Recently, Salon.com published an article entitled “the city that floats.” This piece explained that many cities, like London, are beginning to design INTO nearby bodies of water. The article affirms that with limited space and a greater demand for “more elbow room”, cities have begun “to hike up their trousers and wade into their waterways.”
This idea, to many, seems a bit strange, however, there are examples in Amsterdam, London, Singapore, and even New York City where floating properties are being or have been implemented. Singapore has a floating stadium, and as it is on water, it can be moved to whatever location suits the event that will be hosted in it. In New York City, a floating public pool has been the center of much notoriety and popularity. It was first “docked” off the Brooklyn Bridge, then later moved to the Bronx.
As the world population grows, finding new usable spaces becomes a real priority. Recirculating farming fits into this need. Recirculating farms maximize use of space – they can grow more food, in a smaller area than other agriculture methods, and also are energy and water efficient (see slideshows and videos of these farms in action here). Aquaponic systems are able to grow fish and plants in the same environment, maximizing food variety with space available. So for those cities overflowing into water bodies, (or just those that want to maximize space use) recirculating farms offer an eco-friendly and space-saving way to grow food (learn more about recirculating farms here).
Earlier this year, a floating hydroponic greenhouse was docked in New York City’s Hudson River. This demonstrates that a recirculating farm can succeed in this type of environment. Recirculating farms help conserve space, can produce a lot of food in a limited area, AND become a part of the new floating city phenomenon.