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A more harmonious living relationship with nature is one of the many benefits of life at SomerVille Ecovillage. The planning and design of the village, and management of local water resources, is at the forefront of sustainable living at SomerVille.
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The design of SomerVille EcovillageTM is based on the three basic Permaculture Principles: care for the earth; care for people; and, fair share. These underpin some twelve design principles including:
- Catch & Store Energy
- Produce No Waste
- Obtain a Yield
- Use and Value Diversity
- Use & Value Renewable Resources and Services
- Integrate Rather Than Segregate
These principles, extensive local and international research and a leavening of input from the community of intending residents have guided the design of SomerVille.
The results are evident in such features as: cluster housing, which delivers a significantly reduced development footprint and frees much of the land for conservation and recreation; self sufficiency in power supply from renewable resources; providing our own water from rainfall harvesting; detailed building and construction guidelines that ensure all residents' houses achieve a minimum seven star thermal rating, providing comfort without the need for power hungry heating and cooling; a car-free village centre; and, much more.
Environmental sustainability meets the needs of the present without compromising future generations. It facilitates use of renewable resources, conservation of non-renewable resources, and keeping environmental impact below the level required to allow affected systems to recover and continue to evolve. |
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A comprehensive Water Management Plan has been developed to determine the village's water requirements, surface water catchment and groundwater availability. Also investigated were water delivery, how to utilise waste water and stormwater management.
A Water Balance Model has been constructed to allow simulation of all elements of the water delivery systems. This has provided the basis for optimising extraction, pumping and storage arrangements and management of salinity, evaporation and downstream flows.
Results of water investigations, including the ongoing extraction of high quality water from a large near-surface aquifer over a period of two years, have confirmed that there is sufficient water available from shallow and deeper groundwater resources. Peak run-off from catchment slopes is also available should this be required.
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