The municipal office of the Zeeland capital is changing from a gray concrete building into a sustainable green oasis. The wall on the street side of the city office of the municipality of Middelburg will be provided with a vertical garden of about 100 m2 this week. The wall consists of various carefully chosen plants, which provide a cooling, sustainable, healthy green facade all year round.
Last year Middelburg started greening the station area in close collaboration with Sioen Industries. For example, during this makeover, stone, concrete and asphalt were replaced by trees, plants and shrubs. This trend will be continued, because this week Dolmans Landscaping Group is working on the special wall full of plants at primary school de Lonneboot in Nw & St Joosland. After that, the wall at the municipal office of the municipality will be given the same green metamorphosis. This makes the municipal office a lot more sustainable, because in addition to the vertical garden, the municipal office is already equipped with, among other things, a green roof, solar panels and low temperature heating.
Cooling urban area
In the summer, concrete and stone heat up quickly and are difficult to dissipate their heat. This is called heat stress. One way to make these areas warm up less and cool down more quickly is by using public greenery such as trees, plants and grasses. The walls of buildings are also not forgotten and provided with ‘vertical gardens’. Sioen Industries develops and produces textile cloth that is used to create these vertical gardens. A vertical garden provides cooling for the immediate surroundings, but also has a major advantage for the building itself. The insulation value increases, which means that energy can be saved. The building will remain cooler in the summer and warmer in the winter.
More “green” benefits
A vertical garden has several “green” benefits. It ensures healthier air. Plants filter particulate matter from the air and convert Co2 into oxygen. And sounds are also muffled by the plants. As a result, places with a vertical garden are less affected by ambient noise. Biodiversity is also promoted through the use of different types of plants. An increase in the number of birds, butterflies and other insects is often seen in places where a green wall has been placed.