Climate Adaptation strategies are based on three parts:
OLD CITY – Protect old buildings from impacts of sea level rise
Boston is an old city which has settled for more than 350 years. More than half of Boston’s housing were built before 1940 (MAPC, 2008 P.3). A large sector of residential buildings are wood-framed, which are highly venerable to floods. Moreover, all buildings in low lying areas of the city are venerable to loss of critical services. Sea level rise will cause more severe storm surges and coastal flooding. Climate adaptation strategies for existing buildings are required to make the city of Boston more resilient to sea level rise.
In the Building Resilience in Boston 2013 document, climate adaptation strategies are categorized in seven different sections. Each section is then broke down into specific actions, as shown in the table below.
- Development of a long-term adaptation program
- Adaptation management
- Community Outreach and intergovernmental Cooperation
- Acquisition and analysis of new information
- Incorporation of adaptation into all planning and project review process
OLD CITY – Protect old buildings from impacts of sea level rise
Boston is an old city which has settled for more than 350 years. More than half of Boston’s housing were built before 1940 (MAPC, 2008 P.3). A large sector of residential buildings are wood-framed, which are highly venerable to floods. Moreover, all buildings in low lying areas of the city are venerable to loss of critical services. Sea level rise will cause more severe storm surges and coastal flooding. Climate adaptation strategies for existing buildings are required to make the city of Boston more resilient to sea level rise.
In the Building Resilience in Boston 2013 document, climate adaptation strategies are categorized in seven different sections. Each section is then broke down into specific actions, as shown in the table below.
Figure 12. Resilience Strategies for Existing Buildings (Building Resilience in Boston 2013 p.32)
For the particular focus of this case study, the following chapters will study some selected adaptation actions under 2) Site. These strategies mainly focus on protecting existing built form from impacts of sea level rise.
Flood proof construction – homes and business
_ Utilize FEMA’s home and commercial building retrofitting guides (Homeowner’s Guide to Retrofitting 2009)
_ Ensure the building structure is above Design Flood Elevation (Homeowner’s Guide to Retrofitting 2009)
_ Install vent direct water through buildings rather than around buildings. This protects the first floor space and basement floor space from structural failure. (Homeowner’s Guide to Retrofitting 2009)
_ Protect equipment and critical building services. Create vapor barriers of elevate them. (Homeowner’s Guide to Retrofitting 2009)
_ Protect interior of home by sealing exterior wall and covering openings below that floor level. (Homeowner’s Guide to Retrofitting 2009)
_ Connect back-water flow valves and sump pumps with domestic sewer system. (Toronto’s Adaptation Actions 2011) (FEMA Mitigation Ideas 2013)
Flood proof construction – industrial buildings
_ Toxic materials in buildings has to be stocked in a flood proof area.
_ Use water-tight construction methods (Building Resiliency Task Force 2013)
_ Install vent direct water through buildings rather than around buildings. This protects the first floor space and basement floor space from structural failure. (Homeowner’s Guide to Retrofitting 2009)
_ Protect equipment and critical building services. Create vapor barriers of elevate them. (Homeowner’s Guide to Retrofitting 2009)
_ Protect interior of building by sealing exterior wall and covering openings below that floor level. (Homeowner’s Guide to Retrofitting 2009)
_Exterior flood protection such as using sidewalk corridor for temporary dry flood proofing installation (sand bags, gates) (Building Resiliency Task Force 2013)
Build hard flood proof infrastructure
_ Redirect water by install barriers around properties.
Challenges & Barriers
Global city – Design new buildings to be resilient to sea level rise
The Boston Harbor Association’s Sea-Level Rise Forum by Dr. Paul Kirshen in 2012 clearly demonstrates some potential actions to deal with uncertainties of Boston in its short coming future.
For example, many planners and designers in Boston has taken an different approach for adaptation, instead of keeping water out, they starts to think how can people live with water. According to BBC news in 2014, Boston’s city planners and architects has proposed a canal network for the most historical district – the Back Bay. "Much of the model has been how do we keep the water out? Everybody's afraid of the water," says Dennis Carlberg, sustainability director at Boston University and co-chair of Boston's sea-level rise committee. "So we wanted to turn that conversation on its head and say, well what if we let water in? How can we make life better in Boston by bringing water in?" (Jolly 2014)
Flood proof construction – homes and business
_ Utilize FEMA’s home and commercial building retrofitting guides (Homeowner’s Guide to Retrofitting 2009)
_ Ensure the building structure is above Design Flood Elevation (Homeowner’s Guide to Retrofitting 2009)
_ Install vent direct water through buildings rather than around buildings. This protects the first floor space and basement floor space from structural failure. (Homeowner’s Guide to Retrofitting 2009)
_ Protect equipment and critical building services. Create vapor barriers of elevate them. (Homeowner’s Guide to Retrofitting 2009)
_ Protect interior of home by sealing exterior wall and covering openings below that floor level. (Homeowner’s Guide to Retrofitting 2009)
_ Connect back-water flow valves and sump pumps with domestic sewer system. (Toronto’s Adaptation Actions 2011) (FEMA Mitigation Ideas 2013)
Flood proof construction – industrial buildings
_ Toxic materials in buildings has to be stocked in a flood proof area.
_ Use water-tight construction methods (Building Resiliency Task Force 2013)
_ Install vent direct water through buildings rather than around buildings. This protects the first floor space and basement floor space from structural failure. (Homeowner’s Guide to Retrofitting 2009)
_ Protect equipment and critical building services. Create vapor barriers of elevate them. (Homeowner’s Guide to Retrofitting 2009)
_ Protect interior of building by sealing exterior wall and covering openings below that floor level. (Homeowner’s Guide to Retrofitting 2009)
_Exterior flood protection such as using sidewalk corridor for temporary dry flood proofing installation (sand bags, gates) (Building Resiliency Task Force 2013)
Build hard flood proof infrastructure
_ Redirect water by install barriers around properties.
Challenges & Barriers
- Across all major US, residential buildings built before WW2 in Boston has the largest percentage. Upgrade and improve existing buildings requires more effort than building new ones according to new standards and codes.
- Uncertainty in level of vulnerabilities is another challenge. In order to define specific adaptation strategies, sufficient rating system and mentoring strategies are needed to achieve reliable data.
- Coordination among all levels of society is needed to improve community resilience.
Global city – Design new buildings to be resilient to sea level rise
The Boston Harbor Association’s Sea-Level Rise Forum by Dr. Paul Kirshen in 2012 clearly demonstrates some potential actions to deal with uncertainties of Boston in its short coming future.
- Robustness and flexibility is needed for unknown future conditions. This requires creative thinking and innovative policies. (Kirshen 2012)
For example, many planners and designers in Boston has taken an different approach for adaptation, instead of keeping water out, they starts to think how can people live with water. According to BBC news in 2014, Boston’s city planners and architects has proposed a canal network for the most historical district – the Back Bay. "Much of the model has been how do we keep the water out? Everybody's afraid of the water," says Dennis Carlberg, sustainability director at Boston University and co-chair of Boston's sea-level rise committee. "So we wanted to turn that conversation on its head and say, well what if we let water in? How can we make life better in Boston by bringing water in?" (Jolly 2014)
Figure 13. Canal Proposal for the Back Bay (Jolly 2014)
- No-regrets and co-benefit solutions (Kirshen 2012)
- Climate action strategies integrate with sustainable planning (Kirshen 2012)
Figure 14. A Climate-prepared Building (Greenovate Boston 2014 p.68)
- Prepare and Monitor (Kirshen 2012)
Figure 15-17. Sea Change Boston (Sasaki Associates 2015)
Reference
Building Resiliency Task Force Full Proposals. Urban Green Council. June 2013. Viewed 30 Aug 2015
http://www.urbangreencouncil.org/servlet/servlet.FileDownload?file=015U0000001EyaR
City of Boston, 2011, A Climate of Progress City of Boston Climate Action Plan Update 2011, City of Boston, Viewed 10 August 2015
http://www.cityofboston.gov/images_documents/A%20Climate%20of%20Progress%20-%20CAP%20 Update%202011_tcm3-25020.pdf
City of Boston, 2014, Greenovate Boston 2014 Climate Action Plan Update, City of Boston, Viewed 10 August 2015
http://www.cityofboston.gov/eeos/pdfs/Greenovate%20Boston%202014%20CAP%20Update_Full.pdf
Homeowner’s Guide to Retrofitting: Six Ways to Protect Your Home from Flooding. Second Edition. FEMA. 2009. Viewed 30 Aug 2015
http://www.fema.gov/library/viewRecord.do?id=1420
Jolly, Joanna 2014, How Boston is rethinking its relationship with the sea, BBC News, Boston, Viewed 28 August 2015
http://www.bbc.com/news/magazine-29761274
Kirshen, Paul, 2012, 2012 11 Sea Level Rise – Boston’s Waterfront After Hurricane Sandy, the Botston Harbor Association, vedio recording, YouTube, Viewed 28 August 2015
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w2DSaJV--mc
Metropolitan Area Planning Council (MAPC) (2008). Metro-Boston Multi-Hazard Mitigation Plan. Metropolitan Area Planning Council, Boston, MA. Mitigation Ideas: A Resource for Reducing Risk to Natural Hazards.” FEMA Risk Analysis Division. Jan 2013.
Multi-hazard Mitigation Council (MMC) (2006). Natural Hazard Mitigation Saves: An Independent Study to Assess the Future Savings from Mitigation Activities. National Institute of Building Sciences, Washington, DC.
Sasaki Associates, 2015, Sea Change Boston, Sasaki Associates, Viewed 27 August 2015
http://www.sasaki.com/project/360/sea-change-boston/
“Toronto’s Adaptation Actions.” Update April 2011. Link to the Basement Flooding Protection Program. Viewed 30 Aug 2015
http://www.toronto.ca/water/sewers/pdf/brochure.pdf
http://www.urbangreencouncil.org/servlet/servlet.FileDownload?file=015U0000001EyaR
City of Boston, 2011, A Climate of Progress City of Boston Climate Action Plan Update 2011, City of Boston, Viewed 10 August 2015
http://www.cityofboston.gov/images_documents/A%20Climate%20of%20Progress%20-%20CAP%20 Update%202011_tcm3-25020.pdf
City of Boston, 2014, Greenovate Boston 2014 Climate Action Plan Update, City of Boston, Viewed 10 August 2015
http://www.cityofboston.gov/eeos/pdfs/Greenovate%20Boston%202014%20CAP%20Update_Full.pdf
Homeowner’s Guide to Retrofitting: Six Ways to Protect Your Home from Flooding. Second Edition. FEMA. 2009. Viewed 30 Aug 2015
http://www.fema.gov/library/viewRecord.do?id=1420
Jolly, Joanna 2014, How Boston is rethinking its relationship with the sea, BBC News, Boston, Viewed 28 August 2015
http://www.bbc.com/news/magazine-29761274
Kirshen, Paul, 2012, 2012 11 Sea Level Rise – Boston’s Waterfront After Hurricane Sandy, the Botston Harbor Association, vedio recording, YouTube, Viewed 28 August 2015
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w2DSaJV--mc
Metropolitan Area Planning Council (MAPC) (2008). Metro-Boston Multi-Hazard Mitigation Plan. Metropolitan Area Planning Council, Boston, MA. Mitigation Ideas: A Resource for Reducing Risk to Natural Hazards.” FEMA Risk Analysis Division. Jan 2013.
Multi-hazard Mitigation Council (MMC) (2006). Natural Hazard Mitigation Saves: An Independent Study to Assess the Future Savings from Mitigation Activities. National Institute of Building Sciences, Washington, DC.
Sasaki Associates, 2015, Sea Change Boston, Sasaki Associates, Viewed 27 August 2015
http://www.sasaki.com/project/360/sea-change-boston/
“Toronto’s Adaptation Actions.” Update April 2011. Link to the Basement Flooding Protection Program. Viewed 30 Aug 2015
http://www.toronto.ca/water/sewers/pdf/brochure.pdf