Adapting Buildings for Climate Change

3. Adapting Buildings for Climate Change

There is now a clear and overwhelming opinion that the earth�s climate is being affected by human activities, which is largely due to burning fossil fuels.
Even the most optimistic projections indicate that some climate change is inevitable.
The UK Climate Impacts Programme (UKCIP) anticipates that by 2080

• Summer temperatures will rise by 1 to 5�C.
• Winter storms and heavier winter precipitation will be more frequent.
• Summer precipitation will decrease by up to 60 per cent.

Impacts of climate change on the built environment may include increased risks of flooding, overheating, storm damage and subsidence.
At the current rate of new and replacement building by 2050, it has been estimated that around 70 per cent of building stock will consist of existing buildings.
Therefore it is essential that we consider retrofitting existing building stock to ensure that the existing building stock remains resilient to climate change impacts.
Adaptation measures for buildings to withstand climate change will depend upon the age, construction and type of building and it is thought that different solutions will be applicable for different types of property.

Areas for consideration are as follows:-

• 3.1 Heat gain reduction
• 3.2 Effective thermal mass
• 3.3 Ventilation strategy
• 3.4 Active cooling
• 3.5 Enable future adaptability

The following DBP case studies may also be useful in this area.

DBP00110 - Lindab Presealed Ductwork
DBP00115 - Natural Ventilation