Emblematic of the saying that "the best defense is a good offense," a recent report has broken down several technological and design considerations that will help bolster buildings and infrastructure as natural disasters rise across the globe.
Hazardous events are becoming more intense and frequent, but this increase is not a normal progression. The changing climate, driven by human activity that includes burning dirty fuels for energy, is behind the increase.
The report posted by Buildings explained that smart monitoring systems can help provide early warnings to prevent catastrophic damage, while innovative materials and design can improve a building's resilience in the face of extreme natural events.
Urbanization is increasing across the globe, with more than half of the world's population now living in urban areas.
This has contributed to the changing climate as the buildings and construction sector consumes 32% of global energy and accounts for 34% of global carbon dioxide pollution.
Since a timely, coordinated global effort to combat climate change is unlikely, it's best to increase building infrastructure resilience while also using smart solutions to lessen the environmental impact of the industry, according to the report.
Internet-enabled sensors and real-time data processing can serve to mitigate damage from scenarios like hurricanes, floods, earthquakes, and severe weather.
Improved building materials and thoughtful architectural designs have already proved to be effective, and Buildings laid out several key strategies that can be employed.
During the wildfires in Los Angeles County, buildings designed by Greg Chasen survived because of fire-resistant landscaping and dual-paned windows that kept the fires out.
3D-printed structures have become more common given the reduced construction waste and speedy build timelines, but using extruded, fire-resistant materials instead of wooden frames has been a game-changer.
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Move somewhere else 🌎 Integrated "internet of things" sensors are helpful for monitoring temperatures, humidity, seismic activity, and even flood levels so that residents can make informed decisions and municipal infrastructure teams can respond when needed.
Even small adjustments like reflective white "cool roofs" and expanded urban green areas can help reduce the urban heat island effect, making city life more comfortable for residents.
"As much of the infrastructure needed to support our growing human population has yet to be built, we owe it to future generations to leverage every opportunity to inject resilience into our investments," said Kamal Kishore, special representative of the United Nations Secretary-General for Disaster Risk Reduction.
"This starts with understanding the past to build a more resilient future."
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