Bamboo Architecture in Brazil, a personal experience.

Celina Llerena

__________________________________________ III SIMPOSIO LATINOAMERICANO DE BAMBU

GUAYAQUIL - EQUADOR

ABRIL DE 2006

Bamboo Architecture in Brazil, a personal experience. Celina Llerena

Ecologic architect and founding partner of EBIOBAMBU.Rio de Janeiro. Brazil

Abstracts: This abstract has the objetive to demonstrate inovations, criations and difficulties that i got with the time and studies with the raw material bamboo since 2001 Key words : Sustenaible architecture, bio architecture,treatment

Back in November of the year 2000,I saw a most beautiful bamboo pavillion in Angra dos Reis, Rio de Janeiro , Brazil. It had been designed by Simon Velez .It was what made me decide in March of 2001 to go to Colombia where I was given the opportunity and gift to be introduced to the very persons that are exceptional in their careers, such as Simon Velez, Marcello Villegas , Gabriel Londoo and Ximena Londoo.. When I returned to Brazil I realized, then and there, that my professional life was going to change after seeing the huge world I was shown whilst in Colombia, but a big difference exists between the two countries:: Colombia had a deep ingrained bamboo culture while in Brazil bamboo was utilized just for vegetable garden fences , plant supports, and swamp drainage Am, of course, exaggerating but bamboo had never been used on a large scale . I have been an architect for 28 years dedicated to building shopping centers, commercial enterprises, houses, shops, designing interiors of apartments and to restorations. As I mentioned in the beginning five years ago when I became acquainted with bamboo I decided to make a change in my professional life leaving behind traditional architecture and starting to build only with mixed techniques of bio architecture and conciliating with modern techniques so as to speed up the construction process. My immediate interest was aroused in bamboo constructions because of the wide spaces created by using supporting devices, the natural flexibility, the numerous possibilities of making pre molded structures, the various roof structures with different kinds of roof coverings, and the facility of execution without requiring specialized labor. As regards bamboo construction no technology for this was available in Brazil, with the exception of studies and tests mostly carried out in university laboratories , and in Rio de Janeiro there were a few liberal professionals who though having some knowledge did not pass it on or keeping such knowledge to themselves for fear of losing their professional status as one of the few notorious knowledgeable bamboo experts. In actual construction there were a few but far from Rio de Janeiro .

I wanted to really build, I wanted to see the real world in constructions . Having a family farm and thus with ample space at my disposal, together with the necessary disposition and motivation, I decided to organize a School at which I would be able to pass on to others what I had learned , and by mixing theoretical fields with practical courses I could guarantee that knowledge developed in universities be made publicly available by means of practical courses, based on the following philosophy and, which by the way, has become the motto of the school today::

When I listened, I forgot, When I saw it, I remembered, When I did it, I learned it. When all of this was carried out I realized that besides my profession and the dream of having a School we needed to start a bamboo plantation and to organize a nursery in order to disseminate the planting of bamboo and to spread the word .. I decided that the main specie to propagate should be Guadua Angustifolia but I still had lots of doubts regarding the methods used so as to multiply faster so I decided to go back to Colombia to learn more . The saints were with me because I was introduced and guided by forest engineer Francisco Castao. His explanations were what I needed to begin my nursery along with the necessary knowledge to develop the micorriza instead of using chemical fertilizers. I started the nursery bringing the first Guadua from Colombia in March of 2001 and in the same year, in August, when I went to my first International Seminar in Equador, it was where I really learned how to desjillar the Guaduas and when I returned I started collecting all the different species of bamboo I could find so as to cover the river banks on the farm. In October of 2002 I started the nursery camp at the farm and went to collect species at the Agronomic Institute of Campinas (IAC) and also from all their experimental camps . Then on to Costa Rica to rescue our Guadua longifimbriata ( In Costa Rica this bamboo is commonly called Bamb Brasileo) . This species had become a myth after reading Professor Oscar Hidalgo Lopes book and listening to his stories in which such a species once existed in Petrpolis, had since disappeared but a Costa Rican honeymooner had taken the species back to Costa Rica.; then on to India using the weekend available just searching for new species. This, by the way, is an unceasing and ongoing search until today. Today we have more then 35 species on the farm, between exotic and non exotic species, and at least 7.000 seedlings of Guadua angustifolia, with the intention of eventually substituting first class wood which is used in Brazil on a large scale. In fact, I have already planted over 3.000 seedlings of Guadua. The first serious research as regards the treatment that should be given bamboo was carried out for more than a year mainly because of the debate going on in the rest of the world as to the durability of bamboo, but also realizing that this would be the great impasse with future clients if we could not guarantee this feature. As regard the water 3

treatment and though I have plenty of water at the School, and thus able to experiment the many ways that water could be used , after much internet research I realized that this was not efficient and certainly not the best treatment at all. In my further research I became acquainted with biologist Hector Hill in East Timor who had a contract with the Environmental Bamboo Foundation together with Professor Walter Liese, to develop VSD (Vertical Soak Diffusion) utilizing Octaborate Disodico Tetrahydrate .

Keeping in mind that bamboo clusters are usually found a long distances from the construction site and that we have to order the bamboo beforehand, and also would want to begin as fast as possible, and not spend money building a treatment station at each construction site, I decided to develop a treatment applied to the bamboo that would protect it against insects and fungi using Octaborato and using another feature I will explain below. This turned out to be efficient, quick and guaranteed, duly conciliating the lunar diminishing phase with the treatment. Last year, 2005, I learned this interesting feature when I was up in the Amazon cutting bamboo for the SEBRAE Enterprise Fair in the state of Acre .I used this feature and perfected it It sounds like a mere belief or like an Amazon tradition but, lo and behold, it actually works. . In fact, I have adopted same and have since used it. It consists of cutting down the bamboo when the moon is not visible during the days, as it is on the other side of the world. They call it Lua sentada or be it, as they refer to the nonvisible moon when the moon is seated. I then contacted Sistemas de Saneamento Ltda, a company specializing in combating insects since 1986, for them to develop for me a chemical compound to combat and control xilfagos insects and to include also in their investigation the way to eliminate drills (coleopters) that infest the bamboos. The formula uses water as its basis with the following composition: Octoborato Dissodico tetrahidratado 150gr/per litre Piretride 20ml/per litre DDVP 10ml/per litre . The actions developed are residual for the octoborato , since its molecules are inorganic, thus it suffers no decomposition brought about by the effects of time nor weather nor temperature. Intense residual action. Acts since insects ingest Low toxic effects on humans or animals Has no smell Inorganic Suffers no decomposition brought about by the effects of time. Acts as an insecticide with a prolonged residual action

The developed actions are residual for Octoborato whose molecules for being inorganics does not suffer decomposition for the action from the time or the ambient temperature, have a intense residual action, acts for ingestion of the insects, it does not have smell, acts as insecticide with prolonged and drawn out residual action, low toxicity as regards humans or animals ; as regards the Piretide it has a shock effect (knockdown) and the DDVP acts as a dislodger..

It is applied by injection through small holes made between the internodes of the culms, never in the same direction of the fibers. To close the holes we simply apply soap, and then we shake it well and then stand them up to dry naturally in the tree shade. Today we can firmly give a 4 year guarantee because the formula has proved itself very efficient and when, by chance, the insect returns where it may appear and affect certain isolated points, it immediately disappears with another injection. We can state that the system has turned to be most efficient.. The amount of chemicals used depends on the species of bamboo to be used, because of the size of the internodes. The school was created in June 2002 and named EBIOBAMBU School of Bioarchitecture and Bamboo Research and Experimental Technology Center. The construction of the school was developed during the first capacitating course given by EBIOBAMBU, where technologies were used such as bamboo and grass roof, offering know-how of bio-architecture to participants and qualifying professionals. The course was developed with all participants helping and learning bamboo construction techniques, those already well established in Colombia. For this first course we invited a Colombian architect Seor Rafael Rojas to travel to Brazil where be ably oriented the participants. With so much bamboo available in Brazil and with 30 years of technical studies behind us, this was the FIRST practical one in bamboo construction. After this first course, many other courses were organized which built additions to the physical structure of the school with the objective of providing facilities that would become part of the Ebiobambu center, including a school room, food service quarters, a hall for lectures and meetings, as well as a structure to house a bamboo treatment location, as well as a bridge for an access to nurseries. We need an area where researchers will seek to innovate and perfect applied technologies.. EBIOBAMBU has carried out many activities in this area, such as organizing 12 professional capacitating courses, projects and execution of the constructions, workshops, lectures, experimental studies regarding the behavior of materials, and publishing articles on the importance of planting bamboo pointing out its renewable and sustainable features , and stressing that bamboo is the raw material of the new century.. As an architect and founding partner of EBIOBAMBU, I started to research, investigate and pass on environmental and cultural technologies having to do with construction and other uses, spreading practical and theoretical knowledge in the use of ecological materials always centering on bamboo as the main element. The purpose of my work is to stimulate, make viable and rescue the culture of the use of bamboo and other natural and renewable resources in Brazil, through research activities, practical constructions

and professional capacitating of individuals interested in the learning processes of the use of ecological materials. The use of natural resources to be applied to architectural purposes means an enormous advance in environmental issues, reducing energy costs and pollution emissions, while avoiding the exhaustion of the Earths natural resources. The projects and constructions I develop and execute with my team are guided by principles of sustainability and environment preservation. Thus our projects always use natural and ecological materials stone, earth, bamboo, bottles, PET (plastic bottles), paper and other materials. Researches and ecological development techniques are acquired through courses, bibliographic and photographic libraries. These projects that were built include a meditation pavillion , a restaurant, an Ecologic Tourism Center, several fairs, shops, hotel installations, always confirming the viability and potential use of bamboo and other natural materials in constructions. In Brazil we dont use our natural resources very much so I started to study, research and spread the word regarding building materials always using bamboo in conjunction with earth, fibers, recycled materials, involving grass roofs, plaster with fibers ,natural lighting ,ventilation, and technologies that minimize the negative impacts pressing Nature Sad to say. what with the lack of adequate information and proper instructions supplied or given the bamboo extractors, the bamboo forests have become completely destructured causing abnormal growth of the new bamboos and the culms are each day thinner since very few bamboos are older than 3 years . So much so that when I need to use bamboos as part of the structure., I have been using eucalyptus to join wide lengths of the structure and the rest with bamboo Our basic social aim in EBIOBAMBU is to introduce a bamboo culture as well as the manner that the culture of bamboo could best be introduced throughout Brazil; this is an effort to establish a program for integrated development with the use of bamboo, in low income communities, creating extra family income, keeping rural labor from migrating, preserving traditions and strengthening of citizenship .It becomes possible to solve social housing problems, where technical and environmental learning practices capacitates professionals and improves the quality of housing standards. Financially speaking, the option I have chosen in my career has been a very difficult one. For me this type of building has yet to find a market in Brazil so, believe me, it has been very hard. Culturally speaking, strange as it may seem, the poor discard the bamboo inasmuch as they dream of having a concrete made house whilst the rich, unless they are sufficiently sophisticated, follow the same trend of thought., taste and Habit.. So I am paying a very high price but I think that I have no other way to achieve my goals... In conclusion, I must confess that one of the most gratifying sensations that I feel in my work is knowing that whenever I have a job in the interior of Brazil in building something, and where most of the labor is locally hired, with the exception of my

technicians, when the job is finished I know that at least three local laborers will have gained the capacity to build bamboo structures on their own. I believe in my work and in the BAMBOO MAGIC WORLD!