Federal Environment Agency: UBA 2019, Berlin-Marienfelde House 2019 (zero energy house)

The Federal Environmental Agency in Berlin-Marienfelde was supplemented by a new building as a zero-energy house in timber construction. The aim of the planning of the outdoor facilities was to integrate the new building into the overall property, which is understood as a "campus", by means of identity-creating outdoor facilities, and to increase the quality of stay for the users. Targeted measures in the areas facing the existing buildings and the access road were intended to improve the urban conciseness of the property and facilitate orientation. At the same time, the natural situation was improved in the sense of the sustainable building concept "UBA 2019" and the unavoidable interventions in nature and landscape were compensated.

The open spaces are divided into a greened forecourt in direct relation to the experimental basins, a covered open space directly at the building, as well as near-natural green spaces in the wider surroundings of the new building. The new building was given an extensive green roof, which was combined with photovoltaic elements. Several pergolas planted with greenery on the roof and façade create covered spaces for bicycles, parking spaces for the disabled, service vehicles, and a waste disposal area.

The design of the outdoor facilities was based on the urban planning concept of orienting the new building towards the existing, slightly higher located experimental basins. These experimental basins were understood as "water gardens", which are preceded by two new "planting basins" in the area of a small forecourt. These "planting basins" are bordered by a strip of concrete block slabs.

In the area of the canopy, seating groups or seating elements are provided. From here, the experimental pools are reached via a connecting path with central stairs. On both sides of the stairs, lawn steps with punctual seating are arranged, which, together with the aforementioned seating elements under the canopy, create seating groups for outdoor scientific exchange.

In the direct connection of the experimental basins, an existing pipe channel is greened with a flat extensive roof greening, the southeastern part is greened with earth connection with rough grass. The forecourt is designed around the "planting basins" as a water-bound surface, in the area of the entrance and as a transition to the New Laboratory Building as a plaza surface with concrete block slabs.

The building receives an extensive roof greening of various sedum species. The substructure of the solar system is integrated into the drainage layer of the green roof. Half of the roof water pre-cleaned and reduced by the green roof is directed into 2 seepage troughs in the forecourt.

The open spaces directly surrounding the building were designed as species-rich dry grassland areas for ecological reasons. The existing near-natural hedge fringe was supplemented at the property boundary. Tree plantings enhance the areas along the access path or in the forecourt area.

The handicapped parking spaces of the new building are located directly opposite the forecourt in the area of the current bicycle pergola. The new covered bicycle parking spaces are located at the southern edge of the fire lane of the new laboratory building. Open bicycle parking is located on the front lawn in a gravel grass area.

Covered parking for UBA service vehicles is located in the northern area of the work yard in current open parking spaces. Next to it is the garbage site.

The project took part in the test phase of the "Evaluation System for Sustainably Planned Outdoor Facilities on Federal Properties" and received a rating in "Silver" (Evaluation: Jennifer Zelt, TU Berlin).

Publication: Federal Office for Building and Regional Planning (ed.): Yearbook Construction and Space 2010/2011, Böttcher, O., Fudickar, K., Kerz, N.: Zero Energy House for the Federal Environment Agency, pp. 188 - 195, Berlin 2012.