Carbon negative eco-village under construction in Finland

Most will be familiar with the term, carbon neutral, which is a state of net-zero carbon dioxide emissions by balancing emissions with removal. Carbon negativity, on the other hand, means more carbon dioxide is being eliminated than emitted, hence having a positive effect on the environment and helping to slow down climate change.

Finnish construction company, Godai, is teaming up with consultancy firm, Macon, to build what is claimed to be Finland’s first carbon negative small houses in Pargas, south-west of the country.

The small houses will be made from wood and timber that are certified products of responsible forestry and timber handling. Only quality materials will be used for the construction to provide healthy indoor air, Godai said.

During the construction of the eco-village, humidity and dust are managed according to the strictest standards. The small houses will ultimately be very energy and water efficient in order to achieve Godai's carbon negativity goal. Some sustainable features include solar energy capabilities and greywater recycling.

With the help of Macon, who is tasked with conducting the carbon footprint calculations of the building project, Godai hopes to realise its ambitious goal of successfully completing Finland’s first carbon negative eco-village.

“Construction is one of the most environmentally straining industries in Finland and we wanted to step in and do things differently,” said Godai Chief Executive Officer, Nina Ingelius.

“It is great to take small steps, but it was important to us to create something bigger at once. This is the reason we designed a house model that will fulfill all the possible criteria whether it is to do with responsible materials, environmental impact, indoor air or interior emissions."

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While the industry is focusing on carbon offsetting, Godai wanted to go down a different path, Ingelius added.

“We wanted to be the industry’s trendsetter also in this matter and to build even more responsibly. We really got to challenge our team of experts as in the construction industry, many practices are a bit too entrenched,” she said.

“It is not easy to be the first to change things, but it is the most rewarding.”

According to Macon CEO, Mikko Ahokas, participating in the ecovillage construction project was a big step because it sets very high goals for both building materials and energy solutions.

“We believe that this project is a kind of a stepping stone to carbon neutral construction, which will fulfill the requirements of the strictest standards,” he said.

“This project also provides us with extremely important information about the true life cycle of building materials.”

Macon's carbon footprint calculation is based on RTS Environmental Classification (carbon footprint of a building’s life cycle and life cycle costs), life cycle meters by Green Building Council Finland and method for assessing the carbon footprint of buildings set by Finland's Ministry of Environment.

The first responsible small house is under construction in the Pargas center just by the canal. The concept house is expected to be completed around May or June 2022.

Next to it on its own plot, an ecovillage of seven small houses identical with the concept house will be completed by the end of 2022.