The mangrove and the coastal are the crucial elements for the eco-tourism in Kuala Sepetang, a township towards the west of historical Taiping City. However, a continuous discussion of the sustainability of Matang Mangrove Forest Reserve (MMFR) has a contrasting argument on the level of sustainability. A conclusion can be drawn out that MMFR is sustainable in the forest area, qualitatively. However, the NVDI or the green density of the forest has dropped noticeably. The meaning being the mangrove stock supply towards the younger tree (MF15 and MF20) instead of MF30 where the trees are 30 years old.

Besides, the study reviews the local community’s low awareness of the sustainability of coastal heritage. As a result, the township’s water chemical quality and cleanliness become the hot topic among the researchers when discussing Kuala Sepetang. The water quality characteristics are positively related to mangrove disturbance levels. Cage fishery has affected the water quality, decreasing the pH value of the fish farm area. Adding worse to this is due to the eco-tourism activity where the disposal is all over the shore.

The master plan study takes the opportunity to align with the RKK from Majlis Perbandaran Taiping (MPT) to create an economically substantial environment through Heritage Tourism in Taiping and Kuala Sepetang. Mainly to attract the youngster to stay and sustain their living through the local economy. The heritage trail is then proposed in conjunction with the RKK from Jabatan Perhutanan Semenanjung Malaysia (JPSM) to revitalise the existing MMFR facility and a development proposal for the Mangrove Research Centre.

Architecturally, the proposal reviewed the ecological planning and design strategies for mangrove and coastal communities. The appealing slogan that “Build above, Live Below” strikes the concept for a coastal and wetland development proposal. An experimental approach is proposed to the coastline development that the structure can coexist with nature and ‘growth’ with nature over time.

The mangrove and coastal ecosystem is the backbone of Kuala Sepetang since the 1900s. It has to be conserved and preserved. Anthropogenic changes are significant toward the quality of the environment. Thus, the level of awareness is essential to manage the change. As a result, the study aimed to design an Interactive Frontier to raise public awareness. Also, to experiment with an architectural innovation on stilt structure that adapts to the mangrove’s life cycle, archiving the aim: “Reciprocity between authentic and synthetic.” 

Understanding the mangrove life cycle and the ecosystem is crucial to formulate comprehensive design guideline based on the their parameter. In detail, the study review an extensive manual to the wetland architecture, from the roof and widespread canopy, superstructure and the growing pole, substructure and the buttress roots, lastly the pile and the peat soil underneath the water. Also, the study reviews the anthropogenic activity in relation to the density of the mangrove, affecting the scale of the structure within the mangrove site.

An experimental approach takes the precedent from the typical shoreline building, elevates the design with the manual from the previous chapter, forming a base architectural design innovation – the Stilt on Peat, creating seamless connectivity and minimal disturbance to the swampy site. The general massing follow the six steps principle were to: understand the program design with sensible massing volume, raising the massing on the stilt, then followed by the layout organisation based on the mangroves’ parameter, creating blocks interlinks that avoiding the mangrove trajectory. Follow by the sustainable system from passive debris flushing to sustainable design strategy.

The catalogue of intervention can be divided into shoreline architecture and the on-stilt structure, following a similar principle of adaption with some variation. Firstly, an understanding of the existing site condition is important in the options for the adaptation, followed by the adaptation process. The adaptation process should be in chronological consideration, from an empty land to an established site with mature mangroves. And these consideration varies from stage to stage, but they are interconnected in their lifeline. The considerations allow the architecture to be inserted into the site rather than an intrusion causing the disturbance.

Site Passive Strategy:

The site is located towards the south of kampung Menteri and next to the historical charcoal factory. The Sungai Kapal Changkol surrounds 50% of the site perimeter. Knowing the design are based on the clusterisation approach, the entire development follows the following passive design strategy: E-W orientated layout ensuring a minimal heat gain, permeable spatial organisation maximising passive ventilation, reservation for the existing nature. Then the multi-piece pitch roof configuration guaranteeing effective leaves flushing and prevention of excessive pressure building underneath the roof due to the sea breeze.

Passive Loop

Sprawling Layout and Clusterisation:

Solving the fundamental massing allows the design to zoom out to overall site strategy. Sprawling layout and small size structures are the two design considerations for wetland development. This practice would cause minimal modification to the water flow, soil structure, plant and wildlife communities.

Active Loop

Biomass Energy & Water Condensation System:

A loop that turns the waste into haste. Being near the wettest town in Malaysia and the fact that the structure is underneath the tree canopy opens up an opportunity for a biomass energy harvesting system to be an active loop in the sustainability approach. The leaves fall from the tree canopy, the chop residue from the agriculture site, and the food waste from the local village allow the system to turn the waste to haste using a biomass harvesting system, reducing the environmental quality issue.

In the meantime, the boiling chamber uses the rain and river water to produce steam powering the turbine. With a simple estimation, the system offsets nearly 30% of the energy usage while keeping the environment clean.

On the other hand, the steam consented and became the distilled water that is clean to be consumed by the occupants, offsetting more than 56% of the water usage. This system is actively forming a closed-loop architecture, hitting two birds in one stone.

Then, the final product, the fly-ashe, can be used as the ingredient for composite material in future development.

Materials from Local and Fly Ashe:

Selecting the materials in the proposal prioritised the locally available options such as the hardwood from the mangrove, substituted by the Wood-Plastic Composite and Fly-ash concrete, ensuring a low embodied carbon, lightweight and minimal disturbance to the nature site.

Time, not only has been considered in the life cycle of the mangrove, but it also highly related to the spatial experience and the density of the memory. People share the physical properties of time - the duration. However, the density of memory in a given time varies from one to another. Architecturally, altering the speed in a space movement and the spatial properties affects the density of spatial experience into their memories’ density.

The Chronos Memory:

Chronos Memory is the memory in the form of sequential time, typically long memory and quantitatively presented. The mangrove life cycle is one of the implication due to the existence of the Chronos timeline. Yet, it only can be seen in a matter of years or decades. The mangrove farm is one of the best ways to collectively implant the long-term memory for the visitors upon their next visits in years.

The Kairos Stimulus:

Kairos Stimulus is the key factor to implant a deeper experience and a denser memory to the visitor. “Slow Space” is the strategy to carefully craft physical space that creates the right atmosphere and conditions for slowing time, fostering deep and meaningful experiences. Proportion, scale, colour, material are the tangible elements to affect the sense of place. Conclusively, the alteration of spatial quality, fusion with the time in-between space, is crucial to the human experience in the space. It is either experience of space in a time-structured process or the experience of time in a space structured process.