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Posted by CESW

Construction in a Changing Climate:
Building for Resilience Conference

14th September 2011, Arup, Bristol

Thank-you to all those that attended and contributed to our highly successful and interesting conference on climate change adaptation in the built environment.

Presentations from the conference are now available here.

Construction in a Changing Climate:
Building for Resilience DVD

View Construction in a Changing Climate: Building for Resilience DVD here in full

USEFUL RESOURCES

 General information

 Risk assessment and adaptation toolkits

Climate Change Briefing

07. Designing for Flood Risk

 Future Climate Data

Flooding and drainage

 Planning guidance

Adapting to Climate Change – ensuring resilience in the built environment

Our changing climate is bringing warmer, drier summers; milder, wetter winters and more extreme weather events such as floods, droughts and heatwaves.  These changes have a number of implications that the construction industry need to consider.  For example:

  • More frequent and intense periods of heavy rainfall will increase flood risk
  • Longer dry spells and droughts will increase the risk of subsidence and cracking of render
  • Water demand is likely to increase in summer, but water supply will be reduced
  • Demand for cooling systems in summer will increase but winter heating demand will reduce
  • There are potential commercial opportunities for new technologies and expertise
  • Sea level rise will exacerbate flood risk in some areas
  • There will be a higher risk of damage to buildings from storms
  • Increased coastal erosion due to sea level rise and storms will threaten some locations and building foundations.

Given that the built environment is intended to have a very long lifespan, it is essential that new developments are built to withstand these climatic changes and their impacts.  Adaptation to climate change is increasingly likely to be required by legislation and to become a criteria for securing adequate building insurance cover.  It is a vital element of wider sustainable construction, yet in the past it has often been overlooked.

Careful planning and design can significantly increase the resilience of buildings without necessarily incurring extra costs.  Some adaptive measures have multiple benefits, simultaneously contributing towards climate change mitigation or resource efficiency objectives.  For instance, natural ventilation systems will both help to reduce energy usage and help to keep a building cool in the higher temperatures that are anticipated.  Similarly, water efficiency measures will become all the more important in the future as higher temperatures increase demand but decreased summer rainfall place water supplies under greater pressure. 

It is also important that the existing building stock is retrofitted with adaptation measures, in order to increase its resilience.  Older buildings may be inherently more vulnerable to some impacts such as the infiltration of water causing damp and mould.  Ensuring that adaptation is incorporated into all new buildings, as well as actively pursuing retrofit opportunities, will help to promote the awareness, knowledge and expertise needed to also address the issue within existing stock.

Climate  SouthWest 

Becca Eastman, Climate SouthWest Project OfficerAlex Webb, Climate SouthWest Manager

Becca Eastman and Alex Webb from Climate SouthWest



For more information about adapting to the impacts of climate change in the South West, visit the Climate SouthWest website at www.oursouthwest.com/climate.  Climate SouthWest  is a regional partnership which works with stakeholders across key sectors, including housing and construction, to enhance the region's resilience to the impacts of climate change.

Case Studies

Adapting to Climate Change Case Studies can be seen here