As storms come crashing down around us due to the effects of climate change, our built environment may provide our last bastion of safety. An increasing number of businesses in the architecture, engineering and construction (AEC) space are implementing what’s known as resilient design into buildings and infrastructure.
To learn more, we spoke to Lisa Dickson, associate principal and director of resilience for the Americas at the Arup Group, who works with clients to consider the effects of climate change, among other potential threats, in construction projects.
Flooding and Extreme Rain
According to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), the United States experienced 16 separate billion-dollar disasters in 2017, including Hurricanes Harvey, Irma and Maria, as well as severe storms, drought, wildfires, a crop freeze and inland flooding.
A map displays the 16 billion-dollar disasters that occurred in the U.S. in 2017, which were exacerbated by climate change. (Image courtesy of NOAA.)
Since 1990, the sea level has been rising about 0.12 inches per year, roughly twice as quickly as the average speed of the preceding 80 years. This means that, when tropical cyclones and hurricanes occur, their powerful winds push sea levels to rise even more—a phenomenon known as a storm surge—and drives the water onshore, resulting in much of the death and damage seen during hurricanes like Katrina.
Additionally, warming temperatures can make…