthoseof otherhomes onthe campus.
Your head loses the most!
We lose 90 per cent of our body heat
through our skin, and most of it is from
our heads.
34

Workingaround airand heat
Here are things that you can do to limit the need for air-conditioning. Well, you will see
themin everyZED home.
Orientation is everything. Knowing how your home is positioned in relation to daily
sunlight and wind flow will help you use nature to your own benefit. Place windows
strategically to create natural breeze ways throughout your home. Consider how natural
sunlightcan streamin throughoutthedayand affectthetemperaturein each room.
Plant trees for shade. You will see around every ZED home thoughtfully planted
trees—especially on the sunny south and west sides of the house. These can reduce the
need for artificial cooling significantly. Since Bangalore offers cooler climate, planting
deciduous trees helps. They shed leaves in winter letting you enjoy the sun’s heat when
youso needit.
A home that is open to the outside improves not only ventilation, but also your quality
of life. Making use of verandahs, balconies, and patios translates into a more
comfortableand livable habitat withouthaving torelyon artificialcooling.
35
Take the bus!
Can you avoid the daily commute to your office for at least once a
week; will your company make that possible? Even if you commute
40 minutes each way in a day, you lose two full weeks per year on just
commuting.You spend about 24,000 km worth of petrol or diesel.
To make your workday productive at home, organize yourself and
steer clear of TV, house chores, phone calls to friends, and other
distractions.

Power in your hands
We are becoming increasingly aware of the running costs of everyday appliances like
computers, televisions and refrigerators. The cost of power is going to rise sharply in
theyearsahead, and youwillhavelessand lessof it.
Photovoltaic panels which catch sunlight and transform it into energy have been used
in ZED Homes. They combine sophisticated paneling with sunlight you receive in
abundance in theseparts.
While the average Indian family of five uses around 4500 kWh (or units of power)
annually,wedrop energydemand toabout 2400kWh perannum.
ZED homes offer energy efficiency of a very high order. You can make it even better
with energy-efficient appliances. Whether it is your dishwasher or oven or the grinder
in the kitchen, look for five star-rated appliances. Check the rating efficiency of every
such appliance before buying them. If you have highly efficient motors and pumps in
such appliances as you buy you will save even more energy than ZED homes already
offeryou.
Install light bulbs which help you save nearly 75 per cent on lighting energy. Install
only pumpsthatbring higherenergy-efficiency.
36
Know your campus
Every location has an
abundance of free energy to
tap into—sunlight, wind,
and the earth. Building or
buying a new house in the
right place and facing the
right direction are crucial.

Zero energy hot water
Water heating is the third largest domestic energy expense on your utility bill. By
replacing your old electric hot water system with more energy-efficient solar-backed
options, ZED homes can help you make your single biggest contribution to the
environment.
Think about how you will use hot water sparingly, consciously. If you can’t do that,
install a shower timer clock that cuts the hot water supply in your home after a point.
That’sa choiceyou willmake.Wecan help yousourceit.
37
Energy hogs
Some computers are major energy hogs. Set your computer to sleep after a few
minutes of inactivity and turn on its energy-saving settings. It will save you a decent
amount of money on energy bills. Finally, shut the thing down when you leave. That
screensaver uses just as much energy as your spreadsheets.

Grey is the new green
Don’t just let all your wastewater go down the drain, our grandmothers told us. At
every ZED home, we recycle it for non-potable (not for drinking) purposes with the
readilyavailable ormorepermanent greywaterrecyclingsystem.
Grey water—that is, all non-toilet household waste water from baths, showers,
washing machines and sinks—is easily directed, filtered and treated to variant degrees
foradditional domesticusesuch astoiletflushing,gardeningand landscaping.
38

Using water from the sky
What couldbemorenaturalthan harvestingrain thatfallsfreelyfromthesky?
An average family uses over 350,000 liters of fresh water every year in a regular home.
Half of it goes down the toilet or is used for gardening. Installing a rainwater harvest
(RWH) systemthatcan reducethiswastewas an obviouschoiceforus.
Our RWH systems are elaborate and comprehensive. They save as much as 2.5 million
liters of water every year. With further treatment, this is used as fresh water in ZED
homes. We have saved you the trouble of having to create tanks, set out buckets, and
old toddler pools to collect small reservoirs of water. We have offered systems that you
needtoprotectand maintain overyourlifetimeasa community.
The saving on energy that such rainwater capture-and-use brings is enormous.
Remember that every 1000 liters drawn from a borewell cost you about five units of
energy. That alone means an annual saving of nearly 200,000 units at any ZED campus
of 100 homes. Every unit saved by the campus is 10 units of generation avoided.
That’snearly2million unitsof powernot generated.Coal issaved.Forestsaresaved.
39
The mug . . .
Bring your own mug for coffee to work, if your company
doesn't use washable cups. Skip plastic and polystyrene
cups, too.

Phase out inefficient lighting
Lighting represents a significant amount of household greenhouse gas emission. By
installing energy-efficient alternatives such as CFLs, you can significantly save on your
energy bills. To make things easier for you, we have already installed such lighting in
yourhouse—atourcost.
CFLs use only 20-30 per cent of electricity consumed by incandescent bulbs to
producethesameamount of light.And theylast10timeslonger.
If every home replaces just one bulb with a CFL, savings to the environment and
economy will be significant. At just one bulb for every home in Bengaluru, we’ll see a
saving of 45 watts for every such bulb. That’s over 11 million units, or Rs 22 crore
saved for the energy utility! If 11 million units are saved, 10 times that number, or 110
million units of power generation is reduced for the power corporation, given
transmission and distribution losses. That’s a saving of Rs 225 crore for every CFL put
in each household! Can you imagine what the savings can be if every home in the city
did whatyourZED home does?
40
Just 100 ZED homes can save 250,000 KWh or electric units
a year! The power of what ZED offers as demonstration is
tremendous.

Don’t stand by
Standby power can cost an average Indian home as much as Rs.1000 a year. When
appliances are left on standby or sleep mode, they are not really off. This waste of
energy, called phantom power, can account for as much as 10 per cent of all
household electricitythatmeansa bill of Rs.1000a year.
The simplest way to save is to unplug them at the wall or switch off at the power strip.
Just switching off electronics like your computer, television and CD player properly
can decrease more than 250 kg of carbon dioxide emitted every year. Your urban
lifestylecosts750kga yearof CO emission!2
At every ZED home, you can ensure power strips with individual switches. You can
isolate items you don’t use often and use standby option sparingly to retain your
settingson specificappliances.
41
Those locked windows
Choose hotels with operating windows and save the world from air-
conditioning.
Switch the lights off when you leave the room unless there is an auto cutoff.

Let the music play on
Your beloved stereo system does consume energy. But you can offset its footprint by
choosing equipment from manufacturers who adhere to green standards by using
recycled, non-hazardous construction materials and minimal packaging. You can also
reduce waste by recycling whenever you can and refuse to be lured into constant
upgradeson electronics.
It’s been estimated that over 3 kg of materials is used in making just one CD. Reduce
the load by going digital and storing music on your computer or digital media player.
Don’tforgettoturn off thestandbymode!
42

Star performer
With an average of 1.4 TVs per Indian urban household and the changes in
technology over the last decade, your TV has become a major culprit in green house
gas emissions,behind refrigerators,dishwashersand waterheating.
When shopping for your next TV, look for five star-rated labels to help you make the
greenest choice. Five star labels certify that the product has met strict efficiency
guidelinessetbytheBureauof EnergyEfficiencyof theGovernmentof India.
In ZED AC’s and other appliances in every home, go by the more rigorous five star
greenratingnormsof Australia.
43

Curtains can cool
Adopt your grandmother’s decorating tips and dress up your windows with curtains,
blinds and shutterstoinstantlyimprovethethermal propertiesof yourhouse.
These old-fashioned measures are not only back in style, but keep the hot sun out in
summer.TheywillreduceyourAC bills,too.
Some things don’t even cost you money. Closing the curtains in the afternoons will
stopheatfromseeping in throughyourwindows,forinstance.
44

Big energy guzzlers!
Refrigerators are a central part of our modern lives, but they are also one of the
biggest energy consumers. It is the only appliance that runs 24/7, all 365 days of the
year. The average household refrigerator uses about 1400 kWh annually; of this, the
freezerusesnearlytwo-third.
You can reduce consumption by improving your refrigerator’s efficiency. Buy a
machine with a good five star-rating. Don’t buy one that is too big for your needs.
Look for a refrigerator with automatic moisture control. Models that use an anti-
sweat heater to reduce moisture require 5-10 per cent more energy. Check the energy
costof yourrefrigerator.AskZED staffersforhelp.
A better option would be to buy a ZED refrigerator that cools all your vegetables, eggs
and food, but offers no freezer. Buy a smaller ZED freezer box that you can use
occasionally when you need ice. This way you save 50 per cent on energy every day on
therefrigerator.
45

Ye olde fridge
Green-rated refrigerators use 40 per cent less energy than conventional models. If
you are stuck with an older model for a little longer, congratulate yourself on not
contributingtowastebydumping it!
There are a few simple things you can do to reduce your running cost and make your
old fridge more efficient. Keep the thermostat at an appropriate level to prevent
wasting energy on freezing temperatures. If the fridge is near a window, draw the
curtains to keep the sun out, clean the condenser coil (usually at the back of the
machine) and make sure the seals on the doors are maintained. When you go on a
vacation, empty the refrigerator and turn it off leaving the door slightly ajar. It will be
freshwhenyou comebackhome.
46
That’s a horror!
Landing and takeoff are the most gas-guzzling parts of your flight. Takeoff can
consume 25 per cent of the total fuel on short flights of less than 500 kms. If you
must fly, fly a long haul. Try to avoid flights of less than 600 km. Take a train
instead. Specially for shorter trips where the time difference is not so big, train is
a better way to go…And it is far more comfortable these days.

No diesel for gensets
The back-up generator for the campus has been primed to power up through bio-fuel
feed. It serves the common needs of pumps, external lighting and such energy demands.
The generator works up to over 20 per cent on bio-diesel and not on diesel, and at costs
that are no more or less. Biodiesel also enables smoother and efficient working of the
genset engine.
Bamboo does it
Bamboo and trees both sequester carbon in their roots and
branches as they grow. But bamboo stores more CO and2
generates 35 per cent more oxygen than any other stand of trees.
Bamboo is a kind of grass, not a tree. It grows quickly, sometimes
up to a metre a day in right conditions. Because of its fast growth, it
does not require as much new land. It doesn't require fertilizers or
pesticide. It stabilizes the soil and when used in place of wood, it
reduces rainforest deforestation.
Most important, bamboo is a versatile industrial material. Here are
just a few of the bamboo products available: flooring, utensil and
textiles.
47

When water gets hot
The production of hot water with an electric geyser accounts for about 20 per cent of
your electric bill. And energy is wasted by heat loss along pipes and tanks in most
cases. We have minimized this loss by making sure your pipes at ZED homes are well
insulated and the hot water unit is as close as possible to the place where you need it
most.
In choosing the ZED hot water system, we chose the one that suits the home most,
withsolarheatingthatavoidselectricity.
Thelargerthesystem,themoreheatitlosesand thelessenvironmentallysounditis.
We hope you will not use hot water when you can manage with cold instead. Put a
bucket in the shower to catch the cold water while you wait for the hot water to kick in
thatwillsavefreshwater.
48

Taps that save
When choosing new fixtures and appliances for bathrooms, we make sure that our
decisions are based on the highest savings we can make in water use. ZED fixtures
such as sink faucets, showerheads and toilets have been tested independently and
certifiedtomeetthebestcriteriaforperformanceand water-saving efficiency.
The ZED bathroom sink faucets, for example, can save a household enough water to
run 14extraloads of laundryeveryyear.
49

Sink or swim
Don’t let the faucet run. Make this part of your family’s daily bathroom routine. ZED
homes offer taps and showers that are far more efficient, but it won’t hurt you to save
more!
Use your sink as it was intended by pouring in some water to wash your hands and
face or to shave. Don’t run the faucet when brushing your teeth, use a cup of water
instead.
Any of these simple ideas can save water every minute. Check that your drain stop is
actuallykeeping waterin thebasin asa leakyplugequalswaterwaste.
50

Paper that eats trees
If you are used to toilet paper, that two-ply designer toilet paper is indeed an
expensive luxury. Every ton of paper recycled saves 17 trees, about 2500 liters of
diesel, about 4000 units of electricity, and 3 cubic meters of a landfill apart from about
40,000litersof waterusedin themaking of everytonne of such paper.
Recycled toilet paper makes for only a very small percentage of the Indian market.
Much of the rest is made from native forest trees or plantation-grown trees. Make the
switch to environment-friendly paper that is unbleached, chlorine-free, and if
possible,100-percentrecycled.
51
Remember that every 1000 liters of water is 1 kg of carbon used in terms of
energy. This saving will bring a big relief to the City supply system, if only
they could get, by law, every home to become a ZED home. That’s how
unique your ZED home can be.

Light showers
Showers are the biggest resource-guzzlers at any home. But you can reduce this by just
spending less time in the shower and using the timer. At ZED homes, we have already
ensured that your shower saves as much as 40 per cent on the regular non-green
showerheads.That savesusalreadyup toeightlitersa minute.
If every home in Bangalore retrofits with water-efficient fixtures such as these, we can
save35,000literseveryyearperhome.
You can do the math on the saving per day and per year, considering that we have
about 250,000 households in this City! That’s about 9 billion liters of water. The city
needsa billion litersof freshwatertoday.
Remember that every 1000 liters of water is 1 kg of carbon used in terms of energy.
This saving will bring a big relief to the City supply system, if only they could get, by
law,everyhome tobecomea ZED home.That’showuniqueyourZED home can be.
52

Won’t the bucket do?
Until 10 years ago, most of us were using a bucket and a mug for bathing. That meant
only about 18-20 liters with no more than five liters of hot water. Showers in recent
yearshaveincreasedthequantumof water,both hot and cold,thatweuse.
Weagreethatshowerscan bemoreenjoyable,butthinkof theconsequences.
There are still a few things you can do to reduce water and energy consumption with
the water-saving fixtures that ZED homes provide. If we learn from our parents and
their traditional bath with the bucket, it means no more than about 4 liters of hot water
blended in the bucket with another 6 liters of cold water. Even the high-efficiency
showers at ZED homes consume about eight liters a minute. You take the call on how
youcan go greenerbeyond theZED greenvaluesand benefitswesuggest.
53

Green your bathroom!
It is useful to have an exhaust fan in the bathroom to clear up the steam after a
good hot water bath. Exhaust fans also remove mold and harmful contaminants.
But that is no reason to forget the fan’s negative environmental impact.
At ZED homes, we choose energy-saving exhaust fans. Clean the fan’s fins once a
month toensurethatitrunsefficiently.
Make your washing area an eco-friendly haven with a few small changes to your
bathroom basics. Toss out that PVC plastic shower curtain in favour of a natural
alternative—a heavy cotton one that doesn’t cost the earth [literally!] in its production
and ismorenaturallyresistanttomold.
Update your bathroom linen with organic cotton towels. Choose earth-friendly soaps
and cosmetic products. Plastic bath mats can be avoided, too. Choose a washable
cottonalternative.
Don’t forget to recycle bathroom containers for shampoo, conditioners, mouthwash
and so on.
54

Sleeping with the right thing
You spend most of your time in your bedroom. So we have ensured that we don’t ruin
yourpristinesleeping environmentwithvolatilewall finishesorflooring.
We opt for environment-friendly paints. We choose bamboo or recycled wood
components for floor materials. Mats that have not been treated with stain-resistant
finishes are a good choice if you want to have additional carpeting. Our wood stains
and polishesaredevoid of wood preservativechemicalsin theiractiveingredients.
55

Make your bed
Avoid using plywood and particle board—if they contain toxic glues. They are less
structurallysoundthan solidwood and lessdurable.
Moreover, the source of plywood and particle board is often untraceable and the
materials may come from old growth forests. No matter what you buy, it kills those
irreplaceable treasures vanishing at a rate of about 32 million acres a year—our
rainforests.
Go forFSI-orFSC-ratedwood materialsforinteriorsorwardrobesand such work.
Buying ZED wood products will ensure you stay green on wardrobes, modular kitchen
furnishing and yourfurniture.
56

Between the sheets
Make the switch to organic sheet spreads and sleep soundly. Conventional cotton is a
water– and pesticide–intensive crop with significant environmental impact
throughoutitsproduction,manufacturingand processing.
Support the green direction by updating your linen cabinet with certified 100-per cent
cotton bedding that is unbleached, chemical-free, and uses vegetable-based dyes. You
can also get sheets made from bamboo or hemp, both of which require far less
pesticides and herbicides to grow. Check out some of the new stores that have opened
up in yourcityofferingsuch products.This isa growingmarket,clearly.
57

Eco air freshener
There is a simple way to dilute the pollutants that build up in your home. All you need
todo isopen thewindows!
The exchange rate—or the rate at which the entire volume of indoor air is replaced by
outdoor air—is 0.7 to 1 per hour for an average home. You’ll know the difference
whenyou ridein a carwithall windowsdrawnup!
Keep your fresh air from windows really fresh with cotton curtains and blinds.
Organic cotton, and wool drapes are good insulators, naturally long-lasting and
strong.Naturaldyesaremorefade-resistantthan syntheticones.
58

Plants maketh …
Don’t forget the benefits of using houseplants throughout your home. From
bathrooms to living rooms, houseplants are nature’s own air fresheners. They remove
toxinsand unhealthyairpollutants,and add beautyand warmthtoyourliving space.
59

Pillow talk
Your lungs and skin will breathe easier with cotton (not synthetic) pillows, blankets
and covers.
You can get pillows made from organic cotton or wool. Synthetic fibers are ineffective
and encourage chemical production. They also trap air and water near the skin and
make for uncomfortable sleeping—especially young children. Don’t forget to use
healthyand sustainablepillowcovers.
You can wash pillows, bedspreads and blankets in your washing machine by adding a
fewdropsof teatreeoil tokilldustmites.Fluff and sunthem.
60

Cotton on to it!
We have all read those polite signs in hotel bathrooms suggesting we hang up the
towels so that they can be reused. Many hotels claim around 70 per cent of guests
happily choose to do this. This helps them achieve at least a 5 per cent reduction in
waterand energycost.Itisa good ideaathome,too.
61

Storage dreams
Good storage systems are the key to a nice comfortable bedroom. Look for options
made from recycled wood and steel. You need them to be strong so they will last. You
don’t necessarily need custom-built storage. Customize old furniture yourself by
removing or adding shelves or drawers and use your imagination when it comes to
cratesand boxesthatcan bereadjustedtoyourhome needs.
Check out some of the old auction stores in the City. You will find some exquisite
pieces that can fit into your home. Remember to store off-season clothes in
breathable containers such as rattan trunks or muslin bags. Cedar chips with a couple
of lavender oil drops on them are a safer alternative to pesticides such as naphthalene
ormoth-repellant products[mothballs].
62

Breathe easy
In India, around 350 billion tonnes of VOCs (volatile organic compounds) are
releasedinto theatmosphereannually.Paint contributestothisfigure.
If you went beyond those alluring ads and looked at factories that manufacture paints
and understood the scum and carcinogenic waste that they put out, you will stop
buyingsyntheticpaints!
The best we could do—as all builders should do—is to choose low- or zero-VOC
paints,stains,and primersratherthan oil-basedproducts.
Manufacturers today can provide material safety data sheets, shifting ingredients and
their possible impact. This is something that we secure at ZED homes as part of our
processof diligence.Youcan, too.
63

Do you need ACs?
Why install ACs in a city with temperate climate? Bangalore, for example, is steadily
becoming hotter, thanks to the heat island effect of too much concrete and dwindling
greenery. ZED realized that a growingly warm Bangalore will prompt more residents to
go in for ACs in future. We thought, if even 50 per cent of the homes installed ACs in
their bedrooms,energydemand would be higher byanadditional 100 KW atthe least.
Besides, those ACs bought off the shelf will be much less efficient than what we can
devise,design and install atthe centrallevel.
So we went for this unique, natural earth tunnel ventilation [or air-conditioning]
system that does not use CFC, HCFC or other ozone-depleting substances. It consumes
80 per cent less energy than the regular window ACs or split AC s fitted with energy-
inefficient compressorsand poorthermostatcontrols.
The earth tunnel AC at ZED Collective offers a temperature drop of 8-10 deg C between
the external ambient and the internal air temperature. The series of dampers and filters
in each home also ensures pollen-free air conducive for asthmatics and those with
respiratorychallenges.
Units saved: 1650kWh.CO emission reduction: 259 tonsper annum.2
One reason to love nature
It's one of the best carbon sinks we
have. Forests in the US, Europe, and
Russia socked away more than 700
million tons of carbon a year during
the 1980s and 1990s. You could say
the same of the Western Ghats and
the 2,400-km stretch of the Himalaya.
Join movements to protect them.Take
your kids on walks into the forest.
Savour these marvels. Breathe the
rare air. Think of how our city life
destroys, slowly, these rich green
treasures.
64

Those whirling fans
The circulation inside the home has been facilitated by a total of 24 'heat convection'
towers that sport wind ventilators atop the building. These ventilators turn constantly
at the gentlest stirring of winds. Apart from offering healthy air circulation inside
homes, these ventilators are fascinating to watch for their constant whirl. Check these
out at ZED Collective. Those turbo ventilators sticking out at the roof are a fascinating
sight.
Leathers!
Any dress made with leather will make Mother Earth
cringe. Tannic acid, formaldehyde and other
chemicals are added to prevent them from
decaying on your flesh.
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So what’s cookin’?
As a rule of thumb, electric cooking uses at least twice the energy as gas cooking. If
you really have to use an electric cooking system, consider electric induction cook
topsas theycan be25percentmoreefficientthan electricranges.
TheZED inductionstoveuses30percentlessenergy.
Just putting lids on sauce pans and simmering food gently rather than boiling
rigorouslycan savea greatdealof energy.
Remember that every 10 cups of water, or about two liters boiled, generates about 1
kgof CO .2
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When you dry-clean . . .
The plastic wrapped over your dry-cleaned jacket is
not the only danger sign. Nearly 85 per cent of dry-
cleaners use chemicals which have been proven to
be carcinogenic, cancer-causing in the long run,
harming and damaging reproductive organs.

So why don't we use bricks?
The walls at any ZED building are far lighter [3000 tonnes lighter than any regular
building with solid concrete blocks] and offer thermal neutrality, thanks to the cavities
designed in the blocks. They also offer 40 per cent more compaction strength per sq cm
than regular concrete blocks or bricks. They reduce carbon emission by a massive 60 per
centcomparedtoaregularblock.
The world built with bricks for 5000 years, but the sharp rise and demand for buildings
has put top soils to risk. Without top soil, bricks cannot be made. Without top soil, we
cannot grow our food. ZED has banned the use of bricks and concrete blocks in all its
buildings. ZED Collective has not used a single clay block or clay tile. All such building
materials arehighon energy use in manufacturing.
These homes at ZED Collective are naturally cooler because of the better thermal
neutrality of the walls. Their clean texture also enables good and smooth
painting—bothinside and outside the homes.
The carbon reduction achieved with just these light-weight blocks at ZED Collective is
about two million kg, or 410 tons (60% savings) as compared to conventional homes.
This is an equivalent of one million miles of travel in a large car or 1.5 million miles of
air travel, or 2 million miles of rail travel, of a person. If you had used an air-conditioner in
a room for 24 hours, for 20 years, you would have emitted as much carbon! You can see the
savingsthateverybuildingintheworldcanbring,if theychosetodowhatZED does.
The light-weight engineered masonry blocks at ZED Collective also bring a drop in use
of structural steel and concrete of up to 15 per cent of conventional structural
reinforcement, or 350 cu. m. of concrete, and 40 tons of steel. That is a saving of 1200
tonnes of suchreduction in carbonemission.
Add to e-waste?!
Your laptop is about five times more energy-expensive to make than a car or a
fridge! To produce just a two-gram microchip of a laptop, 2000 times as much CO2
gets released. We are not asking you to give up your computer. All we ask is that
you think twice before dumping the old machine for a new one. By just repairing
your existing system, you would save carbon. Nearly one billion kg of electronic
waste gets dumped in our cities each year. Only fewer than 10 per cent of
computers are actually recycled.
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Shun those borewells
While the city is riddled with borewells (Bangalore alone has over half a million of
them!), you can shun these borewells and nourish open wells and groundwater tables.
Making a ‘healthy’ borewell with recharge measures is a ZED practice. But remember
that it is not forever. A ZED community has to nurture it. If you don't put money into a
bank, you cannot draw! If you don't recharge this well, its yield will disappear over long
years.
ZED Campuses are among those rare homes that offer long-term water security, without
your having to face water shortage threats: buying water from tankers. What's more,
there's no dependence on the unreliable water supply by BWSSB either. Clearly, this is
the future.
The combination of treated water use, efficient water appliances, and carefully nurtured
independent source of water, and high-quality water-treatment systems make for an
unmatched water management. It has won the admiration of even the City
administration leaders,and discerning acclaimfrom the best institutions in the world.
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Go with low flow
Generally, we would
recommend taking a
shower beneath a low-flow
showerhead instead of
running a 100-litre bath.

Those whirring fans
Ceiling fans are an attractive, quiet and inexpensive option for cooling needs. Apart
from the natural air-conditioning we offer you at every ZED home, we also ensure that
these fans are installed for you to make optimum use of the air-conditioner.
Conventional fans work by circulating cool air around the room and run at about 200
units a year of energy. We install fans that work at 50 watts against the regular 75 watts.
This meansa saving of about 75unitsa year.
The evaporative cooling system if used for 12 hours consumes 1560 units for the
entire year for any ZED campus comprising 100 homes. Remember there is no cost
you pay personally at your home for the natural air-conditioning. The cost per person
per month is no more than a maximum of `300-400. That is a massive saving in your
energy bills for air that is pollen-free, treated to a high degree, and which offers you
cooling comfort as good as that regular AC on the market that burns three times more
energy.
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Wood floors - rich, yet eco-saving
The warm wooden floors of earthy tones are inviting to your feet, lend rich elegance to
the home and are therapeutic. It is a signature feature at ZED homes. They give you high
comfort, save hugely on natural resources at the core of the building, offer solace to
rheumatoid and arthritic,and arewarm in winter and coolduring summer.
While they lighten the load of the whole construction when compared to conventional
floors, they also make for greater eco-sensitivity. The base board for these wooden tiles
employs recycled wooden waste pulp in their manufacture. They are guaranteed to last
long,and comewith a10-yearwarrantyforthe home owner.
If you are buying flooring, you can ask for materials that are free of formaldehyde. In
everyZED home,these details have been already taken careof tomake your life
comfortable and responsible.
Those mountains need to be saved!
Remind yourself what it is you are trying to save:
nature. There are still about two million square
miles of unexplored rainforests in the Brazilian
Amazon. Nearly one-quarter of the land is
mountains waiting to be climbed. There is almost
a 600,000 miles coastline—much of it
untouched—and millions of square miles of
glorious desert waiting to be crossed. The sheer
beauty of the Silent Valley or the majesty of a
Nanda Devi continues to take pretty much every
visitor's breath away.
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Wall finishes beyond the ordinary
At every ZED home, you'll notice walls sporting high-quality extraordinary finishes.
That's because this is not the conventional 'lime-rendered' type of plastering. These
walls offer higher thermal and acoustic properties. They shut out the heat from outside
and provide noise insulation. What's more, they offer extraordinary resistance to fire,
and soraise the building's security.
The beautiful soft, curved corners to the edges of walls within rooms are another feature
thatwill grab your eye.
For us at ZED, these walls symbolize a return to ancient building practices. We employ a
blend of gypsum, an age-old material which stages a comeback with our help, to contend
with other modern wall applications. Its sheer merit above other conventional plastering
material that regular builders use, offers several green and sustainable values. The walls
of these homes tremendously reduce your power bills as gypsum plastering has very low
thermal conductivity. These surfaces do not develop cracks—that's a risk regular
conventional cement plastering is prone to. ZED walls are light-weight and reduce dead
weight of the whole structure. By using this material, we waste no water for curing
either.
You would notice, too, that the walls are perfectly lined and leveled, a tougher
propositionwith cement plastering.
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What can you do at your office?
At the wind-and methane-powered Belgium
Brewery in Colorado, the water used to process
beer is run through ponds where bacteria eat the
organic waste, reducing strain on the city's water
treatment plant. The methane produced is
converted into heat and electricity. Systems such
as these need to be installed in each of our
industrial processes. What's more, companies
need to talk about it to inspire more such action.
Think of what your company does, and what you
can do to help them become energy-efficient.

Know it by the smell…
At ZED homes, you can value-engineer woodwork through recycled components. We
find out where our wood is coming from. Recognizing the difference between
sustainable and non-sustainable wood is a lot like recognizing the difference between
organic and non-organic tomatoes.
Like an organic label, certification by the Forest Stewardship Council or its equivalent
guarantees that our wood has been grown in a sustainable way and harvested from a
sustainable location. This avoids our contribution to illegal forest harvest or stripping
of old growth forests bare. Naturally, in most places, you can composite wood
productswitha thirdparty,green-certifiedmanufacturer.
We use water-based formaldehyde adhesives instead of urea-formaldehyde adhesives,
which can cause harmful greenhouse gases during the making process. Your finishes
are resource-sensitive. You polish with low-VOC (typically water-based) as opposed
to standard finishes containing higher volatile organic compounds. You’ll know by
thesmell!
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Paints that make for
a healthy living
There are some more features that help you keep healthy at ZED homes. The paints we
have used to light up your interiors have low VOC content [volatile organic compounds
thatareextremelycarcinogenic] and do notemit asmuch toxins asotherpaints do.
We could have lined up the walls in your toilet with ceramic tiles. Instead, we had them
painted with a low-VOC-emitting, water-proof paint. We chose colours that add cheer
tothe rooms.They last longer,lookelegantand areeasyon clearingand housekeeping .
Farming gets its place again
Things have changed in the last 10
years. If you insist on buying local farm
produce, farmers around your city will
turn into important global warming
warriors. That will mean you will avoid
the shopping malls that promote long-
distance transport. That will mean you
promote the local organic farmer.
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The thermal drop that you experience in apartments on the topmost floor is due to heat-
reflective high albedo paints we have used over the terrace floor. These paints have the
capacitytobring down internal temperature by5-6degC in the peakof summer.
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Roofs that cool
Keep off meats!
The gases from cows are even worse, in terms of global
warming than regular CO . Because they put out2
methane which is 23 times more polluting than CO . We2
have over 200 million cows in India!
One of the top two or three most significant contributors
to global warming is livestock. We get only 1/3rd of our
protein from flesh, but devote nearly a third of our planet
to raising it.

Get ‘em to play outdoors
Studies have shown that children who
play regularly in natural environments
fall sick less often, and show better
coordination, balance and agility.
Build the future
At ZED, you must meet the Design and Projects
team to see their personal commitment to the
future. They are there because they think they
can make everything better. They've set out to
prove it by choosing this career in green planning
or design. There are environmental engineers
who dream of making biodegradable batteries,
or doing industrial design.
Vest meaning to your everyday life by choosing
not a job, nor a career. Choose to shape the
destiny of your city's future. Invest in vertical
wind farms at home, make your office buy ACs
that save 50 per cent, push for city agendas that
will promote citywide bike paths. There is so
much to do!
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Gooffthegrid
Overthelast25 years, wehavetravelled,learned and broughtsystemsand technologies
from India and outside to create apartments and villas. They offer you the best of
comfort,convenience,and evenluxury,withgreenfirmlyin place.
ZED home is the new trend and will soon become the standard. These homes, even if
you don’tknowit,arepartof a truegreenhome revolution.
The ZED team, for many years, has tirelessly researched vendors and suppliers for
many of theelementsthatgo into making yourZED home.
Energy saving is a great conversation starter. It is fashionable to know the solar water
heater or photovoltaic system you have chosen, or how much rain is needed this season
toaccomplish watersavingswiththeelaboratelydesignedrainwaterharvesttank.
Recycled or sustainable timber, low- and zero-VOC paints, energy-efficient
appliances, native plants for the new garden, waste water treatment that recycles and
upcyclessuch treatedwater.
“Going off the grid” doesn’t mean you are dropping out of society. It means you are
thinking in the right way, and developing a sense of self-sufficiency and freedom from
thecitymunicipal gridforwater,energyand waste.
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Clear theair
We all see our homes as a refuge from the pollution and smog of the city. Have you
noticed how often you turn on your car’s AC not for cooling the air as much as to shut
outsmogand noise?
The air within homes can be more polluted than the air outdoors in a conventional
home which is not treated for air quality. Synthetic building materials, finishes and
furnishings release pollutants that can harm your living areas. That sofa you sit on
might be more detrimental to your health than running along the city’s largest street in
rush-hourtraffic!
So, do some homework on the materials you plan to use in your home and those
presentin furnishings such asyourold carpetorthatold couch orcabinet.
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Oil in Restaurant
Nearly 1,000 million kg of vegetable waste oil is generated at Indian
restaurants across the country each year. This makes for about 100 million
litres of biodiesel which can meet the driving needs for four days a year in
India.

Hot water, at a small price
You shall be one of the very few home-dwellers anywhere in India who can pride on solar
water heaters installed at your home. It'll become the norm when governments wake up
and enforce legislation on every builder. It saves you as much as Rs 400 a month, and
reduces use of fossil fuel-based grid energy, to offer you the satisfaction of your own
small, personalcontribution toeco-friendly drives.
This means you have to reach accommodation on the way you live. You can't expect to
take energy or water for granted into this future before us, as your children will tell you,
too. In times when you need more hot water than the solar system can offer, we have
made an electrical provision in your toilets for a 0.8 KW low-energy geyser. If you
install a geyser, it needs to be used by you with care and diligence only on those days
when the skies areovercastin Bangalore.
The importance of this energy planning initiative at ZED Collective is enormous. This
will soon be a law in every state in India. The drop in demand load arising out of such
planning is partof the overall efforttoreduce energyuse in the cityorthe country.
At ZED Collective, thanks to this measure, the campus has succeeded in dropping energy
demand by 300 kW,ornearly 50 per centof the entire demand load!
What if there is performance failure? What if you don't receive hot water in the system?
Who will maintain it? What are the chances of the system needing replacement and
when? Such questions are only natural in your mind, since these seem 'new' to you.
Remember, you have had the luxury of high energy-guzzling geysers for all these years.
Nomore so.
Into the ZED way of life, there is an effort you need to make to be a green family. You need
to bring trust in the professionals who will manage the system. You need to engage and
involve yourself in the process if you can and derive the satisfaction of having the
community gogreen.
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The Himalayas
Some glaciers here which supply up to 75 per cent of summer water for one-tenth
of the human race are receding by 15 metres a year. That's 50 feet of glacial peak
melting away annually.
As theAmazon river warms in the next 50 years, up to 60 per cent of the rainforest
could become savannah. Rampant logging in the entire basin is not helping.

Bats in the skies
Have you noticed that nearly every part of your city has bats
flying the skies in the night?
Cities like Austin in Texas have more than one million bats
patrolling the skies during summer nights. Some species of bat
can catch up to 3000 insects in a night. You may already have
bats in your garden; they live almost everywhere. Encourage
them to be around. What you see as a menace with insects has
a perfect solution with bats. Wherever you go deep into nature,
you will reacquaint yourself with its amazing color spectrum of
the blues—that sky, that water. Also the greens are great. The
purples, the yellows, and the browns, the reds, and the
oranges... There is a beautiful world out there. Yes, nature
shows look incredible on TV, but there is nothing in the world
like the real thing. So get out there and drink in the beauty.
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Go off meats!
One kilogram of meat requires eight times as
much energy to produce as one kg of veggie
protein such as tofu.
Livestock adds more CO emission to our2
atmosphere than motorized transportation!

Alert-warn systems
The security systems you choose must be picked with great care. It should alert you to
the extreme possibility of an attempted burglary, without your installing complicated
and expensive equipment needing highmaintenance and energy consumption.
The motion-sensor for lights at the entrance and a safety alarm for potential gas leaks
complete the basicalert-warn systems in your home.
Lifts too have to be selected with care. If picked right, they offer you at least 8-10 per cent
reduction in power demand compared to conventional lifts and hence are low on your
monthlymaintenance bills.
We urge you to be a role model for your children and use the lift only when needed.
Walking the flight of stairs will help you stayfit.
Solar costs a deal but . . .
The price of solar systems is coming down though a set of
rooftop solar harvest system can still cost a pretty packet.
Government funding has not been much, but there is
support. The next generation of PV systems will put
electricity generating solar cells in the films, they can then
be embedded with all sorts of flexible materials.
Those solar cells will be embedded over roof tiles of
houses to windows of a toxic if we get solar power
replacing electricity produced from fossil fuel. In the next
few years, solar power costs will match that of coal, and
hence rooftop solar harvesting for off power will become
the norm. At ZED homes, we offer this feature in every
home. We have chosen to do so at ZED Earth.
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Solar can do it
Aphotovoltaic system that produces 150
KWh every month keeps 150 kg of CO2
out of the air. It saves 70 kg of coal and
475 gallons of water used for power
generation. There are two billion people
in the world with no electricity at all.
There are another one billion who rely
exclusively on batteries for their power
on candles and kerosene for light,
making conditions for work and
education difficult. Solar is one of the
easiest, most reliable ways to give
power to 1/3rd of the world's population
that has no access to the grid.
Don’t throw ‘em away!
Convince every household and
friend you meet to replace at least
one of their incandescent bulbs with
a CFL. This will drop carbon
emission by 80 per cent for each
CFL.
A mobile phone is about 14 per cent
copper by weight. It also contains
gold, silver and a tiny amount of
platinum. These are precious metals,
so don't throw away your old mobile.
Phone and office supply shops
usually have phone recycling bins.
Make use of them.
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Sustainable wood
The timber for doors and windows are sustainably harvested. It goes to your credit as the
proud owner of a ZED home that you and your neighbours have saved about 30 tons of
carbonemissions throughthis process.
The lightweight bridges that span across the mezzanine form pleasant links to blocks as
you walk from the elevator to your homes. The railings have been carefully designed to
give optimum comfort and security to children and the infirm. The design of these
railings hasresulted in acarbonsaving of 20tonnes.
Grease Cars?
Vegetable oil lubricates better than diesel,
so the engine lasts longer and runs
quieter. Any car that runs on diesel fuel
can be converted into a grease car that
uses vegetable oil.
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So little, so big
Have you realized that in just the last 10 years,
there has been an average increase in
temperature of 0.26 degree centigrade? The
difference that 0.26 degree centigrade makes is
so imperceptibly small that it doesn't affect
anything you do in your daily life.
Climate change happens so gradually that we
won't see the difference between one day and
the next. But that doesn't mean you cannot
monitor the frontlines of global warming.
Go paperless
PDFs and e-mails were meant for the
screen, keep them there. Paper
makes up 1/3rd of all waste. Be sure to
recycle it. Recycling one tonne of
office paper saves six tonnes of CO2
compared to throwing that tonne away.
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Plumbing lines
Tall shafts, neatly clad by boards, punctuate the fabric of the exterior every few running
lengths of the apartment. These ducts serve to cover three different pipes belonging to
the electrical, plumbing and air conditioning system, neatly by the energy-efficient,
lightweight,and stable boardsthatuse 48per centrecycled material.
This is a unique feature at ZED in one sense: we have twice as many ducts at ZED than any
regular builder. A total of 24 ducts are dedicated only for intake and outtake of fresh
treated airpumped into everyhome.
Our system of dual plumbing for using treated water separately for garden and again
with dedicated lines for flush tanks add for the uniqueness of the plan. What's more, even
the solar hot water lines are dedicated to each home, so you don't have to worry about
excess use by a neighbour leading to shortage for you. You become available for what you
drawfrom atankmeant foryourhome and one more.
Not the SUV, pleez!
About one-quarter of carbon emissions we
produce pours out of the exhaust pipes of our
vehicles. Even if every 4WD driver switched over
to a more efficient car tomorrow, cars will still be a
leading cause of global warming.
So there: can you switch your SUV to a more
efficient car?Ask your children, they'll tell you why.
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Passive cooling
Banish the air-conditioner, say greenies. We say, well, get air-conditioning, but get
something that softens your eco footprint. Don’t let go of fresh air and natural light
that are essential for your health. Invite them into your home, permanently, with
passive design solutions that can reduce your dependence on electricity or cooling.
Create natural breeze-ways with replacement of doors and windows. Enjoy free
natural light for up to 12 hours a day. Venting windows will improve airflow and air
quality.
85

Garden at the doorstep
The joy of growing plants small and large, of watching flowers bloom, and of breathing
in the pure air that surrounds any green cover is not something you often get in
residences. At ZED Communities bamboo shoots line the compound wall, making the
campusrichin green and oxygen.
Apartments these days do not offer enough scope to provide venting for such aspirations.
Not so in any ZED home. Your own private gardens in the sky can offer you a patch
enough totry outyour experiments with plants.
Facilities for drip irrigation will ensure that tending does not become a problem. Once
again, we have engineered use of treated black water for use in irrigating the gardens and
washing cars at ZED. Your campus at full occupancy level can generate up to 30,000 litres
of treated water from grey and black.
A mezzanine floor can be packed with plants of various indigenous species. It is a
dramatic sight as you step on to the mezzanine. Plants of varying canopy heights have
been planted in recycled paint buckets standing testimony for use of recycled material
innovatively within Collective. We have planted waste PVC pipes into the ground to
serve asplanter boxes forsome plantsnear the entry,too.
Toxic wastes do not find their way to landfills from ZED. Organic wastes from your
kitchen go into decorative compost makers, while the dry and hazardous waste you learn
to segregate at home would be handled by facility personnel on site to hand over to
NGOs thatwill dispose suchwasteresponsibly.
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Pool the car!
The average urban computer burns 2000 litres
of fuel a year creating a 5.5 ton cloud of CO . One2
extra passenger in a carpool can cut the figure
by half. Find one or two more people to travel
with every time you take a car. Share a car.
Try your friendly neighborhood carpool group or
using a pay-as-you-go car if that is available in
your city. Bombay has begun one such where
you use for only as long as you need, then leave
it for the next person to hop into. This service
exists in many other cities in the world.
It’s scary!
Sounds weird? Read on… The world is
losing its glaciers at a phenomenal rate.
In less than 30 years, we can only see
them in pictures. By 2020, the snows of
Mount Kilimanjaro will have vanished.
This is one of the 26 such glaciers that
will have disappeared by 2030. Even as
you read this, 90 per cent ofAntarctica's
glacial mass is diminishing. The
worldwide glacial retreat threatens to
feed the climate crises further, swelling
sea levels with the melted water and
absorbing the sun's heat into the ocean
where glacial surfaces once deflected
it.
87

88
Go organic on fertilizers
Do not underestimate the lowly worm—it is one of nature's best recyclers. Give hungry
worms access to your kitchen vegetable waste. Soon, through the process of
vermicomposting, your garbage will be transformed into nutrient-rich, non-polluting
fertilizer for your private organic garden.This is what you get at ZED homes.
Worms can eat eggshells, coffee grounds, fruit and vegetable scraps, tea leaves. The
worms add micronutrients, magnesium, and calcium carbonate to the organic matter that
passes through their intestines. The result is what is known as vermicast or worm manure.
This is a great fertilizer for your vegetable garden.
Worms consume their own weight daily. About 2.75 kg of worms will make their way
through 2.75 kg of vegetable waste in one day.That is about 6000 worms.
The Manhattan story
Eighty two per cent of Manhattan residents get to work by
public transport, by bike, or on foot—10 times the US average.
New Yorkers consume petrol at a rate so low that the US has
not matched since the 1920s. They generate less than one-
third of the carbon emissions of the averageAmerican.
Reconnect with Earth
Bring yourself the joy of tasting a ripe
tomato picked from your own garden.
You will find it hard to believe that
growing your own food in cities is the
way of the future. Growing tomatoes
is not only about saving food miles,
not to mention the money you spend
on tasteless farm produce.
Earth helps tomato, tomato helps
human, human helps earth. That's
how it is meant to work. Plus, you
won't believe the taste.

A few green tips for the Car
If you allow your car to idle for 10 seconds, it uses more fuel than turning the engine off,
then on again. A simple tune-up can improve your car's fuel efficiency from 15 to 50 per
cent. It's worth the two hours you spend at a good garage for fixing this once every three
months.
Keeping your tyres properly inflated will save you about one tank of fuel a year. That's
over 30 litres. Check the tyre pressure monthly using the same gauge every time—a
different gaugemeans different calibration.
Ninety per cent of tyre pressures are incorrect. Under-inflated tyres don't roll as
efficiently and they wear out faster. Aggressive driving can increase fuel used by 35 per
cent and spew out five times more toxic emissions than driving steadily and slowly. If
youkeep at50-60km, youlose 15 per centless fuel thanwhen you gopast80 km.
Take off any roof boxes or racks on top of car to make your car more aerodynamic. This
will increase fuel efficiency. Look for a style that is not tall. Go for a lower ride with
rounded edges as cars go. At highway speeds, open windows will increase drag and cost
you more fuel. Shut them and cool off by opening the car's vents or by running the AC at
a higher thermal. Use the AC always with the temperature thermostat being regulated
to external temperature. It will drop the sweat factor while keeping the air fresh in the
car. Your AC will consume one-third the energy. You can run a diesel engine on used
cooking oil or bio-diesel fuel. There are vendors in every city who know how to get this
done foryou.Or talktoZED professionals.They'll help youfind them.
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Plastic or brown bags?
Fourteen million trees were cut down in 1999
to supply the US alone with paper bags. We
have no statistics to offer such numbers in
India, but you can be sure it is as scary.
Should you pick up a brown paper bag or a
plastic bag? Is that a choice at all, we ask. Stop
the moral dilemma and bring your own
bag—whether you prefer jute which is strong
and durable, or organic cotton, or canvas for
the touch and feel of it, or even nylon which is
light and cheap.

Carbon loans
Trees slowly remove carbon from the
atmosphere as they grow and mature. A
single tree might absorb one ton of carbon
over its 40-year lifespan. When that same
tree dies and decomposes naturally or gets
cut down and burned as firewood, it will
release most of the carbon sequestered
over the course of its lifetime.
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On the third weekend of every September, join over 50 million people in 120 countries
on a planet-wide beautification campaign. Check www.cleanuptheworld.org for more.
On September 22, spend a day without driving; it's the World Car Free Day. Put it in
yourdiaryforthis year.See www.worldcarfree.net.
If you have well-placed trees and plants around the house, they can provide shade and
invite winds. They cut AC bills by 10-15 per cent. Plus each tree will absorb one ton of
CO over its lifetime.2
Look for the energy-savings label on electronics, refrigerators, and air-conditioners.
Don't be pennywise and pound foolish. The money you will save on cheaper appliances,
youwill eventually spend onenergy bills at100times and over.
Save up to 320 kg of CO by air-drying clothes naturally as far as you can. Avoid the use2
of the drier in yourwashingmachine.Saves youmoney and energy.
The organic process of composting does produce CO . But that is the methane gas, the2
same waste would create while decomposing at the landfill which is 23 times worse for
the atmosphere.
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Agreen ‘roof’helps!
Agreen roof can be a key part of your carbon
reduction strategy. Plant it, water it, and
enjoy it.
A green roof is a planted roof—be it a
vegetable garden, or a woodland of trees
and flowering shrubs. A well-planted roof
absorbs solar radiation and CO , decreases2
storm water runoff, provides valuable
insulation, gives shelter to birds who enjoy
the high altitude and an admirable view!
Join them in September

The food mile
A food mile is the total distance the food travels to be
eaten.
Can you imagine your nightmare of traveling to the other
side of the plant before you could sit down to eat each
meal? That sounds absurd, right? But look at the way it
is today. Food many times travels all the way from the
US to India, or from Africa or even from Australia before
it reaches your plate.
A typical meal in the UK travels roughly 22,000 miles!
The story in India is becoming much the same with many
retail malls importing fruits from Australia, rice from
Thailand, and peaches from Europe.
92
Will you join the Eco-wagon?
What it now needs is your willing and
hearty participation to be a
responsible citizen. Don't look for
comfort alone. Look to see what you
have done to make nature smile.

The Zediquette of Life: Inspiring Guide to Sustainable Living

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The Zediquette of Life: Inspiring Guide to Sustainable Living