A Zero-Emissions City in the Desert
• Technology ReviewThe construction is the start of a vast experiment, an attempt to
create the world's first car-free, zero-carbon-dioxide-emissions,
zero-waste city. Due to be completed in 2016, the city is the
centerpiece of the Masdar Initiative, a $15 billion investment by the
government of Abu Dhabi, which is part of the United Arab Emirates. The
new development, being built on the outskirts of Abu Dhabi city, will
run almost entirely on energy from the sun and will use just 20 percent
as much power as a conventional city of similar size. Garbage will be
sorted and recycled or used for compost; sewage will be processed into
fuel. Concrete columns will lift the city seven meters off the ground,
creating space underneath for a network of automated electric
transports that will replace cars. Planners predict that the
development will attract 1,500 clean-tech businesses, ranging from
large international corporations to startups, and--eventually--some
50,000 residents.