Resilience: A critical consideration for the built environment

Sustainability has been a common goal amongst building industry professionals, since the 1980’s. Recently, a new dialogue has emerged around the concept of resilience. It is defined as “the capacity to buffer change, learn and develop.” (Folke et al. 2002, pp. 437). While sustainability is based on the idea of living in equilibrium with the planet and each other, resilience acknowledges that the world is increasingly out of balance and requires a response to a complex world undergoing rapid transformations.
The term and what it means is particularly applicable to a country like Australia, given the propensity for extreme weather events and harsh climates. As buildings are expected to last for at least 50 years, their ability to cope with future climate is critical. The resilience of our built form will be critical to our economic prosperity and our environmental responsibility in the future.
If we go no further than minimum standards and requirements when designing and constructing our built form we run the real risk of not having the flexibility that underpins a buildings’ resilience to future demands.
An Australian Building Codes Board report “Possible BCA adaptation measures for climate change ” published in 2010 found that if a low emissions case is realised ( increase of 2 degrees or less,) the current building standards are likely to be adequate in the face of climate change. But, under a high emissions scenario (greater than 2 degrees), the report found that the current BCA requirements are probably deficient. In the context of Australia’s emissions reduction target set at a 5% reduction on the 2000 levels by 2020 – we are likely to see a 3.5 – 4C warming between 2050 and 2100 consistent with the high emissions scenario. Additionally, anecdotal evidence suggests that not all newly constructed buildings are meeting the minimum thermal requirements, the impacts of which will be felt in the future.
The main implications for buildings include increased energy consumption, adverse health effects of building occupants from overheating and increased risk of structural damage. How well a building responds to changing needs and retains its functionality over time will determine its value in the long term.
As leading professionals in our industry do we have a duty of care to advise our clients on:
1. The adverse impacts on the investment and ROI from possible future climatic changes.
2. Future proofing against utility price increases and service losses.
3. Strategies that will build resilience into their projects.
4. Consideration of the lifecycle of the building and future use opportunities
5. The opportunities to increase their financial return by extending the potential life of their investment by taking a long life loose fit approach to their developments.
Your thoughts are welcomed through the comments section.
Image source: Vincentloy