Hive, opportunity or enemy?

Covering more than 170,000 hectares, the reed area in the Danube Delta is known as the largest expanse of reed in the world. Unharvested reeds rot in the water, causing oxygen depletion by promoting algal blooms. Fish populations in such areas are dramatically declining, and locals are using the traditional solution, which is banned by law: burning the reeds.
Currently, 10-20% of the reed resources are economically ^exploited1, and most of the reed that should be cut for the ecological regeneration of the Delta remains unexploited. Before 1990, significant quantities of reed (240,000 tons out of a potential of about 1,000,000 tons per year) were used for cellulose production. Other large-scale uses can be in the energy area (pellets or biomass utilization), where reed from the Delta can be an excellent resource in the current energy crisis. Other, much more efficient uses could be in the construction sector (roofing, prefabricated walls, pressed modules such as bales, mats, etc.), but also in the craft or artistic sector.

The functional study involved a detailed study of the technological processes required for reed processing, the appropriate sizing of storage gauges for raw materials and finished products, and the creation of visitor flows that may interfere with production flows.

The beginning of Sulina's period of flourishing began with the Treaty of Paris in 1856, following the end of the Crimean War (1853-1856). The peace treaty brought an end to the Russian occupation of the Black Sea and the Danube area. The Danube Delta was once again placed under the rule of the Principality, the reason being the liberalization of the area. Also in 1856, the European Danube Commission (EDC) was set up to oversee free trade on the Danube, the only direct shipping route between the Black Sea and Western Europe. The extensive regularization works of the Sulina Canal generated new navigation routes for large ships between Sulina and Tulcea, Galati and Braila.

The industrial development was also reflected in the demographic and socio-economic development, and the large influx of ships also required the development of the shipyard to the standards of the time. Between 1870 and 1938, Sulina was granted the status of a free port, obtaining neutrality during wartime and numerous tax privileges. The shipyard expanded from the first workshops built in the middle of the 19th century, housing the shipyard's managerial staff as well as several chemical workshops. The bombing during World War II, which destroyed about half of the built stock, followed by the change of regime and the lack of tourism and international trade were the factors that started the decline of Sulina. The last addition to the site during the socialist period was the large hall at the far end of the site, with the site taking on more of a garage role for the wrecks in the area.

The situation of the site in the post-Decembrist period is similar to that of other small industrial cities with the relocation and migration of the population to cities with higher socio-economic potential. Isolation, depopulation and a decrease in the diversity of employment, apart from seasonal jobs, have accentuated the decline of the city. The state of the shipyard in 2019 mirrors the city in this respect. Saving buildings of historic value from demolition was made possible by the proposed monument designation of the former mid-19th century English former English shipyard in 2016, and the designation remains at the proposal stage even now.
The theme has several levels of interpretation of sustainability, starting from environmental impact (regeneration of reed surfaces through harvesting), function (reed use and processing into end products that can be valorized with different degrees of added value), the building itself (conversion, post-use and use of recyclable materials for extension), social impact through job creation and taxes to the local government budget, but also an educational role, from promoting ways of processing reed to its possible use in craft or artistic products.

The theme chosen for the diploma project is the conversion of the Sulina Shipyard, with the aim of transforming it into a reed processing center, a production area for reed products, a testing area for the above mentioned products and the generation of new workshops and reed art exhibitions, with small educational areas, shops for the purchase of reed products and art and a reactivated public waterfront, connecting the two shores of Sulina. Covering an area of approx. 60,000 square meters, it represents an urban void present on the left bank of the declining city. Access to the site is divided by land from the left bank and by boat from the right bank of the Danube, thus facilitating a non-linear route, as the visitor chooses the primus and terminus points.

The location ranges from the English industrial halls from the founding of the European Danube Commission at the end of the 19th century to the inter-war housing of civil servants and the canteen and new hall from the socialist period.
The proposal aims to reuse the buildings on the site as well as to activate the waterfront, transforming the whole ensemble from an urban void into a catalyst for the city. The socialist hall will be transformed into a storage area for the raw material - reed reed. From here, the reed is transported through the canal fed into the existing system of canals and ponds to the built proposal - the processing wing - where the reed is transformed into a selection of sustainable products.

Former staff housing will become classrooms, library, office and administrative areas. The spaces in between the houses will be converted into customized gardens, creating the first filter on the Danube. The English halls will be converted into warehousing and outlets for the products created in the complex, so that they can be delivered domestically or exported.
The proposed bar will house industrial workshops for the processing of reed reed, exhibition and display space and an office area for the workshops. The functional zoning of the site prevents the intersection of public flows of visitors and industrial flows, maximizing the activation of the waterfront as a public space. Also, the insertion of the bar in the existing urban fabric favors the generation of new connections between the technological flows, respectively the generation of new intermediate spaces between the existing and the proposed.

The structure of the proposed building is made of CLT, with a low environmental impact, quick assembly and a high degree of recycling and dismantling. Due to the instability of the soil in the Danube Delta and more specifically in Sulina, being sandy and muddy, prefabricated reinforced concrete foundations and Krinner type foundation bolts will be used, limiting the use of concrete in the Danube Delta and favoring the recovery of the structure after the life cycle of the building and the possibility of recycling. The aim of the project is to take a sustainable resource, with high applicability in various industries, to generate a circular metabolic system, in which the processed reed helps the economic, social and demographic development of the declining city.

Note:

1 S.I.D.D.D., MDRAP.