70
1 A False Dawn
Between 1966 and 1973, a sustained attempt was made to initiate the construction
of an experimental green city in rural Minnesota, USA (Wildermuth 2008 ).
Promoted as a solution to the problems of inner city decay and growing concerns
about environmental pollution, a site for the space age city was selected, in 1972,
near the small community of Swatara, 130 miles north of Minneapolis. The vision
for the city, stemming largely from its infl uential brainchild Athelstan Spilhaus,
contained concepts that are today central to Industrial Ecology. The Experimental
City would not generate any wastes, as all residuals would become useful substances. The city regulations would exclude polluting industries. Transport would
be by a guideway network system, eliminating the need for cars. Furnace sewers
would pump away any polluted air produced by delivery trucks in the underground
service roads. Water would be completely recycled. Even buildings and infrastructure would be constructed from precast modular parts that could be adapted or
reused to meet the changing needs of future generations. Energy supply for the city
would be provided by a fossil-fuel-free power plant, likely nuclear, located at the
city centre. No single part of the city was ever constructed – it was a utopian dream
with many failings – but it was backed by powerful politicians and received hundreds of thousands of dollars in supporting grants over the 7 years of planning.
The initial instigator of the Experimental City was a scientist of the highest standing (Wildermuth 2008 ). Athelstan Spilhaus (1911–1998) was a South-African born
geophysicist and oceanographer who is credited with developing the bathythermograph while working with the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution in
Massachusetts. The device, which provides measurements of ocean depth and temperatures from moving vessels, was important for the United States in submarine
warfare during WWII and helped establish Spilhaus as a scientist of notoriety. In
January 1949, at age 37, he was appointed Dean at the University of Minnesota’s
Institute of Technology. It was at Minnesota that his interest in future cities fi rst
began, but Spilhaus was also engaged in a broad range of scientifi c issues. In 1957,
he began a scientifi c comic strip known as “Our New Age” which was published in
102 US and 19 foreign newspapers. From 1954 to 1958, he was US representative on
the executive board of UNESCO and was the commissioner of a hugely successful
popular science exhibit at the 1962 World Fair in Seattle. Following publication of an
article on The Experimental City in Science magazine (Spilhaus 1968 ), he became
President of the American Association for the Advancement of Science in 1969.
The aspects of Industrial Ecology in the Experimental City link back to Spilhaus’
role as the Chair of the Committee on Pollution of the National Academy of Sciences
and National Research Council. As early as 1961, Spilhaus had observed that
“Waste … is some useful substance that we don’t know how to use or we don’t yet
know how to use economically” (quoted in Wildermuth 2008 : 59). The national
committee on pollution, which Spilhaus chaired from 1963, recognized that growing environment challenges in the United States were linked to increasing population
and urbanization. A report by the committee published in 1967 had some bold solutions; it proposed “closed system” manufacturing, under which goods were
C.A. Kennedy
1 A False Dawn
Between 1966 and 1973, a sustained attempt was made to initiate the construction
of an experimental green city in rural Minnesota, USA (Wildermuth 2008 ).
Promoted as a solution to the problems of inner city decay and growing concerns
about environmental pollution, a site for the space age city was selected, in 1972,
near the small community of Swatara, 130 miles north of Minneapolis. The vision
for the city, stemming largely from its infl uential brainchild Athelstan Spilhaus,
contained concepts that are today central to Industrial Ecology. The Experimental
City would not generate any wastes, as all residuals would become useful substances. The city regulations would exclude polluting industries. Transport would
be by a guideway network system, eliminating the need for cars. Furnace sewers
would pump away any polluted air produced by delivery trucks in the underground
service roads. Water would be completely recycled. Even buildings and infrastructure would be constructed from precast modular parts that could be adapted or
reused to meet the changing needs of future generations. Energy supply for the city
would be provided by a fossil-fuel-free power plant, likely nuclear, located at the
city centre. No single part of the city was ever constructed – it was a utopian dream
with many failings – but it was backed by powerful politicians and received hundreds of thousands of dollars in supporting grants over the 7 years of planning.
The initial instigator of the Experimental City was a scientist of the highest standing (Wildermuth 2008 ). Athelstan Spilhaus (1911–1998) was a South-African born
geophysicist and oceanographer who is credited with developing the bathythermograph while working with the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution in
Massachusetts. The device, which provides measurements of ocean depth and temperatures from moving vessels, was important for the United States in submarine
warfare during WWII and helped establish Spilhaus as a scientist of notoriety. In
January 1949, at age 37, he was appointed Dean at the University of Minnesota’s
Institute of Technology. It was at Minnesota that his interest in future cities fi rst
began, but Spilhaus was also engaged in a broad range of scientifi c issues. In 1957,
he began a scientifi c comic strip known as “Our New Age” which was published in
102 US and 19 foreign newspapers. From 1954 to 1958, he was US representative on
the executive board of UNESCO and was the commissioner of a hugely successful
popular science exhibit at the 1962 World Fair in Seattle. Following publication of an
article on The Experimental City in Science magazine (Spilhaus 1968 ), he became
President of the American Association for the Advancement of Science in 1969.
The aspects of Industrial Ecology in the Experimental City link back to Spilhaus’
role as the Chair of the Committee on Pollution of the National Academy of Sciences
and National Research Council. As early as 1961, Spilhaus had observed that
“Waste … is some useful substance that we don’t know how to use or we don’t yet
know how to use economically” (quoted in Wildermuth 2008 : 59). The national
committee on pollution, which Spilhaus chaired from 1963, recognized that growing environment challenges in the United States were linked to increasing population
and urbanization. A report by the committee published in 1967 had some bold solutions; it proposed “closed system” manufacturing, under which goods were
C.A. Kennedy