Sheng-Hung Lee has submitted his latest project, Tetrapot. This project is about creating structures that can act as sea defense by creating a natural habitat. You can read the explanation from Sheng-Hung Lee below.

It started with a vision to create a stronger yet greener sea defense. Since we were in kid’s age, we have been wondering what these concrete blocks are and why these artificial sea defenses occupy almost all beaches. Current artificial sea defense structures tend to be dislodged over time by the force of the ocean constantly crashing against them. They have also been criticized for destroying the natural scenery along coastlines. As for natural sea defense, more than 35% of the world’s mangroves are already gone because of the greenhouse effect. We not only identified some challenges that people need to face but also found some design opportunities that the project team will going to focus on, e.g. Under mutual benefit/value theme, we will create symbiosis between artificial sea defense and natural sea defense.

Designers : Sheng-Hung Lee and Wan Kee Lee
IDEO : Tony Wong, Tasos Karahalios, Elyssa He, Jilly Yao, Ji Ke, Terrence Zhang
Puten Model Company : Shu-Yan Wang, Lin Shun Kuang
Photographer : King Kong
Academic Institution : National Cheng Kung University, ISD International School of Design, Fudan University Shanghai Institute of Visual Art, Shanghai Library

TetraPOT is a sea defense sustainable system made of concrete, organic materials and plants. It comes with plant seeds in a decomposable pot. Randomly distributed TetraPOTs along coastlines will eventually interlock to create a long-lasting sea defense of growing trees and roots that help keep the blocks in place. As plants grow inside out from TetraPOT, the roots will intertwine and gradually become a natural sea defense. The shape and placement will enable TetraPOTs to interlock with each other and form a structured web. The design not only prevents soil erosion, but also helps to protect and create a natural habitat. It’s not only a defense, but also an ecosystem. A home for other livings.

More images of Tetrapot Greener Sea Defence:

Tuvie has received “Tetrapot Greener Sea Defense” project from our ‘Submit A Design‘ feature, where we welcome our readers to submit their design/concept for publication.