Concluding Part
Long term sustainability of condominiums in Bangladesh is uncertain due to environmental fragility, economic pressure and social inequality. Sustainability challenges may affect the long-term resilience of the condominiums. Energy inefficiency and wastefulness stand out as most crucial problems. Often, condominiums are designed with inappropriate use of natural light, ventilation and insulation. Thereby, dwellers heavily depend on air-conditioning, artificial lighting and other energy wasteful appliances, swelling both electricity demand and carbon emissions. Clean water of substantial volumes is wasted every day, putting pressure on already limited municipal supplies. Withdrawal of additional groundwater for condominium use is depleting aquifers, contributing environmental degradation. Improper drainage systems within and around many structures also enhance the problem, causing waterlogging during the monsoon.
Unsanitary and environmentally harmful practices of waste management are observed in many high-rise societies. Inefficient or no system for recycling or planned disposal of biodegradable and non-biodegradable waste are consequential for litter to piles up, polluting the air, soil, water and creating health hazards. Condominiums reduce the green spaces and cumulative increase of concrete buildings make cities hotter. Developers emphasized on sellable built-up space, leaving little room for gardens, parks and recreational areas as to minimize overpriced lands. Consequently, dwellers often suffer from poor ventilation, constant noise, limited safety and lack of emergency preparedness measures. Condominiums often deepen social inequality. High costs of apartment units exclude low earning populations, pushing them into casual settlements with poor sanitation which adversely affects social cohesion.
Limitations of condominium living in Bangladesh are dynamic and often subjected to poor planning, weak administration and the neglect of occupants' social, physical and emotional needs. Developers intended to concentrate on maximizing profit by squeezing number of units into small spaces. Common areas such as stairwells, elevators, rooftops and parking lots are often neglected as dwellers associations are poorly organized and lack in funds. Condominiums frequently struggle with water shortages, power cuts and improper garbage disposal, creating unhealthy and difficult living conditions. Addressing these issues is critical for sustainable and resilient urban condominium housing preferences.
The ways forward: Growth of urbanization in cities of Bangladesh is very rapid in the preceding years, forecasting rising demand for high-rise housing with amenities like condominiums. Comprehensive, progressive and visionary strategies are required for ensuring structural safety, livability, sustainability and resilience within these developments. It is essential to integrate global best practices with thorough understanding of the local sectoral context. Considering the current circumstances, the following recommendations can help to address these challenges:
1. Sustainable Design: Support environmentally sustainable architecture design by offering incentives to developers. Encourage and regulate the Green Building Standards, such as LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) certification and integrating solar/renewable energy systems.
2. Construction Compliance: Enforce and regulate adherence to Bangladesh National Building Code (BNBC). Capacity enhancement of local government and enforce penalty for violations. Developers must attain required approvals from different authorities, including land use clearance, building permits and design validation. Environmental Impact Assessments (EIAs) need to be adhered as and where required.
3. Legal Frameworks: Authoritative but implementable Condominium Ownership Act to be emplaced with robust enforcement mechanisms. Enforcing registration for all residents' associations to enhance regulatory oversight, ensure accountability and support standardized governance practices.
4. Condominium Management Laws: Practicable legislation to be emplaced to govern the maintenance, financial management and operations of condominiums. A devoted regulatory body could oversee associations, mediate disputes and ensure long-term preservation of shared facilities.
5. Financing Models: Micro-mortgage systems and cooperative housing finance options to make ownership more affordable.
6. Community awareness: Encourage residents to practice energy-saving, water conserving and waste reducing behaviors. Promote high-rise condominium culture towards resource conscious lifestyle.
Bangladesh's real-estate condominium industry stands in a critical juncture with significant challenges and promising opportunities. The sector is driven by the affordability of growing middle class and rapid urbanization. Weak infrastructure, lack of regulatory oversight and environmental sustainability are the concern for long term viability of the sector. Modernization and Innovation in sustainable design, using smart construction technologies and strengthening legal frameworks are the practical pathways forward. Bangladesh can transform the condominium sector into a model of resilient, efficient and inclusive urban housing by synergizing community centric modern engineering solutions, policy reform and environment resilient developments.
Barriers in Condominium Development: Preference for condominiums have emerged due to urban housing shortages in Bangladesh. The mounting demand for multi-story residential buildings sometimes overtakes appropriate planning and infrastructure backing. Bangladesh is located in a complex tectonic junction of Indian and Eurasian plate, seismically active region concerning structural integrity a major issue. The alluvial soil conditions of the country, including deltaic and flood-prone areas, required specialized foundation designs. Construction sites with sedimentary soils, susceptible to liquefaction during earthquakes are sometimes overlooked in compliance with the Bangladesh National Building Code (BNBC).Appropriate geotechnical tests/investigations before construction are either inadequate or ambiguous. Dynamic load calculations for earthquakes are often disregarded due to perspective implementation of project. Insufficient reinforcement steel, substandard materials and ungraded stones are often found in construction, affecting the load-bearing capacity of the structure. Inappropriate joint connections and column-to-beam ratios leave these structures susceptible during earthquakes. These limitations are often compounded by poor construction practices. Proper supervision and quality control are major concerns in Bangladesh. The structural integrity/safety of condominium buildings often become concern due to absence of competent professionals in different stages of construction. Post construction maintenance being a crucial activity for a structure, mostly overlooked which affect the safety and sustainability for long term. Minor fixes prevent major disaster, negligence in timely repairs and routine inspections causing early degradation or serious structural issues of buildings.
Some developer's race for profit maximization. Over emphasis on shareholder returns, inadequate financial backup and technical incompetence affect the safety of buildings adversely. Budget sheets sometimes rule the decision-making process. Local municipal oversight agencies regulate with 1990 era inspection protocol and have limited capacity to monitor the modern fast-growing construction sector. There are no mandatory requirements for structural audits of prevailing structures. Therefore, potential hazards go unnoticed. Detected hazards often ignored considering the cost of restoration or retrofitting.