A water conservation system that will be used in the country for the first time makes the maintenance of this elevated garden at the country’s most popular mall a sustainable endeavor.

Launched last Friday, the Sky Garden at SM City North Edsa in Quezon City provides a welcome green space along the busy thoroughfare, said SM Prime Holdings president Hans Sy.“We did not want to be known as a contributor to the jungle of concrete structures in the metropolis,” Sy told The STAR on the sidelines of the launch.

Taking 14 months to construct, the Sky Garden costs about P700 million, Sy said, with P60 million going into the acquisition of the water conservation technology.

A grand fireworks display caps the opening 
of the Sky Garden at SM City North Edsa Friday. 
JONJON VICENCIO

According to Sy, the park is more environment-friendly and different from other gardens since it uses a technology brought to the Philippines from Germany to ensure sustainability in the use of water in its maintenance.

“We’ve always been into long-term (planning),” said Sy, noting that it won’t be long before water will be a scarce resource.

Sy said maintaining green spaces has commonly been viewed as requiring plenty of water.
But according to Sy, the case of the Sky Garden is different because this technology practically recycles water for use in the park.

“We used a system that stores excess water (in a facility) installed underneath the park,” Sy said.

“We’re not throwing away any water (and because of that) we won’t be using as much water (for the garden),” he added.

Sy said the technology has been in existence for over 35 years but will only be used in the Philippines for the first time.

The park’s attractions include the Roof Garden, the Sky Dome, water features, and retail, dining and entertainment outlets.

The garden has 55 species of plants, grass and trees, with the plant species growing on a special type of garden soil offering a lightweight effect on the structure.

Water features include two bubblers, a simulated river flowing at its center and waterfalls at its edge, doubling as a screen onto which promotions and advertisements can be projected. – Reinir Padua