By Mandy Froelich | Truth Theory
Forget Disney World, this is the happiest place on Earth. In Copenhagen, Denmark, a one-third mile ski course has been installed atop what is possibly the world’s greenest power plant. The whimsical destination even features ski lifts on the outside so visitors can see the inner workings of how the city’s trash is transformed into clean electricity and heating for over 200,000 homes.
Copenhill, a unique waste-to-power plant, opened in 2017 under the name Amager Bakke (Amager for the island Copenhagen is on, and Bakke, the Danish word for “hill”). Eight years ago, architect Bjarke Ingels came up with the idea. Today, his ambition to design a power plant structure that incorporates mountain sports into its very nature has been realized.
As GoodNewsNetwork reports, the green power plant is a hybrid between a building and a landscape. The huge, glass mirrored structure is covered with planters covering the façade in a checkerboard pattern. One day, it might even give way to the illusion of a green mountain.
“It is the cleanest waste-to-energy power plant in the world,” said Ingles. “It is a crystal clear example of ‘Hedonistic Sustainability’ (a phrase he coined because) a sustainable city is not only better for the environment—it is also more enjoyable for the lives of its citizens.”
According to the architect, 97 percent of city residents get their heating as a byproduct of energy production from an integrated system where the heating, electricity, and waste disposal are combined into a single process. “If Copenhagen can do it, why can’t we?” he asks.
While there are no hills on the island city, residents can ski and snowboard locally. At the same time, they can “ooh” and “aww” over the best views ever seen of the harbor. Because snow cover in winter can be rare, the designers installed a specially-coated “plastic grass” that provides ideal friction for downhill winter sports.
