Sustainable Architecture in Costa Rica

Sustainable Architecture in Costa Rica

Costa Rica has committed to resolve many broad-scale environmental issues the rest of

the world continues to face. For a nation to truly become sustainable, its building structures, both

residential and commercial, must be designed and constructed in an environmentally friendly

manner. Research was conducted in order to determine if Costa Rican architecture firms

currently provide residents with housing options that are not only ecological, but also high

quality and affordable. Although environmental architecture firms are relatively new and still in

a developing phase, their presence and influence increases Costa Rica’s overall sustainability

level.

Costa Rica is world renowned for its large number of eco-resorts. These vacation

destinations educate tourists while employing Costa Rican citizens and increasing the nation

GDP. Resorts and hotels can take many measures in reducing their carbon footprint. The Lapa

Rios Eco-Lodge utilizes many alternative sources of energy, including solar and wind power.

Another more unconventional way the resort obtains energy is through the fecal matter of pigs.

The swine are bred and raised on the resort’s land. The pigs diet exclusively consists of food that

goes uneaten by the lodge’s guests and the food “is consumed by pigs which

relieve themselves and their feces is turned into bio-gas, used for heating and cooking.”

(Inhabitat 2014) The “bio-gas” mentioned is methane, a potent greenhouse gas that is

released by farm animals, such as cows. The fecal matter is sent through a complex

system that extracts the methane and refines it. In order to be refined, the methane “is

moved through

microchannels, mixed with carbon and then frozen, allowing the nitrogen that is in the

compound to pass through, thus purifying the gas, so that it may be used as a power

source.” (Chapa 2007) This tactic not only reduces energy use, but also finds a use for

food scraps that would have normally gone to waste. Lapa Rios’s commitment to

environmentalism has earned the resort the “five-leaf status from the Costa Rica Tourism

Board’s (ICT) Certification for Sustainable Tourism, an organization that evaluates a property’s

sustainability level and awards one to five leaves.” (Lapa Rios 2003) John and Karen Lewis, the

owners and designers of Lapa Rios are just two examples of Costa Rican architects finding

pragmatic yet innovative solutions to current environmental issues.

Casa Atrevida

Natural disasters such as floods and earthquakes can easily destroy and average

residential homes. Repairs to damaged buildings are often expensive and require a large amount

of resources. Luz de Piedra Arquitectos is a Costa Rican architecture firm dedicated to designing

home that are able to withstand nature’s curveballs. Luz de Piedra recently designed a home

dubbed, Casa Altrevida, in Costa Rica’s Peninsula de Osa, an area prone to both flooding and

earthquakes. The home sits three feet off the ground