Biodiversity focus: Pollinator gardens in the Valeria precinct, coupled with cascading lakes, will ensure biodiversity thrives in Gamuda Gardens.
FOR close to three decades, staying true to key development principles in sustainability has been part of Gamuda Land’s DNA.
One important aspect of its town-making is “listening to what the land has to tell us” in determining the development area – to minimise impact, increase biodiversity and improve the natural environment.
Bringing the outdoors, indoors: High ceilings in Valeria homes create spaciousness, while bringing in abundant natural light and air ventilation.
Biophilic design
Gamuda Land’s conscious effort to incorporate the biophilic design concept into a development to reflect its natural surroundings helps to create a place that encourages people to explore the outdoors and take part in activities together with family and friends for a healthier lifestyle.
And this is what Gamuda Gardens embodies.
“Biophilic designs encourage a strong connection between the community, attracting them to come out of their house into the natural environment,” says Gamuda Gardens assistant general manager Wong Siew Lee.
“So, when we first came to this site, we did an environmental and biodiversity assessment.
“We worked with experts to identify native species to be planted in Gamuda Gardens, we widened the existing stream into lakes, and we harnessed our engineering expertise to create two waterfalls in our central park with respect to the undulating terrain.
“What is key to us, is to work with nature and not against it.”
Based on the principle of preserving natural ecosystems, Gamuda Gardens features five cascading lakes integrated into a 20.2ha tranquil pet-friendly central park, with two majestic waterfalls, which have become a beautiful recreational sanctuary not only for the residents but also for communities from the surrounding areas as well.
In its continuous efforts to prioritise biodiversity conservation across all developments, Gamuda has also adopted the Miyawaki tree-planting method with the aim of creating dense urban forests from degraded soils within a short span of 20 to 30 years.
This will help accelerate biodiversity enrichment efforts, while mitigating climate change and urban heat island effects, as well as floods.
Through the Miyawaki method, about 8,000 trees were planted across Gamuda Gardens Central Park, where approximately 77% are native species while 33% of the species are classified as having conservation importance.
Taking advantage of its natural landscape, the park also offers leisure facilities including a 5.5km jogging and cycling loop, a 1.5km forest trail where horse-riding activities are available, Adventure Playland, viewing towers and pavilions, as well as picnic boat rides on the lake and bicycle rental for those who want to explore the park on wheels.
Immersion in nature: Valeria’s home space can be converted into an open patio to enjoy the outdoors.
One with nature
Coming from the word biophilia – a love of nature – biophilic design connects homeowners to nature, focusing on abundance of natural light, good ventilation and open spaces.
“This is what we are bringing to Valeria, our upcoming launch at Gamuda Gardens,” says Wong.
“Inside the house, residents will have plenty of natural light and views out to the natural greens on and surrounding the site.
“Outdoors, the site will boast open green spaces, pollinator wildlife corridors and convenient access to public transportation as well as surrounding amenities.”
Valeria offers a limited 434 units, featuring a double volume dining area that draws natural light from the outdoors into the centre of the living area and internal garden space.
Biophilic approach: ‘What is key to us, is to work with nature and not against it,’ says Wong.
To cater to the ever-changing lifestyle of residents, well-thought flexible designs for multi-purpose living can be converted into a home office, gym or even a kids’ playroom.
The balcony area can also act as a usable semi-outdoor space, which can be fully enclosed or open for any occasion.
Beyond the home design, the entire Valeria precinct also plays host to pollinator gardens – a vital aspect in creating and maintaining the habitats and ecosystems that insects rely on for food and shelter.
These pollinator gardens, coupled with cascading lakes, will ensure that biodiversity continues thriving in Gamuda Gardens.
Towards the future
All the initiatives align with targets set under Pillar 1 of the Gamuda Green Plan 2025: Sustainable Planning and Design for Construction.
The Gamuda Green Plan 2025 blueprint outlines Gamuda’s tangible targets towards environmental, social and governance (ESG) principles under four pillars, by addressing climate change and social development in the next five to 10 years.
“As townships take years to develop, we need to mindfully plan for the future and not just the present.
“We want to build towns that can stand the test of time – this is a fundamental aspect in our position as town makers.
“Today, we are glad to see our community living in harmony with nature, surrounded by thriving biodiversity,” said Wong.
Green targets
Gamuda Land is committed to reducing direct and indirect corporate greenhouse gas emissions intensity by 30% in 2025 and by 45% in 2030.
Efforts include climate-responsive design, such as the installation of solar PV panels on the rooftop of the Gamuda Gardens sales gallery where power generated is used to operate the central lake’s foundation and waterfall, while excess energy is utilised to power the sales gallery.
In enabling greener transport mobility to reduce emissions, Gamuda Gardens is equipped with charging stations for electric vehicles at its commercial hub and a 68km interconnected walking and cycling pathway laid out in the township.
Moving forward, all buildings within Gamuda Land’s townships will be Green Building Index-certified, which takes into account operational carbon with good land spatial planning, material choice, traffic demand and patterns, energy and water consumption as well as waste management.
To find out more about Gamuda Gardens and Valeria, call 03-2727 7438.
