tag:theconversation.com,2011:/us/topics/buildings-8056/articlesBuildings – The Conversation2024-03-28T12:51:23Ztag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2267952024-03-28T12:51:23Z2024-03-28T12:51:23ZFailure of Francis Scott Key Bridge provides future engineers a chance to learn how to better protect the public<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/584884/original/file-20240327-20-ay9lug.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=37%2C98%2C8206%2C5388&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">In this aerial image, the steel frame of the Francis Scott Key Bridge sits on top of a container ship after the bridge collapsed in Baltimore on March 26, 2024. </span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/news-photo/in-this-aerial-image-the-steel-frame-of-the-francis-scott-news-photo/2107844094?adppopup=true">Jim Watson for Getty Images</a></span></figcaption></figure><p><em>The cargo ship collision that destroyed the Francis Scott Key Bridge in Baltimore on March 26, 2024, is raising questions about just how much engineers can do to prevent such catastrophes from occurring in the future. Here, <a href="https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=SkGi99AAAAAJ&hl=en&oi=ao">Michael J. Chajes</a>, a professor of civil and environmental engineering at the University of Delaware, discusses how bridge design codes have changed over the years and the challenges of building new structures, and retrofitting existing ones, so they can survive extreme events</em></p>
<h2>How hard is it to design a bridge to withstand the force that took down the Francis Scott Key Bridge?</h2>
<p>Once engineers understand the forces that a structure will be subjected to, they can design a structure to withstand them. That said, we know that each force has a range of magnitudes that can occur. For example, not all trucks on the roadways weigh the same amount, not all earthquakes are of the same magnitude, and not all ships have the same weight. We incorporate this variability in forces into the design.</p>
<p>Even if built to a given set of plans, the final strength of the structure can vary. The materials used have variations in strength. For example, concrete delivered on two successive days will have a sightly different final strength. This variability in the strength of the final structure is also taken into account in the design process to ensure the bridge or building is safe. There’s no way we could build two bridges from the same set of plans and they end up with the exact same strength.</p>
<p>Based on the weight and speed of the ship that hit the Francis Scott Key Bridge, today’s <a href="https://www.fhwa.dot.gov/bridge/pubs/nhi15047.pdf">U.S. bridge design code</a> would call for the bridge to be designed to resist a lateral force of 11,500 tons. This means the bridge has the ability to withstand a lateral hit of that magnitude. That is equivalent to the weight of about 50 loaded Boeing 777s or the weight of the Eiffel Tower. While this is a very large lateral force, structures can be designed to resist such forces. Tall buildings are routinely designed to resist lateral loads of this magnitude that result from wind or earthquakes. However, it is a matter of how much one wants to spend on the structure, and many design goals and constraints need to be balanced against each other.</p>
<h2>What do engineers do to ensure safety in extreme events?</h2>
<p>Our knowledge of how extreme events affect structures is constantly evolving. One area where this is very apparent is <a href="https://theconversation.com/buildings-left-standing-in-turkey-offer-design-guidance-for-future-earthquake-resilient-construction-202089">earthquake engineering</a>. After each earthquake, structural engineers learn what has worked and what has not worked, and then the building and bridge design codes evolve. Infrastructure owners also try to retrofit existing structures that were designed to earlier codes.</p>
<p>Ship collisions and their impact on bridges are a similar area of evolving understanding and improved design codes. There have been over 35 major bridge collapses globally that were caused by <a href="https://conference-service.com/pianc-panama/documents/agenda/data/full_papers/full_paper_46.pdf">ship collisions from 1960 to 2015</a>. Engineers evaluate the failures, and they update the engineering codes so that they better account for the effects of ship collisions. </p>
<figure>
<iframe width="440" height="260" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/JebyNOvJmCM?wmode=transparent&start=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe>
<figcaption><span class="caption">Cargo ship loses power, crashes into the Francis Scott Key Bridge in Baltimore.</span></figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>How has bridge design evolved since the Baltimore bridge was built?</h2>
<p>The Francis Scott Key Bridge was designed in the early 1970s. Construction started in 1972, and it opened to traffic in 1977. This preceded the <a href="https://www.wesh.com/article/bridge-collapse-florida/60306494">1980 collapse of the Sunshine Skyway</a> in Florida, which was caused by a ship collision, similar to what happened in Baltimore. That bridge collapse led to the initiation of research projects that culminated in the development of a <a href="http://aashto-specifications.blogspot.com/2011/07/aashto-guide-specifications-and.html">U.S. guide specification</a> in 1991 that was updated in 2009.</p>
<p>Based on that guide specification, bridge design codes were changed to include forces due to ship collisions. The design of the Francis Scott Key Bridge would not have been required to consider the effect of ship collisions. The current U.S. bridge design code says that:</p>
<p>“where vessel collision is anticipated, structures should be:</p>
<p>• Designed to resist vessel collision forces and/or</p>
<p>• Adequately protected by fenders, dolphins, berms, islands, or other sacrifice-able devices.”</p>
<p>Other changes since the 1970s are that cargo ships have <a href="https://www.cnn.com/2024/03/27/us/key-bridge-historic-crash-invs/index.html">increased in size and weight</a>. The ship that brought down the Sunshine Skyway in 1980 weighed 35,000 tons, while the ship that collided with the Francis Scott Key Bridge weighed 95,000 tons.</p>
<p>With the increasing weight of cargo ships, the most cost-effective design strategy to prevent collapse of bridges due to vessel collision may well be to protect the bridge piers from the impact. This is done by building a bridge collision protective system, which is often a concrete or rock structure that surrounds the pier and stops the ship from getting to the pier, as is done to protect many of our national monuments.</p>
<p>A pier protection system was installed when the Sunshine Skyway bridge was rebuilt, and it has been used on <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2024/03/27/us/key-bridge-barriers-examples.html">numerous other bridges</a>. The same approach is currently being applied by the Delaware River and Bay Authority at a cost of US$93 million to <a href="https://delawarecurrents.org/2024/01/22/delaware-memorial-bridge/">protect the piers of the Delaware Memorial Bridge</a>.</p>
<p>But what about existing bridges like the Francis Scott Key Bridge? Bridge owners have a tremendous challenge finding the financial resources needed to retrofit their bridges to satisfy the latest design codes and to account for the increased impact loads expected due to the heavier and heavier ships. Both things happened here. That is, design codes changed and improved, and loads got much larger. Engineers and infrastructure owners try their best to prioritize where their limited funds can be used to increase structural safety and minimize the chance of structural failure.</p>
<h2>What can universities do?</h2>
<p>The No. 1 job of structural engineers is to protect the public and minimize the risk of structural failures that pose a threat to human life. To do that, engineers must be able to calculate the forces that our structures may be subjected to. This includes cases where a large ship accidentally collides with a bridge, or a large earthquake or hurricane strikes.</p>
<p>In these extreme cases, the structure will almost assuredly sustain damage, but, if at all possible, it should be resilient enough to not collapse. The design codes are continually updated to account for new knowledge, new materials and new design techniques. The reliability of our structures is improving all the time.</p>
<p>Retrofitting structures built to prior codes is an ongoing process, and one that this disaster moves to the forefront. The U.S. has a lot of infrastructure that was designed to old codes, and we have larger trucks crossing our bridges, and larger ships passing beneath them.</p>
<p>Engineers can never reduce the probability of failure to zero, but they can reduce it to the point where failures happen very infrequently and only in cases where numerous unforeseen circumstances combine to make a structure vulnerable to collapse.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/226795/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Michael J. Chajes does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>A bridge engineering expert discusses the costs and limitations of building structures to withstand extreme events – and what it takes to prepare the next generation of civil engineers.Michael J. Chajes, Professor of Civil and Environmental Engineering, University of DelawareLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2256742024-03-25T19:05:50Z2024-03-25T19:05:50ZIf you’ve got a dark roof, you’re spending almost $700 extra a year to keep your house cool<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/584001/original/file-20240325-26-6somxa.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=24%2C66%2C4025%2C2969&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">
</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Sebastian Pfautsch</span>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/">CC BY</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>If you visit southern Greece or Tunisia, you might notice lots of white rooftops and white buildings to reflect the intense heat and keep residents cooler. </p>
<p>It’s very different in Australia. New housing estates in the hottest areas around Sydney and Melbourne are dominated by dark rooftops, black roads and minimal tree cover. Dark colours trap and hold heat rather than reflect it. That might be useful in winters in Tasmania, but not where heat is an issue.</p>
<p>A dark roof means you’ll pay considerably more to keep your house cool in summer. Last year, the average household in New South Wales paid A$1827 in electricity. But those with a lighter-coloured cool roof <a href="https://www.unsw.edu.au/content/dam/pdfs/unsw-adobe-websites/arts-design-architecture/built-environment/our-research/high-performance-architecture-research-cluster/2022-08-22282-UNSW-Cool-Roofs-Project-Report-WEB.pdf">can pay</a> up to $694 less due to lower cooling electricity needs. Put another way, a dark roof in Sydney drives up your power bill by 38%. </p>
<p>When suburbs are full of dark coloured roofs, the whole area heats up. And up. And up. This is part of the <a href="https://theconversation.com/why-western-sydney-is-feeling-the-heat-from-climate-change-more-than-the-rest-of-the-city-201477">urban heat island effect</a>. In January 2020, Penrith in Western Sydney was the <a href="https://www.smh.com.au/national/nsw/the-sydney-suburbs-that-hit-50c-last-summer-20201002-p561by.html">hottest place on Earth</a>. </p>
<p>Cool roofs have <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.enbuild.2022.112577">many benefits</a>. They slash how much heat gets into your house from the sun, keep the air surrounding your home cooler, boost your aircon efficiency, and make your solar panels work <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0960148123013939?via%3Dihub">more efficiently</a>.</p>
<p>State governments could, at a stroke, penalise dark roofs and give incentives for light-coloured roofs. Scaled up, it would help keep our cities cooler as the world heats up. But outside South Australia, it’s just not happening. </p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/583606/original/file-20240322-18-1dka8v.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="infrared image of housing estate showing dark roofs becoming much hotter than light" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/583606/original/file-20240322-18-1dka8v.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/583606/original/file-20240322-18-1dka8v.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=283&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/583606/original/file-20240322-18-1dka8v.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=283&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/583606/original/file-20240322-18-1dka8v.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=283&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/583606/original/file-20240322-18-1dka8v.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=356&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/583606/original/file-20240322-18-1dka8v.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=356&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/583606/original/file-20240322-18-1dka8v.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=356&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">You can clearly see here the difference roof colour makes. On the left, you can see the real view of a new housing estate. On the right, an infrared camera shows you the difference in heat (redder = hotter, green = cooler.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Sebastian Pfautsch</span>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nd/4.0/">CC BY-ND</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Why won’t state governments act?</h2>
<p>To date, our leaders show no interest in encouraging us to shift away from dark roofs. </p>
<p>In New South Wales, plans to ban dark roofs were <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2022/apr/09/plan-to-ban-dark-roofs-abandoned-as-nsw-government-walks-back-sustainability-measures">axed abruptly</a> in 2022 after pushback from developers. </p>
<p>The current NSW planning minister, Paul Scully, has <a href="https://www.nsw.gov.au/media-releases/basix-pause-to-help-home-buyers-and-builders">now paused upgrades</a> to the state’s sustainability building standards which would have <a href="https://www.news.com.au/technology/environment/nonsense-call-leaves-millions-vulnerable-to-summers-silent-killer/news-story/d4f9221eb33157f8d6df4b6213e4c1e3">encouraged light-coloured roofs</a>. Other Australian states and territories have <a href="https://www.absa.net.au/notes/ncc-2022/">also paused</a> the rollout of new, more ambitious building sustainability standards. </p>
<p>This is short-sighted for several reasons: </p>
<ol>
<li>it costs the same for a light- or dark-coloured roof </li>
<li>owners will pay substantially higher electricity bills to keep their houses cool for decades</li>
<li>keeping the building status quo makes it harder to reach emission targets</li>
<li>dark roofs <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.solener.2023.111948">cut how much power</a> you get from your rooftop solar, especially when it’s hot. This is doubly bad, as blackouts are most likely during the heat. </li>
</ol>
<p>At present, South Australia is the only state or territory acting on the issue. Early this year, housing minister Nick Champion announced dark roofs <a href="https://www.premier.sa.gov.au/media-releases/news-items/northern-suburbs-housing-hotspots-cooler-future">will be banned</a> from a large new housing development in the north of Adelaide. </p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/the-great-australian-dream-new-homes-in-planned-estates-may-not-be-built-to-withstand-heatwaves-166266">The Great Australian Dream? New homes in planned estates may not be built to withstand heatwaves</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<h2>What’s at stake?</h2>
<p>At present, the world’s cities <a href="https://ghgprotocol.org/ghg-protocol-cities">account for 75%</a> of all energy-related carbon dioxide emissions. It’s vitally important we understand what makes cities <a href="https://www.ipcc.ch/report/ar6/wg1/resources/factsheets">hotter or cooler</a>. </p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/583603/original/file-20240322-30-hbnhwz.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="chart showing city design and built infrastructure make cities hotter while trees and proximity to water make it cooler" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/583603/original/file-20240322-30-hbnhwz.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/583603/original/file-20240322-30-hbnhwz.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=505&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/583603/original/file-20240322-30-hbnhwz.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=505&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/583603/original/file-20240322-30-hbnhwz.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=505&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/583603/original/file-20240322-30-hbnhwz.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=634&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/583603/original/file-20240322-30-hbnhwz.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=634&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/583603/original/file-20240322-30-hbnhwz.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=634&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">These are the main factors making cities hotter or cooler.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.ipcc.ch/report/ar6/wg1/figures/chapter-10/faq-10-2-figure-1">IPCC</a>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/">CC BY</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Brick, concrete, tarmac and tiles can store more heat than grass and tree-covered earth can, and release it slowly over time. This keeps the air warmer, even overnight. </p>
<p>Built-up areas also block wind, which cuts cooling. Then there’s transport, manufacturing and air-conditioning, all of which increase heat. </p>
<p>Before aircon, the main way people had to keep cool was through how they designed their homes. In hot countries, buildings are often painted white, as well as having small windows and thick stone walls. </p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/583975/original/file-20240325-30-bm2jka.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="mykonos greece panorama, white rooftops" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/583975/original/file-20240325-30-bm2jka.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/583975/original/file-20240325-30-bm2jka.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=401&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/583975/original/file-20240325-30-bm2jka.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=401&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/583975/original/file-20240325-30-bm2jka.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=401&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/583975/original/file-20240325-30-bm2jka.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=504&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/583975/original/file-20240325-30-bm2jka.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=504&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/583975/original/file-20240325-30-bm2jka.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=504&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">White rooftops are common in hot regions, such as Mykonos in Greece.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/mykonos-greece-panoramic-view-town-cyclades-1916571950">Izabela23/Shutterstock</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>The classic <a href="https://www.architectureanddesign.com.au/features/list/why-queensland-architecture-is-celebrated">Queenslander house</a> was lifted off the ground to catch breezes and had a deeply shaded veranda all around, to reduce heat. </p>
<p>But after aircon arrived, we <a href="https://archive.curbed.com/2017/5/9/15583550/air-conditioning-architecture-skyscraper-wright-lever-house">gradually abandoned</a> those simple cooling principles for our homes, like cross-ventilation or shade awnings. We just turned on air conditioning instead. </p>
<p>Except, of course, the heat doesn’t go away. Air conditioning works by exchanging heat, taking the heat out of air inside our house and putting it outside. </p>
<p>As climate change intensifies, it makes hot cities even hotter. Heatwaves are projected to <a href="https://doi.org/10.1029/2018GL081004">be more frequent</a>, including in spring and autumn, while overnight temperatures will also increase. </p>
<p>As cities grow, suburbs can push into hotter areas. The 2.5 million residents of Western Sydney live at least 50km from the sea, which means cooling sea breezes don’t reach them. </p>
<p>Sweltering cities aren’t just uncomfortable. They are dangerous. Extreme heat <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijdrr.2021.102671">kills more people</a> in Australia than all other natural disasters combined. </p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/western-sydney-will-swelter-through-46-days-per-year-over-35-c-by-2090-unless-emissions-drop-significantly-177056">Western Sydney will swelter through 46 days per year over 35°C by 2090, unless emissions drop significantly</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<h2>How can we cool our cities?</h2>
<p>We don’t have to swelter. It’s a choice. Light roofs, light roads and better tree cover would make a real difference. </p>
<p>There’s a very practical reason Australians prize “leafy” suburbs. If your street has established large trees, you will experience less than half the number of days with extreme heat compared on residents <a href="https://www.mdpi.com/1999-4907/11/9/945">on treeless streets</a>. If you live in a leafy street, your home is also <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S016920461200299X">worth more</a>.</p>
<p>Blacktop roads are a surprisingly large source of heat. In summer, they can <a href="https://www.abc.net.au/news/science/2024-01-24/why-australia-builds-dark-roads-despite-heatwaves-climate-change/103375122">get up to 75°C</a>. Our research shows reflective sealants can cut the temperatures <a href="https://doi.org/10.26183/hstd-bj72">up to 13°C</a>. Some councils <a href="https://www.abc.net.au/news/science/2024-01-24/why-australia-builds-dark-roads-despite-heatwaves-climate-change/103375122">have experimented</a> with lighter roads, but to date, uptake has been minimal. </p>
<p>Cool roofs markedly reduce how much energy you need to cool a house. When used at scale, <a href="https://www.unsw.edu.au/arts-design-architecture/our-schools/built-environment/our-research/clusters-groups/high-performance-architecture/projects/study-on-the-cool-roofs-mitigation-potential-in-australia">they lower</a> the air temperatures of entire suburbs. </p>
<p>The simplest way to get a cool roof is to choose one with as light a colour as possible. There are also high-tech options able to reflect <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0378778823003614">even more heat</a>.</p>
<p>Soon, we’ll see even higher performance options available in the form of daytime radiative coolers – <a href="https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/14/3/1110">exceptional cooling materials</a> able to reflect still more heat away from your house and cut glare.</p>
<p>Until we choose to change, homeowners and whole communities will keep paying dearly for the luxury of a dark roof through power bill pain and sweltering suburbs.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/why-western-sydney-is-feeling-the-heat-from-climate-change-more-than-the-rest-of-the-city-201477">Why Western Sydney is feeling the heat from climate change more than the rest of the city</a>
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</em>
</p>
<hr>
<img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/225674/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Riccardo Paolini has received funding from the Department of Industry, Science and Resources</span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Sebastian Pfautsch does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>We could make our hot cities cooler with white roofs and light roads. But progress has been glacially slow.Sebastian Pfautsch, Research Theme Fellow - Environment and Sustainability, Western Sydney UniversityRiccardo Paolini, Associate Professor, School of Built Environment, UNSW SydneyLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2240542024-02-29T21:22:20Z2024-02-29T21:22:20ZThermal networks: The missing infrastructure we need to help enable carbon-free heating<p>Most of us who live in the Northern Hemisphere have a fundamental problem: we want to reduce our carbon emissions, but we also need to heat our homes.</p>
<p>The good news is there is a way to do both by creating thermal networks. A thermal network is a system of insulated, underground pipes that directly distribute heat to homes and other buildings using heat generated from clean sources — including nuclear reactors.</p>
<p>Rather than using their own furnaces, boilers, fireplaces or electric baseboard heaters to heat buildings, consumers would receive heat directly from a utility. </p>
<p>It’s an opportunity that is set to grow as Canada expands its nuclear energy supply and creates more heat in the process, especially with <a href="https://world-nuclear-news.org/Articles/Canadian-government-launches-SMR-support-programme">small modular reactors</a> expected to start coming on-stream in the next decade.</p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/are-small-nuclear-reactors-the-solution-to-canadas-net-zero-ambitions-217354">Are small nuclear reactors the solution to Canada’s net-zero ambitions?</a>
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<h2>Scaling up</h2>
<p>Our research collaboration has produced — with the help of experts from McMaster University, The Boltzmann Institute and Canadian Nuclear Association — a <a href="https://www.eng.mcmaster.ca/mcmaster-institute-for-energy-studies/featured-publications/#thermal-networks-position-paper">position paper</a> presenting the case for large-scale thermal networks to be created across Canada, with nuclear power plants potentially providing up to half of the heat. </p>
<p>Similar technology using heat from non-nuclear sources is <a href="https://cieedacdb.rem.sfu.ca/district-energy-inventory">already a reality in Canada</a> in the form of <a href="https://toolkit.bc.ca/tool/district-energy-systems-2/">district energy systems</a>. </p>
<p>Many buildings in <a href="https://www.sfu.ca/content/dam/sfu/ceedc/publications/facilities/CEEDC%20-%20District%20Energy%20Report%202023.pdf">Toronto, Hamilton, Vancouver</a> and on university campuses, such as McMaster University, are served by hot water or steam-based central heating plants, using heat that is purpose-made and piped across campus. What’s more, Canada already <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/climate-solutions/interactive/2021/toronto-deep-latke-water-cooling-raptors/">leads the world in district cooling networks</a>. </p>
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<figcaption><span class="caption">An overview of the basic principle of Toronto’s Deep Lake Water Cooling System produced by the Canada Green Building Council. Thermal networks will move thermal energy similar to the way networked water pipes do, except they will move heat from producer to consumer across a shared system.</span></figcaption>
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<p><a href="https://www.technologyreview.com/2023/10/04/1080795/us-thermal-energy-networks/">Thirteen states in the United States</a> are implementing a thermal networks utility model. In <a href="https://www.euractiv.com/section/energy-environment/opinion/district-heating-and-cooling-is-one-of-europes-top-solution-to-reduce-fossil-imports-but-we-need-decisive-eu-action-to-tap-into-this-potential/">Europe</a>, 67 million people enjoy heating from thermal networks and district heating systems supplied by a variety of sources in a mix that is increasingly <a href="https://vbn.aau.dk/en/publications/heat-roadmap-europe-4-quantifying-the-impact-of-low-carbon-heatin">less reliant on carbon</a>.</p>
<p>The idea is catching on, and it’s time to scale up.</p>
<h2>Leftover heat</h2>
<p>As many as 70 per cent of Canadians live in communities that could be warmed by thermal networks. The networks would deliver heated water that warms buildings in the same way household radiators distribute heat — but on a much <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.apenergy.2009.12.001">larger public scale</a>. </p>
<p><a href="https://www.cbc.ca/news/science/zibi-waste-heat-recovery-1.7117832">Such systems</a> are capable of efficiently sending heat through buried pipelines to homes, schools, hospitals, office buildings, shopping malls and other structures, greatly reducing the demand for electricity and heating fuel and making space on the electrical grid to accommodate growing electricity demand from electric vehicle chargers and heat pumps. </p>
<p>One of the most appealing aspects of this opportunity is that most of the required heat is already available and <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.apenergy.2023.121291">going unused</a>. Heat from major sources, such as <a href="https://www.powermag.com/district-heating-supply-from-nuclear-power-plants/">nuclear power plants</a>, can be transmitted as far as 100 km to where it is needed. </p>
<p><a href="https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/montreal/quebec-nuclear-reactor-gentilly-2-1.6932355">Québec</a>, <a href="https://www.opg.com/releases/capital-power-and-opg-partner-to-advance-new-nuclear-in-alberta/">Alberta, Saskatchewan and New Brunswick</a> are all considering building new or re-starting existing reactors. Together with existing reactors, much of Canada’s population would fall within this range.</p>
<p>In the case of <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.energy.2020.119546">reactors</a>, thermal networks could share their useful leftover heat instead of releasing it into the environment as is typically done today. This water, used in coiling, gathers heat but does not come into contact with nuclear material and is in no way contaminated. </p>
<p>The recent joint declaration at the <a href="https://www.oecd-nea.org/jcms/pl_88702/countries-launch-joint-declaration-to-triple-nuclear-energy-capacity-by-2050-at-cop28">UN climate conference COP28</a> to triple nuclear energy capacity by 2050 means there will be significantly more heat from large reactors, such as the <a href="https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/toronto/ontario-darlington-nuclear-plant-1.6899969">new nuclear fleet proposed in Ontario</a>, which could supply warmth to homes in the Greater Toronto Area.</p>
<p><a href="https://smrroadmap.ca/">Small modular reactors</a>, which are expected to come on-stream widely as local alternatives to fuel-burning sources of electricity, could supply heat locally while also generating revenue from heat that would otherwise be wasted.</p>
<p>Alternatively, residual heat from <a href="https://www.ngif.ca/harvest-systems-successfully-demonstrates-waste-heat-recovery-from-pizza-pizza-ovens/">restaurants</a>, commercial and industrial processes, water heated by solar or geothermal energy, or the combustion of dried biomass can do exactly the same thing with <a href="https://www.irena.org/publications/2021/March/Integrating-low-temperature-renewables-in-district-energy-systems">little to no greenhouse gas emissions</a>.</p>
<h2>Funding the change</h2>
<p>Though our appetite for thermal networks is growing, apprehension over the cost of creating large-scale public systems has stifled enthusiasm for implementing them here.</p>
<p>Certainly, the challenge of laying new pipelines to every urban home is daunting, but that need not be a barrier. It’s not that long ago that water, electricity and natural gas were not delivered directly to homes and other buildings, either. </p>
<p>The managers of those utilities, both public and private, developed efficient methods for deployment, balanced the <a href="https://energy.utexas.edu/sites/default/files/UTAustin_FCe_History_2016.pdf">cost of their infrastructure</a> over decades and included the financing costs in customers’ bills. All of these techniques could help build thermal networks across Canada. </p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/why-we-need-to-reuse-waste-energy-to-achieve-net-zero-heating-systems-209416">Why we need to reuse waste energy to achieve net-zero heating systems</a>
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<p><a href="https://www.cga.ca/energy-magazine-post/when-was-canadas-natural-gas-distribution-system-built-and-what-is-it-made-of/">Natural gas only started to become commonly available in Canada</a> in the 1950s, with networks of buried pipes being extended to the most populated areas of the country through the 1980s. <a href="https://brilliantio.com/how-were-homes-heated-in-the-1960s/">Before then</a>, people had oil, coal or wood delivered, or used electricity from coal-fired plants — all of them significant sources of greenhouse gases. </p>
<p>The conversion made heating <a href="https://www.fortisbc.com/services/natural-gas-services/considering-upgrading-to-gas-up-to-2700-in-appliance-rebates-available-for-a-limited-time/annual-fuel-cost-comparison">cheaper and cleaner</a>. It <a href="https://www.cer-rec.gc.ca/en/data-analysis/energy-markets/canadas-energy-transition/canadas-energy-transition-historical-future-changes-energy-systems-update-energy-market-assessment-global-energy.html">halved our carbon emissions</a>. It required a huge effort, but it happened, and it can happen again.</p>
<p>Thermal networks present an opportunity to harvest heat from natural sources or <a href="https://futurium.ec.europa.eu/en/urban-agenda/energy-transition/library/action-2-recommendation-paper-maximising-use-waste-heat-cities">heat that would otherwise be wasted</a> and use it for a vital purpose of keeping Canadians warm while helping to reduce carbon emissions.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/224054/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Jim Cotton is the founder and CEO of Harvest Systems Inc. He receives funding from the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada, Ontario Centre of Innovation and Boltzmann Institute. </span></em></p>Underground thermal networks have the potential to revolutionize how Canadians heat their homes while helping to reduce carbon emissions.James (Jim) S. Cotton, Professor, Department of Mechanical Engineering, McMaster UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2172562024-02-06T23:06:30Z2024-02-06T23:06:30ZTurkey’s push for post-earthquake reconstruction puts speed over housing quality<p>It has been a year since <a href="https://apnews.com/article/earthquake-turkey-syria-february-2023-62dba95d0608a3a587ddd2fe5ec39541">two powerful earthquakes</a>, magnitude 7.8 and 7.5, devastated parts of southeastern Turkey and northern Syria. The Feb. 6, 2023 earthquakes destroyed hundreds of thousands of buildings, killed <a href="https://apnews.com/article/turkey-earthquake-anniversary-hatay-kahramanmaras-77ca7874fbfbe15f898f12c2690216fb">almost 60,000 people</a> and left more than <a href="https://www.ungeneva.org/en/news-media/news/2023/02/78128/15-million-now-homeless-turkiye-after-quake-disaster-warn-un">1.5 million homeless</a>.</p>
<p>One year later, the region is still recovering from its <a href="https://www.bbc.com/news/science-environment-64540696">most devastating disaster</a> in recent history. And significant changes are required in the way the reconstruction is taking place.</p>
<p>In Turkey, the disaster exposed persistent social inequality, widespread poverty, housing shortages and other systemic problems. <a href="https://www.sbb.gov.tr/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/2023-Kahramanmaras-and-Hatay-Earthquakes-Report.pdf">The need to repair infrastructure and rebuild hundreds of thousands of homes</a> presents a unique opportunity for transformative change. However, the Turkish government’s approach to disaster recovery poses challenges for that change. </p>
<h2>Politics of post-disaster action</h2>
<p>The government of president Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has maintained existing policies and housing strategies, and this creates an obstacle to redressing the social and environmental injustices that led to the disaster.</p>
<p>For decades, the Turkish government has maintained a housing and reconstruction strategy that concentrates decision-making power in the central government and prioritizes speed and quantity over quality. </p>
<p>This year, the government expanded the capacity of the Ministry of the Environment, Urbanization and Climate Change (MEUPCC) to expropriate land. The Ministry has expropriated over 207 hectares of land in the <a href="https://www.gercekgundem.com/guncel/afet-yasasi-ilk-hatayi-vurdu-defne-rezerv-alani-ilan-edildi-442597">southern province of Hatay alone</a>. More expropriations are expected in other provinces.</p>
<p>Similar to previous reconstruction processes in the country, the strategy has been to facilitate new urban development in city outskirts and remote locations. <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.habitatint.2006.03.002">Scholars have noted</a>, however, that this approach increases urban sprawl, exacerbates fragmentation and tends to neglect the historical significance of city centres, as well as the value of agricultural land and rural practices. </p>
<p>Prioritizing speedy construction over housing quality perpetuates social problems and increases environmental and economic costs in the long term.</p>
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<em>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/buildings-left-standing-in-turkey-offer-design-guidance-for-future-earthquake-resilient-construction-202089">Buildings left standing in Turkey offer design guidance for future earthquake-resilient construction</a>
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<h2>Unequal access</h2>
<p>This is pretty much the same strategy that was implemented after <a href="https://www.sayistay.gov.tr/reports/download/m5pokdvgDW-bayindirlik-ve-iskan-bakanliginin-marmara-ve-duzce-depremleri-sonrasi-faaliyetle">the 1999 Marmara Earthquake</a>, the earthquakes in <a href="https://www.hurriyet.com.tr/ekonomi/izmirde-binlerce-konut-teslim-edildi-cevre-sehircilik-ve-iklim-degisikligi-bakani-murat-kurum-izmir-boyle-donustu-sira-11-ilde-42236523">Van (2011),</a> <a href="https://csb.gov.tr/bakanlik-elazig-da-24-ocak-2020-de-meydana-gelen-depremin-ardindan-yuruttugu-calismalarinda-sona-geldi-bakanlik-faaliyetleri-36248">Elazığ (2020),</a> and <a href="https://www.hurriyet.com.tr/ekonomi/izmirde-binlerce-konut-teslim-edildi-cevre-sehircilik-ve-iklim-degisikligi-bakani-murat-kurum-izmir-boyle-donustu-sira-11-ilde-42236523">İzmir (2020)</a> and the <a href="https://www.iha.com.tr/haber-bati-karadenizde-selin-vurdugu-ilceler-yeniden-ayaga-kaldirildi-1162107">2021 Western Black Sea floods</a>. </p>
<p>There are legal mechanisms in the country to conduct in-situ reconstruction and more careful urban transformation. However, the government keeps developing suburban areas because it is the <a href="https://tr.euronews.com/2023/02/21/toki-su-ana-kadar-kac-konut-yapti-deprem-bolgesinde-ne-kadar-surede-kac-konut-insa-edecek">easiest and fastest way to show that action is being taken</a>.</p>
<p>Yet, these new homes are not accessible to all.</p>
<p>Under the law only owners of moderately or severely damaged homes can access zero-interest loans for purchasing new units. This restricts the number of people eligible for post-disaster housing. In addition, many new settlements are located far from jobs, schools, services and other facilities. </p>
<p>Alternatives do exist to achieve quality, but they receive little attention from Erdoğan’s government.</p>
<h2>Co-operative housing in Turkey</h2>
<p><a href="https://doi.org/10.31198/idealkent.1117042">Construction co-ops have existed in Turkey since the 1930s</a>. At the height of their popularity in 1988, co-operatives accounted for 35 per cent of total housing production. But political negligence, and the absence of a robust legal framework, have hindered the co-op movement and eroded public trust in community-based co-operatives. Today, co-operatives represent less than 0.1 per cent of housing production. </p>
<p>After the 1999 Marmara earthquake, a group of tenants, frustrated by their exclusion from government programs, formed a <a href="https://www.umutarsivi.org/hope/duzce-umut-evleri/">housing co-operative in Düzce</a>. Through participatory design, and community-driven construction, the co-op provided housing for 234 low-income families.</p>
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<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/568079/original/file-20240105-17-zfhmks.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="A series of apartment buildings under construction with cranes above." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/568079/original/file-20240105-17-zfhmks.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/568079/original/file-20240105-17-zfhmks.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=253&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/568079/original/file-20240105-17-zfhmks.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=253&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/568079/original/file-20240105-17-zfhmks.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=253&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/568079/original/file-20240105-17-zfhmks.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=317&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/568079/original/file-20240105-17-zfhmks.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=317&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/568079/original/file-20240105-17-zfhmks.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=317&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
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<span class="caption">New apartments for earthquake survivors under construction in Kilis, southeastern Turkey.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">(Republic of Turkey Ministry of Environment, Urbanization and Climate Change)</span></span>
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<p>After the 2020 İzmir earthquake owners of moderately damaged houses were not eligible for financial support. About 30 families decided to create a similar version of the Düzce housing co-operative. With collaboration from the municipality, they established a co-operative construction project, <a href="https://www.halkkonut.org/">Halk Konut</a>. This co-op allowed earthquake-affected residents to lead both design and construction, while receiving technical and legal expertise from local authorities. </p>
<p>The municipality established a new office where co-operative members could work closely with municipal employees and helped Halk Konut members in negotiations with contractors. Although co-op members made the ultimate decisions, the office supervised both planning and construction activities. </p>
<p>The municipality also granted permission for building two additional floors. By selling the units in these two floors, the co-op received additional funds that made the operation economically feasible. </p>
<p>After construction is completed, co-ops are often dissolved. But during the process, they create a platform for collective discussions about ways to improve neighbourhoods, increase energy-efficiency and integrate public space and green areas. Co-ops also empower earthquake survivors by actively involving them in construction and design, and ensure affordability, sustainability, and community development. </p>
<p>One co-op member we interviewed said: “We didn’t know our neighbours before we initiated the co-operative effort. But now, we design and build our homes together and try to make our neighbourhood more liveable. Once the building is completed, we will organize workshops on civil rights, disasters, and climate change. We now collaborate with local universities, professional associations, and NGOs.”</p>
<p>Co-ops, however, do face several obstacles. Creating one is a long process that requires significant engagement. Despite efforts to reduce costs and share expenses, financing remains the most significant challenge, especially for retired people and others with low incomes. Developing trust and consensus among co-op members can also be difficult. Tensions and conflicts sometimes emerge in a process that depends on mutual trust and engagement.</p>
<h2>The way forward</h2>
<p>With a focus on centralized provision of turnkey projects since 1999, creation of new co-operatives has dramatically decreased. Yet, the co-op model, with its democratic, inclusive, and restorative nature, holds the potential to improve reconstruction strategies in Turkey. It offers an empowering tool for disaster victims based on active participation on decisions about their own future.</p>
<p>Embracing alternative reconstruction methods like co-operative housing is paramount for a resilient future in Turkey. But the model needs to be backed by a comprehensive legal framework, including obligations for contractors to complete projects within the agreed time-frame and ensuring the protection of homeowners’ rights. </p>
<p>The Turkish government must decide whether to maintain outdated strategies or embrace alternative models. It is time to place better strategies at the forefront, steering towards a future where communities actively participate in shaping cities. Otherwise, Turkey will continue to build disconnected settlements with a significant social, financial and environmental cost.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/217256/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Gonzalo Lizarralde receives funding from multiple research agencies in Canada, including SSHRC and FRQSC. He is affiliated with i-Rec, an international network of disaster related specialists. He is the holder of the Fayolle-Magil Construction Research Chair of Université de Montréal.</span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Fatma Ozdogan does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>As Turkey is recovering from the most devastating earthquake in its recent history, a timely opportunity emerges to change how to reconstruct housing.Fatma Ozdogan, PhD Student & Researcher, post-disaster reconstruction, Université de MontréalGonzalo Lizarralde, Professeur titulaire - Faculté de l'aménagement, Université de MontréalLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2054712023-09-20T04:12:14Z2023-09-20T04:12:14ZGovernments are pouring money into housing but materials, land and labour are still in short supply<p>As Australia’s housing affordability crisis worsens, governments are spending more on housing.</p>
<p>Victoria’s Andrews government has <a href="https://www.vic.gov.au/housing-statement">announced</a> a suite of <a href="https://www.theage.com.au/politics/victoria/kingswood-golf-course-rezoning-among-five-projects-suddenly-approved-by-government-20230920-p5e64c.html">reforms</a> (such as boosting social housing and making planning processes faster) in an effort to get 800,000 extra homes in Victoria over the next decade.</p>
<p>Federally, the Albanese government’s A$10 billion Housing Australia Future Fund, or HAFF, has <a href="https://theconversation.com/the-greens-were-right-to-pass-australias-housing-future-fund-bill-the-case-for-further-delay-was-weak-213255">passed the Senate</a> with the help of the Greens, who supported the bill in exchange for another A$1 billion for social housing.</p>
<p>And this year’s federal budget has expanded eligibility for the <a href="https://ministers.dss.gov.au/media-releases/11161#:%7E:text=Helping%20Australians%20with%20the%20cost,%242.7%20billion%20over%20five%20years">Home Guarantee Scheme</a> so more people can buy a home with a smaller deposit. </p>
<p>But is Australia ready for a house construction boom? </p>
<p>Supply chain constraints say no. Ballooning construction costs and labour shortages have already claimed well-known building firms across the country. Delivering thousands of extra new homes in the coming years will not be easy.</p>
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<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/549027/original/file-20230919-25-o18tcl.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="Houses like half-constructed in the lanscape." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/549027/original/file-20230919-25-o18tcl.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/549027/original/file-20230919-25-o18tcl.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=443&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/549027/original/file-20230919-25-o18tcl.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=443&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/549027/original/file-20230919-25-o18tcl.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=443&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/549027/original/file-20230919-25-o18tcl.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=557&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/549027/original/file-20230919-25-o18tcl.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=557&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/549027/original/file-20230919-25-o18tcl.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=557&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
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<span class="caption">Is Australia ready for a house construction boom?</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Shutterstock</span></span>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/the-greens-were-right-to-pass-australias-housing-future-fund-bill-the-case-for-further-delay-was-weak-213255">The Greens were right to pass Australia's Housing Future Fund bill – the case for further delay was weak</a>
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<h2>Materials are hard to get</h2>
<p>Building a home requires the right materials at the right time. But many building materials are in short supply.</p>
<p>Timber is a good example. The Master Builders Association <a href="https://www.theaustralian.com.au/business/timber-shortages-ease-but-reliance-on-overseas-suppliers-leaves-industry-exposed/news-story/50f6012ebbd48d2749a9309b7f9c6f1b">highlights</a> there are still pressures on timber and wood supplies.</p>
<p>This imbalance between supply and demand for construction materials can be traced back to the <a href="https://www.smh.com.au/politics/federal/new-homebuilder-package-aims-to-safeguard-jobs-of-a-million-tradies-20200603-p54z7w.html">HomeBuilder</a> program, which saw over 138,000 Australians applying for a <a href="https://treasury.gov.au/coronavirus/homebuilder">grant</a> to build or renovate. </p>
<p>The number of new dwellings commenced went from 41,855 in September 2020 to a <a href="https://www.abs.gov.au/statistics/industry/building-and-construction/building-activity-australia/mar-2023">peak</a> of 67,306 in July 2021 – an increase of 60% in less than a year. </p>
<p>Typically, a spike in demand is met by imports. But soaring <a href="https://www.imf.org/en/Blogs/Articles/2022/03/28/how-soaring-shipping-costs-raise-prices-around-the-world">shipping costs</a> during the pandemic conspired with <a href="https://www.timberbiz.com.au/conflict-timber-comes-into-australia-with-false-origin-labels/#:%7E:text=Australia%20has%20not%20banned%20timber,conflict%20timber%20and%20its%20sustainability">restrictions</a> to timber imports from Russia to send global markets into disarray. </p>
<p>Tim Reardon, Chief Economist for the Housing Industry Association <a href="https://hia.com.au/our-industry/newsroom/economic-research-and-forecasting/2023/04/housing-supply-worsens-as-demand-increases">reckons</a> housing supply issues will not get any better soon. The federal government’s National Housing Finance and Investment Corporation <a href="https://www.nhfic.gov.au/research/state-nations-housing-report-2022-23">expects</a> housing supply will only recover by 2025-26.</p>
<p>Demand pressures will continue. As it is, there are lots of <a href="https://www.abs.gov.au/statistics/industry/building-and-construction/building-activity-australia/mar-2023">unfinished homes</a> around the country.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/549029/original/file-20230919-17-d1u576.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="Building frames of houses are seen against an urban background." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/549029/original/file-20230919-17-d1u576.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/549029/original/file-20230919-17-d1u576.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=327&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/549029/original/file-20230919-17-d1u576.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=327&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/549029/original/file-20230919-17-d1u576.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=327&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/549029/original/file-20230919-17-d1u576.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=411&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/549029/original/file-20230919-17-d1u576.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=411&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/549029/original/file-20230919-17-d1u576.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=411&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">You need materials and energy to build a house.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Shutterstock</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Labour and land are also in short supply</h2>
<p>Building a home is labour intensive. Finding roofers, bricklayers, carpenters, tilers, landscapers and other construction workers has <a href="https://www.jobsandskills.gov.au/download/2289/skills-shortage-quarterly-march-2023/1448/skills-shortage-quarterly-report-march-2023/docx">not been easy</a>. </p>
<p>Australia’s record low unemployment <a href="https://www.abs.gov.au/media-centre/media-releases/unemployment-rate-falls-34">rates</a> and a global rise in <a href="https://www.oecd.org/publications/the-post-covid-19-rise-in-labour-shortages-e60c2d1c-en.htm">labour shortages</a> have made it hard for builders to find the workers they need to finish jobs. <a href="https://www.9news.com.au/national/construction-delays-perth-customers-waiting-up-to-four-years-for-new-homes-to-be-built-by-states-largest-builder/fa6334f3-64f9-47c1-9d5a-e0898e9a4a4e">Delays</a> are common.</p>
<p>Some skill sets are in even higher demand, as workers flock to oil and gas, mining, and infrastructure projects. In Western Australia, for example, <a href="https://bcec.edu.au/publications/housing-affordability-in-western-australia-2023-building-for-the-future/">research</a> has shown a shortage of construction managers, handy persons, and civil engineering professionals.</p>
<p>Then, there is the question of land. Greenfield projects (new developments on the city fringes) typically see fast approvals, fast sales, and good profit.</p>
<p>But suburbs alone cannot deliver the demand that is coming, thanks to the Housing Australia Future Fund and the other government initiatives.</p>
<p>There is a growing consensus more has to be done to increase <a href="https://www.abc.net.au/news/2023-09-01/four-unique-ways-tokyo-approaches-housing/102784020">urban density</a> (in other words, apartments) next to <a href="https://theconversation.com/to-make-housing-more-affordable-this-is-what-state-governments-need-to-do-105050">mass transit hubs</a>.</p>
<p>But this isn’t easy either. Not-in-my-backyard (NIMBY) critics abound and demand for standalone houses remains strong as people pursue the “great Australian dream” of a <a href="https://immi.homeaffairs.gov.au/amep-subsite/Files/intermediate-housing-housing-worksheet-1-the-great-australian-dream.pdf">large house</a> on a large block of land.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/549030/original/file-20230919-20-iklfa4.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="Construction workers look on as a crane moves a heavy object for a building project." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/549030/original/file-20230919-20-iklfa4.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/549030/original/file-20230919-20-iklfa4.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/549030/original/file-20230919-20-iklfa4.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/549030/original/file-20230919-20-iklfa4.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/549030/original/file-20230919-20-iklfa4.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/549030/original/file-20230919-20-iklfa4.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/549030/original/file-20230919-20-iklfa4.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Labour is in short supply.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Shutterstock</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>So how can we strengthen supply?</h2>
<p>These issues in materials, labour, and land will not solve themselves. Pouring more money into the housing market without addressing supply shortages will only increase prices. </p>
<p>So, what initiatives can really address the housing supply crisis? Options include:</p>
<ul>
<li><p>reducing import taxes on materials like construction timber and steel frames to boost short-term supply (while adhering to long-term strategies to address future demand) </p></li>
<li><p>supporting new technologies in the construction industry (the federal government’s <a href="https://www.agriculture.gov.au/about/news/grants-open-for-wood-processing-facilities">Accelerate Adoption of Wood Processing Innovation</a> program, which enables the use of innovative technology for timber production, is one example)</p></li>
<li><p>increasing skilled migration to boost labour supply (Western Australia’s <a href="https://migration.wa.gov.au/news/boosting-was-building-construction-industry-through-skilled-migration">Construction Visa Subsidy Program</a>, which targets skilled migrants to the construction sector, shows what’s possible)</p></li>
<li><p>embracing manufactured homes (<a href="https://www.sbt-durabi.org/articles/article/M9R2/#Information">modular construction</a>, for example, can increase labour productivity, reduce costs and mitigate the effects of weather delays)</p></li>
<li><p>making it easier to release land for development, especially in urban areas (for example, the Victoria government is investing <a href="https://www.budget.vic.gov.au/homes-for-victorians">$40 million in red-tape busting measures</a>).</p></li>
</ul>
<p>The housing crisis in Australia is far from over. Without coordinated action to increase supply, government grants will have little practical effect on house affordability anytime soon.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/205471/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>The authors do not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and have disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Is Australia ready for a house construction boom? Supply chain constraints say no.Flavio Macau, Associate Dean - School of Business and Law, Edith Cowan UniversityDeepa Bannigidadmath, Lecturer, Edith Cowan UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2091422023-07-12T20:03:50Z2023-07-12T20:03:50ZFungi could be the next frontier in fire safety<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/536957/original/file-20230712-21-of56i6.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=0%2C0%2C5422%2C3571&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">
</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Shutterstock</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>Australia is no stranger to fire-related disasters. The country <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S221133552200167X">experiences more than</a> 17,000 residential fires each year.</p>
<p>Each winter brings an increase in potential fire hazards due to the use of heaters and candles. Couple this with our already fire-prone vegetation, and a generally hot and dry climate, and you can see why there’s an urgent need to develop effective and sustainable fireproofing methods.</p>
<p>This is what inspired our research team to <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-022-19458-0?fbclid=IwAR3wYYY-fml-OasZVHARLKbi4wjJKCXwNDZ9kaT7n-o7o3yL6Xy61fiQU9Y">create fireproofing materials</a> made from edible fungi. These materials can withstand flames to protect the integrity of a building’s structure (and any occupants).</p>
<p>Our work presents an exciting opportunity for an industry that has spent too long using materials that are harmful to human health and the environment.</p>
<h2>Fireproofing through the decades</h2>
<p>In the 1970s, construction companies in Australia widely used chemicals categorised as “<a href="https://www.niehs.nih.gov/health/topics/agents/flame_retardants/">halogenated flame retardants</a>” to fireproof buildings, furnishings and electronics.</p>
<p>These flame retardants, which <a href="https://ntp.niehs.nih.gov/whatwestudy/assessments/cancer/ongoing/hfr#:%7E:text=Halogenated%20flame%20retardants%20encompass%20a,%2C%20structural%2C%20and%20chemical%20properties">largely consist</a> of bromide or chlorine-containing chemicals, are effective in interrupting combustion. But many have been associated with <a href="https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/21268442/">adverse health effects</a> including immunotoxicity, reproductive toxicity, cancer and impaired neurological function. </p>
<p>Phosphorus and nitrogen-based flame retardants are preferred over their halogenated counterparts and are still used for fireproofing today, including in Australia. However, these too pose some risk to human health and to nature (through toxicity and accumulation in the environment).</p>
<h2>Exploring a better alternative</h2>
<p><a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0141391023001714?dgcid=coauthor">Our team has</a> produced a material made entirely out of mycelium, which shows great promise for fireproofing. </p>
<p>Mycelium is the root-like structure of fungi. It’s made up of many thin, branched filaments. The cell walls of these filaments are largely composed of a natural polymer called chitin (which you can also find in <a href="https://theconversation.com/5-ways-fungi-could-change-the-world-from-cleaning-water-to-breaking-down-plastics-157320">crab shells and insect exoskeletons</a>). </p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/536955/original/file-20230712-17-pcvo4b.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/536955/original/file-20230712-17-pcvo4b.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/536955/original/file-20230712-17-pcvo4b.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/536955/original/file-20230712-17-pcvo4b.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/536955/original/file-20230712-17-pcvo4b.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/536955/original/file-20230712-17-pcvo4b.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/536955/original/file-20230712-17-pcvo4b.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/536955/original/file-20230712-17-pcvo4b.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Mycleium is the vegetative root-like structure of fungi. It’s usually hidden from view underground.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Shutterstock</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Our mycelium-based material is lightweight, eco-friendly, biodegradable and has a relatively long ignition time.</p>
<p>When exposed to intense fire or heat, the material can transform to char – a black high-carbon residue that remains when all the water and volatile compounds have burned off. This is similar to the charcoal that remains when wood is burned. This char protects any underlying flammable material by slowing down heat transfer and preventing further combustion. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/535988/original/file-20230706-25-vu83ie.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/535988/original/file-20230706-25-vu83ie.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=222&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/535988/original/file-20230706-25-vu83ie.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=222&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/535988/original/file-20230706-25-vu83ie.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=222&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/535988/original/file-20230706-25-vu83ie.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=279&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/535988/original/file-20230706-25-vu83ie.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=279&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/535988/original/file-20230706-25-vu83ie.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=279&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Our mycelium material can be used as a thin, wallpaper-like fireproofing layer.</span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Unlike current fireproofing materials, our material releases only harmless natural products when exposed to fire, such as water and carbon dioxide.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/scientists-create-new-building-material-out-of-fungus-rice-and-glass-98153">Scientists create new building material out of fungus, rice and glass</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<h2>A versatile material</h2>
<p>Our material is flexible and can be manipulated to varying thinness, including down to a <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0141391023001076">1mm thin wallpaper</a>. This makes it more useful than the bulky fungal <a href="https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1002/fam.2637">bricks</a> our group previously created. </p>
<p>It could be used as thin wallpaper-like sheets, or consolidated into thicker and stronger core materials that resemble timber or cladding.</p>
<p>We showcase two possible applications for the building and construction industry (although there would be other uses in industries such as automotive and aerospace engineering):</p>
<ol>
<li><p>fungal-only sheets as laminates, where the thickness can be customised, which would be ideal for use as insulation panels</p></li>
<li><p>fungal layers attached to the surface of flammable structures, in the same way wallpaper is applied to walls, to enhance fire protection.</p></li>
</ol>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/535990/original/file-20230706-26-g3zktn.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/535990/original/file-20230706-26-g3zktn.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=456&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/535990/original/file-20230706-26-g3zktn.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=456&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/535990/original/file-20230706-26-g3zktn.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=456&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/535990/original/file-20230706-26-g3zktn.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=573&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/535990/original/file-20230706-26-g3zktn.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=573&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/535990/original/file-20230706-26-g3zktn.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=573&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">The material could be used as a consolidated laminate with a thickness of about 4.5mm.</span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>The next steps</h2>
<p>Although mycelium-based materials are currently used globally for construction, <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC8934219/">packaging and insulation</a>, none are so far commercially available. Moreover, none have been used or approved for fireproofing.</p>
<p>We’ve been approached by the mushroom industry to develop our material and its feasibility for commercialisation. Collaboration will be crucial to creating a closed-loop industry where agricultural waste can be up-cycled into sustainable biomaterials that meet fire safety needs. </p>
<p>There’s a long way to go before our product can be bought off-the-shelf, and we’ll need to address various large-scale manufacturing challenges in the process.</p>
<p>Nonetheless, we hope our work can eventually contribute to a future where building fires are significantly reduced, and where our homes are safer and more sustainable spaces to live in.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/5-ways-fungi-could-change-the-world-from-cleaning-water-to-breaking-down-plastics-157320">5 ways fungi could change the world, from cleaning water to breaking down plastics</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/209142/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Everson Kandare receives funding from the Australian Research Council, Sustainability Victoria, Tyre Stewardship Australia, and Coorperative Research Centres.</span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Nattanan Chulikavit receives funding from Australian Research Council. </span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Tien Huynh does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>For decades, construction companies have used fireproofing chemicals associated with risks to human health and the environment. We need safer alternatives.Tien Huynh, Associate Professor, School of Sciences, RMIT UniversityEverson Kandare, Associate Professor, School of Engineering, RMIT UniversityNattanan Chulikavit, PhD student, School of Engineering, RMIT UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2061882023-06-06T02:21:12Z2023-06-06T02:21:12ZBuilding activity produces 18% of emissions and a shocking 40% of our landfill waste. We must move to a circular economy – here’s how<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/529530/original/file-20230601-25-k0dgno.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=0%2C0%2C4475%2C2974&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">
</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Shutterstock</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>Architecture, engineering and construction employ <a href="https://doi.org/10.1108/SASBE-10-2020-0154">1.2 million people</a> in Australia and account for <a href="https://nla.gov.au/nla.obj-2983477707">9% of GDP</a>. But our biggest services sector also produces roughly <a href="https://nla.gov.au/nla.obj-2983477707">40% of landfill waste</a> and accounts for <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.proeng.2017.04.180">18.1% of Australia’s carbon footprint</a>. The sector must change its practices fast for Australia to meet its commitments to cut emissions under the Paris Agreement. </p>
<p>A circular economic model can help solve the environmental challenges created by our built environment – water, waste and power systems, transport infrastructure and the buildings we live and work in. A <a href="https://theconversation.com/explainer-what-is-a-circular-economy-29666">circular economy</a> involves sharing, leasing, reusing, repairing, refurbishing and recycling materials and products for as long as possible. </p>
<p>Circular economy principles have gained recognition from all levels of government in Australia. But there’s a big gap between acknowledgement and action. Progress towards systemic change has been very limited.</p>
<p>A <a href="https://trove.nla.gov.au/work/253896506?keyword=circular%20economy%20deakin">new report</a> by university and industry experts lays out a roadmap to a circular economy. Those working in the sector reported the top three barriers as: a lack of incentives, a lack of specific regulations, and a lack of knowledge. The top three enablers were: research and development of enabling technologies, education of stakeholders, and evidence of the circular economy’s added value. </p>
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<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/australia-needs-construction-waste-recycling-plants-but-locals-first-need-to-be-won-over-161888">Australia needs construction waste recycling plants — but locals first need to be won over</a>
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<figcaption><span class="caption">The huge amount of waste created by building construction and demolition makes the industry unsustainable.</span></figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>So what are the world leaders doing?</h2>
<p>Extensive research for the report drew on real-world experiences, including a survey and interviews with stakeholders. The report offers practical recommendations to drive the transformation to a circular economy, with examples from global front-runners.</p>
<p>The first recommendation is to learn from these nations. Most are in Europe.</p>
<p>A leading example is the Netherlands’ “<a href="https://circulareconomy.europa.eu/platform/en/dialogue/existing-eu-platforms/cirkelstad">Cirkelstad</a>”. This national platform connects key players in the transition to a circular economy in major cities. It provides a database of exemplary projects, research and policies, as well as training and advice.</p>
<p>Cirkelstad highlights the importance of broad collaboration, including research organisations. One outcome is the <a href="https://www.cirkelstad.nl/project/city-deal-circulair-conceptueel-bouwen/">City Deal</a> initiative. It has brought together more than 100 stakeholders with the shared goal of making circular construction the norm. They include government bodies, contractors, housing associations, clients, networks, interest groups and knowledge institutions. </p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/buildings-used-iron-from-sunken-ships-centuries-ago-the-use-of-recycled-materials-should-be-business-as-usual-by-now-200351">Buildings used iron from sunken ships centuries ago. The use of recycled materials should be business as usual by now</a>
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<p><div data-react-class="Tweet" data-react-props="{"tweetId":"1002976732960436224"}"></div></p>
<p>We rarely see such collaboration in Australia. Connections between government, research and industry practices have been weak. Our universities compete fiercely. </p>
<p>In Denmark and Sweden, rigorous regulations have been effective in promoting circular practices. Denmark has incentives for the use of <a href="https://www2.mst.dk/Udgiv/publications/2019/03/978-87-7038-052-2.pdf">secondary materials</a> such as recycled brick. It also promotes designs that make buildings easy to disassemble. </p>
<p>In Sweden, contractors must give priority to using secondary materials in public projects. Suppliers are <a href="http://doi.org/10.51414/sei2022.026">evaluated based on their environmental impacts</a> </p>
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<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/a-third-of-our-waste-comes-from-buildings-this-ones-designed-for-reuse-and-cuts-emissions-by-88-147455">A third of our waste comes from buildings. This one's designed for reuse and cuts emissions by 88%</a>
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</em>
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<p>In Canada, Toronto is notable for its proactive approach. Measures include a cap on upfront carbon emissions for <a href="https://secure.toronto.ca/council/agenda-item.do?item=2023.PH3.19">all new city-owned buildings</a>.</p>
<p>Test beds and pilot projects have proven effective, too. A good example is the UK’s <a href="https://www.brighton.ac.uk/research/research-news/feature/brighton-waste-house.aspx">Waste House</a>. </p>
<p>Waste House was built using more than 85% waste material from households and construction sites. Yet it’s a top-rated low-energy building. The project is an inspiration for architects and builders to challenge conventional construction methods and embrace circular practices. </p>
<p>Much of the focus of Finland’s <a href="https://www2.deloitte.com/content/dam/Deloitte/fi/Documents/risk/The%20circular%20city%20in%20Finland.pdf">circular economy initiatives</a> is on construction and urban planning. Various policy tools and incentives encourage the use of recycled or renewable materials in construction. The renovation of Laakso hospital in Helsinki is a notable example.</p>
<p>Strategic zoning of public spaces can also be used to bolster circular economy activities. An example is the repurposing of urban land for activities such as waste sorting.</p>
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<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/how-to-make-roads-with-recycled-waste-and-pave-the-way-to-a-circular-economy-164997">How to make roads with recycled waste, and pave the way to a circular economy</a>
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<figcaption><span class="caption">The Brighton Waste House was made largely from recycled materials.</span></figcaption>
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<h2>How can Australia create a circular economy?</h2>
<p>Australia has been slow to adopt such measures. There are voluntary schemes, such as <a href="https://new.gbca.org.au/green-star/exploring-green-star/">Green Star</a>, that include emission caps for buildings. However, Australia lacks specific, well-defined requirements to adopt circular economy practices across the built environment sector.</p>
<p>Our report’s recommendations include:</p>
<ul>
<li>develop metrics and targets to promote resource efficiency</li>
<li>adopt measurable circular procurement practices for public projects</li>
<li>provide incentives for circular practices</li>
<li>establish technical codes and standards that foster the use of secondary products.</li>
</ul>
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<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/greenwashing-the-property-market-why-green-star-ratings-dont-guarantee-more-sustainable-buildings-91655">Greenwashing the property market: why 'green star' ratings don't guarantee more sustainable buildings</a>
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<p>The report finds funding for collaborative projects is badly needed too. Regrettably, the Australian built environment is not seen as <a href="https://www.arc.gov.au/funding-research/apply-funding/grant-application/science-and-research-priorities">a research funding priority</a>. But more funding is essential to foster the innovation needed to make the transition to a circular economy. </p>
<p>Innovation can help us reconcile the public demand for spacious homes with sustainable construction practices. We can achieve this through a mix of strategies:</p>
<ul>
<li>moving towards modular construction techniques</li>
<li>creating incentives to adopt circular design principles</li>
<li>making adaptive reuse of existing structures a priority</li>
<li>designing multi-functional spaces that makes the most of resources.</li>
</ul>
<p>Integrating circular economy principles into education and training at universities and schools can embed a culture of innovation. Equipping students with this knowledge and skills will enable the next generation to drive change in our built environment. </p>
<p>Currently, there are few Australian-based training programs that focus on the circular economy. And available courses and programs overseas are costly.</p>
<p>There is also a need to promote inclusivity in the built environment sector. Circular solutions must incorporate cultural considerations.</p>
<p>By embracing the above strategies, Australia can foster a harmonious balance between cultural values, environmental sustainability and efficient resource use.</p>
<p>Collectively, these initiatives will lay the foundation for a circular economy in the built environment sector. The growing need for housing and infrastructure underscores the urgency of achieving this goal in Australia. Ultimately, consumers, industry and the environment will all benefit.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/with-the-right-tools-we-can-mine-cities-87672">With the right tools, we can mine cities</a>
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</em>
</p>
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<img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/206188/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Tuba Kocaturk is affiliated with Geelong Manufacturing Council, as a Non-Executive Director.</span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>M. Reza Hosseini does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Our buildings and infrastructure can only become sustainable if the sector shares, leases, reuses, repairs, refurbishes and recycles materials and products. A new report maps out out how to get there.M. Reza Hosseini, Senior Lecturer in Construction, Deputy Director, Mediated Intelligence in Design (MInD) Research Lab, Deakin UniversityTuba Kocaturk, Deputy Head, School of Architecture & Built Environment, and Director, Mediated Intelligence in Design (MInD) Research Lab, Deakin UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2051072023-05-24T19:01:32Z2023-05-24T19:01:32ZCanada’s housing crisis demands better buildings — here are the changes that could improve apartment and condo life<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/527128/original/file-20230518-21-9qziew.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=426%2C0%2C4172%2C2697&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">To address the growing urban population, along with the joint affordability and environmental crises, Canada needs to build more affordable, energy-efficient buildings</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">(Shutterstock)</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>As Canada grapples with an <a href="https://theconversation.com/new-study-reveals-intensified-housing-inequality-in-canada-from-1981-to-2016-173633">ongoing housing crisis</a>, the need for more housing — particularly in cities — is becoming increasingly apparent. To effectively address this challenge, Canada needs to focus on constructing more multi-unit residential buildings, like apartments and condominiums.</p>
<p>This is especially important because Canada becomes increasingly urbanized with each passing year. In 2021, <a href="https://www150.statcan.gc.ca/n1/daily-quotidien/220209/dq220209b-eng.htm">73.7 per cent of Canadians lived in</a> one of the country’s large urban centres.</p>
<p>But Canada doesn’t just need more housing — it needs good quality housing. And the <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.geoforum.2013.06.010">multi-unit housing sector</a> is plagued with performance issues that negatively impact residents. </p>
<p>To address the growing urban population, along with the joint <a href="https://www.ctvnews.ca/business/affordability-crisis-why-young-canadians-are-facing-a-huge-wealth-gap-1.6106343">affordability</a> and <a href="https://www.cbc.ca/documentaries/the-nature-of-things/six-ways-climate-change-is-affecting-canada-1.6527535">climate crises</a>, Canada needs to ensure these new multi-unit residential buildings are more affordable and energy-efficient.</p>
<p>In order to ensure new housing prioritizes comfort and health, future residents and building owners should know what design choices to advocate for.</p>
<h2>Design vs. reality</h2>
<p>When appropriately designed and operated, multi-unit housing can be <a href="https://doi.org/10.3390/buildings4030336">more sustainable than detached homes</a>. They can also improve the viability of public transportation and <a href="https://ascelibrary.org/doi/10.1061/%28ASCE%290733-9488%282006%29132%3A1%2810%29">reduce urban infrastructure costs and associated environmental impacts</a>.</p>
<p>Despite these advantages, multi-unit residential buildings have issues to contend with: they are <a href="https://assets.cmhc-schl.gc.ca/sf/project/cmhc/pdfs/content/en/achieving-high-performance-murbs-opportunities.pdf?rev=6cf09117-cee4-4129-af7a-a973dddac18d">less energy efficient</a> than detached homes and often suffer from a number of <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.buildenv.2019.106182">comfort-related challenges</a>. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="An advertisement for a condominium is seen outside a low-rise building" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/527126/original/file-20230518-21391-t4316e.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/527126/original/file-20230518-21391-t4316e.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=399&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/527126/original/file-20230518-21391-t4316e.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=399&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/527126/original/file-20230518-21391-t4316e.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=399&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/527126/original/file-20230518-21391-t4316e.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=501&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/527126/original/file-20230518-21391-t4316e.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=501&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/527126/original/file-20230518-21391-t4316e.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=501&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Real estate signage is seen in front of condos for sale on May 15, 2023, in Montréal, Que.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">THE CANADIAN PRESS/Christinne Muschi</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Many people who have lived in apartments or condos can empathize with issues like <a href="https://jcaa.caa-aca.ca/index.php/jcaa/article/view/3389">noisy neighbours</a>, <a href="http://dx.doi.org/10.1136/tc.2009.029728">smoke and odour transfer</a> and <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.buildenv.2018.08.024">poor heating or cooling</a>. </p>
<p>Fortunately, many of these issues can be addressed through simple design changes. By examining the research on these issues, we can better understand how design and operation failures contribute to these negative impacts and identify effective strategies to mitigate them.</p>
<h2>Improving ventilation</h2>
<p>Unpleasant odours are a common and bothersome issue faced by apartment and condo residents. </p>
<p>The main causes of odours making their way into suites are ventilation systems and air leakage between suites and other areas of the building or the outside.</p>
<p>Many existing multi-unit residential buildings are ventilated with central pressurized corridor systems. This system delivers outdoor air to a building’s corridors, creating positive pressure. The outdoor air then enters individual suites through intentional gaps underneath front doors.</p>
<p>Unfortunately, these systems don’t work reliably because they are <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jobe.2023.106320">highly sensitive to changes in outdoor temperature, wind and the opening and closing of doors and windows</a>. They also <a href="https://www.bchousing.org/research-centre/library/building-science-reports/energy-consumption-and-conservation-mid-and-high">use a lot of energy</a>. </p>
<p>Better performance can be achieved with central direct-ducted systems. In these systems, outdoor air is delivered directly to each suite through ducts. While these systems are still affected by seasonal changes and the opening and closing of windows, it’s to a lesser degree. </p>
<p>The best approach is for each suite to have its own decentralized ventilation system. These systems, known as suite-based <a href="https://www.bchousing.org/publications/Heat-Recovery-Ventilation-Guide-MURBs.pdf">heat or energy recovery ventilators</a> (commonly called HRVs or ERVs), supply outdoor air directly to suites while extracting stale air. If you have this type of system, make sure you don’t have a gap under your suite door! </p>
<h2>Stopping air leakage</h2>
<p>Air leakage can transfer smells <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.buildenv.2021.108292">between suites through walls and floors or indirectly via air coming in from corridors</a>. To address this, we want to compartmentalize suites by making the walls, ceiling and floor airtight. </p>
<p>There are tests to help developers assess the level of compartmentalization in a suite, but these tests <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.buildenv.2023.110273">only measure total air leakage for the entire suite</a> and don’t account for one component being leakier than another. </p>
<p>In the buildings we’ve studied, the <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.buildenv.2023.110273">leakiest walls</a> are those separating the corridor from the suite. This is where developers should focus additional air-sealing efforts, along with sealing stairwell doors and adding elevator vestibules.</p>
<h2>Sound-proofing suites</h2>
<p>In multi-unit housing, residents are often exposed to various sources of noise from neighbours, the outside or building systems like elevators or plumbing.</p>
<p>Dealing with noise is complex; sometimes we <a href="https://jcaa.caa-aca.ca/index.php/jcaa/article/view/3389">use one type of noise to drown out another</a>, which can exacerbate existing acoustic problems.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="A woman banging on the ceiling of an apartment with a broom handle. A man, who is sitting on a couch in the same room, covers his ears and watches her." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/527127/original/file-20230518-21-cazwgd.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/527127/original/file-20230518-21-cazwgd.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=401&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/527127/original/file-20230518-21-cazwgd.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=401&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/527127/original/file-20230518-21-cazwgd.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=401&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/527127/original/file-20230518-21-cazwgd.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/527127/original/file-20230518-21-cazwgd.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/527127/original/file-20230518-21-cazwgd.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">In multi-unit housing, residents are often exposed to irritating sounds from their neighbours, like talking or stomping.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">(Shutterstock)</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Different types of sound require distinct approaches for noise reduction. Airborne noise, like talking, is partly addressed automatically if suites are appropriately compartmentalized. Impact noise, like stomping, can be reduced by applying an <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.apacoust.2023.109291">acoustic underlay below the finished floor</a>. </p>
<p>Outdoor noise can be addressed with more airtight exterior walls and smaller windows, both of which also have temperature and energy benefits. </p>
<p>Noise from building systems is best addressed through positioning (e.g., not having heat or energy recovery ventilators in the living room) and sound insulation. </p>
<h2>Improving temperatures in the suite</h2>
<p>Thermal discomfort in multi-unit residential buildings can be <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.buildenv.2020.106748">prevalent in both heating and cooling seasons</a>. Uncomfortable temperatures in suites are driven, in part, by unnecessarily large and/or poor-quality windows, which makes sitting near them <a href="https://doi.org/10.1080/00038628.2016.1205179">uncomfortable in the winter</a> and leads to solar overheating in the summer. </p>
<p>Looking for smaller windows with low heat transfer values — <a href="https://natural-resources.canada.ca/energy-efficiency/products/product-information/windows-doors-and-skylights/rating-criteria-and-standards/13978">also known as a window’s U-value</a> — can improve winter comfort. <a href="https://img1.wsimg.com/blobby/go/a60eef51-42d5-4e63-8852-b2b795185efd/downloads/CAE%20Montreal%202020%20Symposium-Passive%20Strategies.pdf">Overhangs, exterior shading, or, at the very least interior shading</a> can reduce overheating. </p>
<p>Central heating and cooling systems, which require seasonal changeover, perform poorly in the spring and fall. Four-pipe fan coils or, better yet, in-suite heat pumps, are a good alternative because they can deliver heating or cooling regardless of the season.</p>
<h2>The good news</h2>
<p>While most of the solutions presented here have multiple benefits for residents, they can also save energy and reduce the environmental impacts of operating newly built housing.</p>
<p>For example, smaller, high-performance windows with solar shading, interior and exterior air tightness, and heat/energy recovery ventilators can reduce heating and cooling loads. </p>
<p>Heat pumps can <a href="https://www.iea.org/reports/the-future-of-heat-pumps/executive-summary">enable buildings to use cleaner electricity for heating</a>, as opposed to the more commonly used carbon-intensive natural gas.</p>
<p>It is essential that residents and building owners take active roles in advocating for residential design changes. They can do so by asking building developers to make changes and lobbying elected officials to include performance improvements in provincial building codes.</p>
<p>Canadians don’t just deserve more housing — they deserve more <em>quality</em> housing.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/205107/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Marianne Touchie has received funding from the National Research Council, NSERC, ASHRAE and SSHRC. </span></em></p>In order to ensure new multi-unit housing prioritizes comfort and health, future residents and building owners should know what design choices to advocate for.Marianne Touchie, Associate Professor, Jointly appointed in the Department of Civil and Mineral Engineering and Department of Mechanical and Industrial Engineering, University of TorontoLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2020892023-04-04T12:17:54Z2023-04-04T12:17:54ZBuildings left standing in Turkey offer design guidance for future earthquake-resilient construction<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/518309/original/file-20230329-28-3skd0d.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=11%2C8%2C1905%2C1069&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Turkey's Adana Hospital survived February 2023 earthquakes with no damage because of its seismic isolation system. </span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Earthquake Protection Systems, Inc.</span>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nd/4.0/">CC BY-ND</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>The Feb. 6, 2023, <a href="https://www.worldbank.org/en/news/press-release/2023/02/27/earthquake-damage-in-turkiye-estimated-to-exceed-34-billion-world-bank-disaster-assessment-report">earthquakes in Turkey and Syria</a> damaged over 100,000 buildings, caused more than 10,000 collapses and killed more than 50,000 people. These earthquakes also put to the test advanced building technologies that can minimize damage and keep buildings functioning after a quake.</p>
<p>Several hospitals built with <a href="https://www.hurriyetdailynews.com/seismic-isolation-devices-prevent-damage-in-four-hospitals-180830">one such technology</a> – called a seismic isolation system – <a href="https://localnewsmatters.org/2023/02/13/vallejo-companys-tech-keeps-turkey-hospital-operational-after-devastating-earthquakes/">survived the earthquakes</a> with almost no harm, according to local news reports, even while surrounding buildings sustained heavy damage. </p>
<p>Adana City Hospital was built to record both ground shaking and the building’s response. Thanks to its seismic isolation system, the building saw a 75% <a href="https://www.earthquakeprotection.com/">reduction in shaking</a>, according to the company that designed the isolation system, compared with neighboring structures. This system allowed the building to stay up and running after the earthquake.</p>
<p>Engineers aren’t surprised that the hospitals with seismic isolation systems survived with minimal damage, but through <a href="https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=VdoAeqAAAAAJ&hl=en">my work as a civil engineer</a>, I’ve been hearing people in Turkey and abroad ask why more buildings don’t use these smarter engineering technologies.</p>
<p>A year after the 1999 İzmit earthquake in Turkey killed over 17,000 people, I moved to Istanbul for a bachelor’s in civil engineering. I moved to the U.S. for my graduate studies in 2005, and since then, I have been working on advanced technologies and materials that can ensure rapid recovery and reoccupation of buildings <a href="https://engineering.virginia.edu/rail">after a strong earthquake</a>.</p>
<p>Although we’ve seen the effectiveness of seismic protection technologies during past major earthquakes, these technologies have been installed in only a tiny fraction of the places where they could potentially be useful.</p>
<h2>Earthquake-resilient building technology</h2>
<p>Engineers can control how structures respond to earthquakes in several ways.</p>
<p><a href="https://permanent.fdlp.gov/gpo15358/fema_p_749.pdf">Traditional approaches</a> rely on having certain components of the building, like columns or beams, absorb the earthquake’s energy. However, this method can lead to damage accumulating in these structural features that <a href="https://www.enr.com/articles/3447-engineers-surprised-by-damage-to-modern-buildings-in-christchurch">may render the building uninhabitable</a>.</p>
<p><a href="https://www.sciencelearn.org.nz/resources/1022-base-isolation-and-seismic-dampers">Earthquake-resilient systems</a> such as seismic isolation devices and seismic dampers minimize the seismic energy that goes into these columns or beams by either absorbing it or diverting it. As a result, the building experiences less motion and damage and is more likely to <a href="https://doi.org/10.3389/fbuil.2020.00126">remain functional</a> after an earthquake.</p>
<p><a href="https://www.hurriyetdailynews.com/seismic-isolation-devices-prevent-damage-in-four-hospitals-180830">Seismic isolation systems</a> prevent seismic energy from entering buildings in the first place by using devices made from rubber or steel plates coated with a friction-generating material that slide over one another to minimize an earthquake’s impact. These isolation devices are installed between the building’s foundation and the building itself. Alternatively, seismic dampers, installed in each story of a building, absorb earthquake energy the way shock absorbers work in a car and convert it into heat energy to <a href="https://buildcivil.wordpress.com/2013/11/25/passive-energy-dissipation-devices/">minimize damage</a>. </p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/518267/original/file-20230329-2631-bzokl7.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="An illustration showing two side-by-side structures, the left with arrows denoting side-to-side motion. The right has small blocks at the building's foundation which absorb seismic energy and prevent motion." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/518267/original/file-20230329-2631-bzokl7.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/518267/original/file-20230329-2631-bzokl7.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=391&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/518267/original/file-20230329-2631-bzokl7.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=391&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/518267/original/file-20230329-2631-bzokl7.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=391&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/518267/original/file-20230329-2631-bzokl7.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=491&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/518267/original/file-20230329-2631-bzokl7.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=491&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/518267/original/file-20230329-2631-bzokl7.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=491&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">The left shows a building without seismic isolation, while the right image shows a building with a seismic isolation system, which minimizes how much damage the building sustains during an earthquake. The red lines denote how much motion the building could experience during an earthquake.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Ozbulut Lab</span>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nd/4.0/">CC BY-ND</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Both seismic isolation systems and seismic dampers can help a building achieve “<a href="https://www.nibs.org/blog/resilience-2021-importance-seismic-functional-recovery-and-community-resilience-built">functional recovery</a>” – a performance objective whereby buildings are constructed to prevent damage and enable reoccupancy. Designing such buildings will not only save people and buildings but also keep the earthquakes from collapsing communities and economies. </p>
<p><div data-react-class="Tweet" data-react-props="{"tweetId":"1624344241366306819"}"></div></p>
<p>While functional recovery is an emerging idea for building earthquake-resilient structures, global modern building codes stipulate that, at a minimum, structures must have measures in place to keep the building from collapsing – called the <a href="https://www.fema.gov/node/seismic-building-code-provisions-new-buildings-create-safer-communities">life safety objective</a>. Buildings following a life safety objective are engineered to sustain damage in a controlled way, to keep the building standing and protect those inside.</p>
<p>While these buildings likely won’t collapse, they may not be safe to use after a quake. While this is not the same as functional recovery, if more buildings had been built to a life safety threshold in Turkey and Syria, thousands of lives could have been saved.</p>
<h2>The case in Turkey</h2>
<p>Much of the damage in Turkey occurred in nonductile concrete buildings constructed under a pre-1998 Turkish building code. Ductile concrete building elements, required by newer building codes, are more flexible, thanks to steel reinforcing bars at critical locations. They can <a href="https://www.concreteconstruction.net/how-to/construction/earthquakes-and-reinforced-concrete_o">accommodate the building motions</a> induced by earthquakes. The older nonductile buildings also tended to have poorly arranged steel reinforcements, leaving them vulnerable to the sudden collapse of building columns.</p>
<figure>
<iframe width="440" height="260" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/buLMbZhp5rI?wmode=transparent&start=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe>
<figcaption><span class="caption">This video, from The Associated Press, shows some of the buildings that collapsed in the aftermath of the Turkey earthquakes.</span></figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Similarly, many so-called soft-story buildings were damaged during these earthquakes. A soft story is a level that is significantly more vulnerable to lateral earthquake forces than the other stories in a multistory building. The first floor of these buildings – commonly used for commercial purposes like retail, garage or office space – tend to have more open areas and fewer structural components, like beams and columns, making them vulnerable to collapse.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/517774/original/file-20230327-14-2qrw3m.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="A partially collapsed tan building, leaning to the right side." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/517774/original/file-20230327-14-2qrw3m.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/517774/original/file-20230327-14-2qrw3m.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=891&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/517774/original/file-20230327-14-2qrw3m.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=891&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/517774/original/file-20230327-14-2qrw3m.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=891&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/517774/original/file-20230327-14-2qrw3m.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=1120&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/517774/original/file-20230327-14-2qrw3m.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=1120&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/517774/original/file-20230327-14-2qrw3m.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=1120&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">An example of a soft-story building, where the first story collapsed, leaving the rest of the floors relatively stable.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://newsroom.ap.org/detail/TurkeySyriaEarthquake/48bbd617383140649e53dcb6fa509f79/photo?Query=turkey%20earthquake%20building%20collapse&mediaType=photo&sortBy=&dateRange=Anytime&totalCount=1042&currentItemNo=261">AP Photo/Emrah Gurel</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>These types of buildings are found all over the world, including in highly populated, seismically at-risk areas like <a href="https://www.voanews.com/a/turkey-s-deadly-quake-renews-alarm-for-istanbul-/6968544.html#:%7E:text=Seismologists%20warn%20that%20a%20massive,to%2020%20million%20%E2%80%94%20by%202030.">Istanbul</a>, <a href="https://www.sfchronicle.com/sf/article/earthquake-building-risk-safety-17782287.php">San Francisco</a>, Los Angeles and Vancouver — all located near active fault lines.</p>
<p>Buildings designed under old codes can be strengthened to meet a life safety performance threshold. However, these upgrades can cost lots of money, and enforcing these upgrades, especially for private buildings, requires well-planned policies.</p>
<h2>Learning lessons</h2>
<p>While buildings designed for a life safety objective can protect thousands of lives, the February 2011 Christchurch earthquake in New Zealand revealed the limitations of modern seismic codes centered solely on this design goal. The damage to buildings designed under a life safety goal was so extensive that thousands had to be <a href="https://www.nist.gov/news-events/news/2021/01/new-report-charts-path-toward-superior-earthquake-recovery">demolished after the quake</a>. </p>
<p>It was this earthquake that led engineers to focus on “functional recovery” and to implement seismic protective technologies more widely. The <a href="https://thehill.com/opinion/energy-environment/504572-smarter-engineering-could-help-recovery-from-major-disasters/">additional cost</a> of such <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/1988/10/30/realestate/base-isolation-taking-the-shock-out-of-quakes.html">seismic protection technologies</a> is typically <a href="https://www.usrc.org/usrc-media-portfolio/#Papers">less than 5%</a> of the initial construction costs and pales in comparison to the cost of the social and economic disruptions caused by a major earthquake. In addition, securing lower insurance premiums may recoup most of these initial costs.</p>
<p>Total economic losses after the Christchurch earthquake was estimated at <a href="https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2013-04-28/christchurch-quake-rebuild-soars-33-to-nz-40-billion-key-says#xj4y7vzkg">US$32 billion</a>, not accounting for inflation, of which $24 billion was construction costs. The cost of the recent earthquakes in Turkey is estimated to be more than <a href="https://www.reuters.com/world/middle-east/earthquake-could-cost-turkey-up-84-bln-business-group-2023-02-13/">$84 billion</a> and still counting.</p>
<p>The earthquakes in Turkey have shown that seismic protection technologies work. To avoid high economic and social consequences, local authorities can update the provisions and codes for designing new buildings to enable post-earthquake reoccupancy and functional recovery. Additionally, policies, financial incentives and tax benefits that promote enhanced building design could improve seismic safety on a larger scale.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/202089/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Osman Ozbulut receives funding from NSF. </span></em></p>February earthquakes wreaked havoc across Turkey and Syria, killing tens of thousands of people. An engineer originally from Turkey describes what kept some buildings functional while others collapsed.Osman Ozbulut, Associate Professor of Civil Engineering, University of VirginiaLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1989542023-03-30T12:28:00Z2023-03-30T12:28:00Z3D printing promises to transform architecture forever – and create forms that blow today’s buildings out of the water<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/518266/original/file-20230329-16-omhub5.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=8%2C8%2C1789%2C1188&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">House Zero in Austin, Texas, is a 2,000-square-foot home that was built with 3D-printed concrete.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.lakeflato.com/sites/default/files/project-media/HouseZero1.jpg">Lake Flato Architects</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>In architecture, new materials rarely emerge. </p>
<p>For centuries, wood, masonry and concrete formed the basis for most structures on Earth. </p>
<p>In the 1880s, the adoption of <a href="http://www.thewestologist.com/architecture-and-design/the-metal-frame-revolution">the steel frame changed architecture forever</a>. Steel allowed architects to design taller buildings with larger windows, giving rise to the skyscrapers that define city skylines today.</p>
<p>Since the industrial revolution, construction materials have been largely confined to a range of mass-produced elements. From steel beams to plywood panels, this standardized kit of parts has informed the design and construction of buildings for over 150 years. </p>
<p>That may soon change with advances in what’s called “<a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.addma.2019.100906">large-scale additive manufacturing</a>.” Not since the adoption of the steel frame has there been a development with as much potential to transform the way buildings are conceived and constructed. </p>
<p>Large-scale additive manufacturing, like desktop 3D printing, involves building objects one layer at a time. Whether it’s clay, concrete or plastic, the print material is extruded in a fluid state and hardens into its final form.</p>
<p>As director of <a href="https://archdesign.utk.edu/make/institute-for-smart-structures/">the Institute for Smart Structures</a> at the University of Tennessee, I’ve been fortunate to work on a series of projects that deploy this new technology. </p>
<p>While some roadblocks to the widespread adoption of this technology still exist, I can foresee a future in which buildings are built entirely from recycled materials or materials sourced on-site, with forms inspired by the geometries of nature.</p>
<h2>Promising prototypes</h2>
<p>Among these is <a href="https://archdesign.utk.edu/pavilion-cherokee-farm/">the Trillium Pavilion</a>, an open-air structure printed from recycled <a href="https://omnexus.specialchem.com/selection-guide/acrylonitrile-butadiene-styrene-abs-plastic">ABS polymer</a>, a common plastic used in a wide range of consumer products.</p>
<p>The structure’s thin, double-curved surfaces were inspired by the petals of <a href="https://plants.ces.ncsu.edu/plants/trillium/">its namesake flower</a>. The project was designed by students, printed by Loci Robotics and constructed on the University of Tennessee Research Park at Cherokee Farm in Knoxville.</p>
<p>Other recent examples of large-scale additive manufacturing <a href="https://www.frameweb.com/article/living/meet-the-first-sustainable-housing-model-3d-printed-entirely-from-local-raw-earth">include Tecla</a>, a 450-square-foot (41.8-square-meter) prototype dwelling designed by Mario Cucinella Architects and printed in Massa Lombarda, a small town in Italy.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="Aerial view of two rounded dwellings made from clay." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/518263/original/file-20230329-16-1uj5n5.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/518263/original/file-20230329-16-1uj5n5.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=432&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/518263/original/file-20230329-16-1uj5n5.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=432&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/518263/original/file-20230329-16-1uj5n5.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=432&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/518263/original/file-20230329-16-1uj5n5.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=543&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/518263/original/file-20230329-16-1uj5n5.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=543&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/518263/original/file-20230329-16-1uj5n5.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=543&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Tecla was built from locally sourced clay.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://designwanted.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/12/FIRST-Tecla-house-by-Mario-Cucinella-Architects-and-WASP-Saga-Space-Architects-3DCP-Group-3D-printed-houses.jpg">Mario Cucinella Architects</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>The architects printed Tecla out of clay sourced from a local river. The unique combination of this inexpensive material and radial geometry created an energy-efficient form of alternative housing.</p>
<p>Back in the U.S., the architecture firm Lake Flato partnered with the construction technology firm ICON to print concrete exterior walls for a home dubbed “<a href="https://www.lakeflato.com/houses/house-zero">House Zero</a>” in Austin, Texas. </p>
<p>The 2,000-square-foot (185.8-square-meter) home demonstrates the speed and efficiency of 3D-printed concrete, and the structure displays a pleasing contrast between its curvilinear walls and its exposed timber frame.</p>
<h2>The planning process</h2>
<p>Large-scale additive manufacturing involves three knowledge areas: digital design, digital fabrication and material science. </p>
<p>To begin, architects create computer models of all the components that will be printed. These designers can then use software to test how the components will respond to structural forces and tweak the components accordingly. These tools can also help the designer figure out how to reduce the weight of components and automate certain design processes, such as smoothing complex geometric intersections, prior to printing. </p>
<p>A piece of software <a href="https://all3dp.com/2/what-is-a-3d-slicer-simply-explained/">known as a slicer</a> then translates the computer model into a set of instructions for the 3D printer. </p>
<p>You might assume 3D printers work at a relatively small scale – think <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1MmjBLYMNWY">cellphone cases</a> and <a href="https://cults3d.com/en/tags/toothbrush%20holder">toothbrush holders</a>.</p>
<p>But advances in 3D printing technology have allowed the hardware <a href="https://ceadgroup.com/large-scale-3d-printing-robot-vs-gantry-systems/">to scale up in a serious way</a>. Sometimes the printing is done via what’s called <a href="https://all3dp.com/2/3d-printer-gantry-simply-explained/">a gantry-based system</a> – a rectangular framework of sliding rails similar to a desktop 3D printer. Increasingly, <a href="https://all3dp.com/1/robotic-arm-3d-printing-platforms-software/">robotic arms</a> are used due to their ability to print in any orientation.</p>
<figure>
<iframe width="440" height="260" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/fpl6EPlCF2E?wmode=transparent&start=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe>
<figcaption><span class="caption">Robotic arms allow for more flexibility in the construction process.</span></figcaption>
</figure>
<p>The printing site can also vary. Furnishings and smaller components can be printed in factories, while entire houses must be printed on-site. </p>
<p>A range of materials can be used for large-scale additive manufacturing. Concrete is a popular choice due to its familiarity and durability. Clay is an intriguing alternative because it can be harvested on-site – which is what the designers of Tecla did. </p>
<p>But plastics and polymers could have the broadest application. These materials are incredibly versatile, and they can be formulated in ways that meet a wide range of specific structural and aesthetic requirements. They can also be produced from recycled and organically derived materials.</p>
<h2>Inspiration from nature</h2>
<p>Because additive manufacturing builds layer by layer, using only the material and energy required to make a particular component, it’s a far more efficient building process than “<a href="https://formlabs.com/blog/additive-manufacturing-vs-subtractive-manufacturing/">subtractive methods</a>,” which involve cutting away excess material – think milling a wood beam out of a tree.</p>
<p>Even common materials like concrete and plastics benefit from being 3D-printed, since there’s no need for additional formwork or molds. </p>
<p>Most construction materials today are mass-produced on assembly lines that are designed to produce the same components. While reducing cost, <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2023/01/20/realestate/housing-developments-city-architecture.html">this process leaves little room for customization</a>.</p>
<p>Since there is no need for tooling, forms or dies, large-scale additive manufacturing allows each part to be unique, with no time penalty for added complexity or customization. </p>
<p>Another interesting feature of large-scale additive manufacturing is the capability to produce complex components with internal voids. This may one day allow for walls to be printed with conduit or ductwork already in place. </p>
<p>In addition, <a href="https://www.nationaldefensemagazine.org/articles/2017/10/30/defense-industry-moves-toward-multi-material-3d-printing">research is taking place</a> to explore the possibilities of multi-material 3D printing, a technique that could allow windows, insulation, structural reinforcement – even wiring – to be fully integrated into a single printed component.</p>
<p>One of the aspects of additive manufacturing that excites me most is the way in which building layer by layer, with a slowly hardening material, mirrors natural processes, like shell formation.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="Corner of home built layer by layer." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/518244/original/file-20230329-20-32bge5.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/518244/original/file-20230329-20-32bge5.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/518244/original/file-20230329-20-32bge5.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/518244/original/file-20230329-20-32bge5.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/518244/original/file-20230329-20-32bge5.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/518244/original/file-20230329-20-32bge5.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/518244/original/file-20230329-20-32bge5.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">A 3D-printed house in Shanghai that was built in less than 24 hours out of construction waste.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/news-photo/general-view-of-3d-printed-house-is-seen-at-shanghai-news-photo/454138872?adppopup=true">Visual China Group/Getty Images</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>This opens up windows of opportunity, allowing designers to implement geometries that are difficult to produce using other construction methods, but are common in nature. </p>
<p>Structural frames <a href="https://blog.interface.com/en-uk/biomimicry-the-biomimetic-office-building/">inspired by the fine structure of bird bones</a> could create lightweight lattices of tubes, with varying sizes reflecting the forces acting upon them. Façades that <a href="http://papers.cumincad.org/data/works/att/ecaade2021_133.pdf">evoke the shapes of plant leaves</a> might be designed to simultaneously shade the building and produce solar power. </p>
<h2>Overcoming the learning curve</h2>
<p>Despite the many positive aspects of large-scale additive manufacturing, there are a number of impediments to its wider adoption. </p>
<p>Perhaps the biggest to overcome is its novelty. There is an entire infrastructure built around traditional forms of construction like steel, concrete and wood, which include supply chains and building codes. In addition, the cost of digital fabrication hardware is relatively high, and the specific design skills needed to work with these new materials are not yet widely taught.</p>
<p>In order for 3D printing in architecture to become more widely adopted, it will need to find its niche. Similar to how <a href="https://lowendmac.com/2016/word-processing-and-personal-computers/">word processing helped popularize desktop computers</a>, I think it will be a specific application of large-scale additive manufacturing that will lead to its common use.</p>
<p>Perhaps it will be its ability to print highly efficient structural frames. I also already see its promise for creating unique sculptural façades that can be recycled and reprinted at the end of their useful life. </p>
<p>Either way, it seems likely that some combination of factors will ensure that future buildings will, in some part, be 3D-printed.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="White lattice building façade." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/518271/original/file-20230329-16-uhc7i.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/518271/original/file-20230329-16-uhc7i.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=530&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/518271/original/file-20230329-16-uhc7i.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=530&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/518271/original/file-20230329-16-uhc7i.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=530&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/518271/original/file-20230329-16-uhc7i.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=665&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/518271/original/file-20230329-16-uhc7i.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=665&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/518271/original/file-20230329-16-uhc7i.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=665&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">A 3D-printed façade in Foshan, China.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://acadia-assets.s3.amazonaws.com/project/sub_image_01/D79HZD/_73A8640111a.jpg">The Association for Computer Aided Design in Architecture</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/198954/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>James Rose does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Not since the adoption of the steel frame has there been a development with as much potential to transform the way buildings are conceived and constructed.James Rose, Director of the Institute for Smart Structures, University of TennesseeLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1996612023-02-13T19:33:28Z2023-02-13T19:33:28ZTurkey and Syria earthquake: Long-term funding is needed to support search-and-rescue after major disasters<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/509614/original/file-20230212-30-f3bct0.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=0%2C0%2C8640%2C5755&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Rescue workers continue to clear rubble from collapsed buildings in Antakya, Turkey, six days after two powerful earthquakes caused scores of buildings to collapse.</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">(AP Photo/Petros Giannakouris)</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>The strong and disastrous earthquake that <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/world/turkey-syria-earthquake-2023">shook southern Turkey and Syria on Feb. 6</a> drew attention to search-and-rescue (SAR) operations. The media’s attention raised familiar questions around SAR, including who conducts SAR, what formal and informal SAR teams are available, and how long trapped people are able to survive before being rescued. </p>
<p>Over the past 50 years, <a href="https://doi.org/10.1007/978-0-387-32353-4_12">many studies</a> <a href="https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-7717.2010.01184.x">have been conducted</a> <a href="https://doi.org/10.1136/bmjgh-2020-002398">to address</a> <a href="https://doi.org/10.1111/1468-5973.12305">these questions</a>.</p>
<p>I have been researching and examining earthquakes, building codes, urban planning and emergency operations <a href="https://doi.org/10.1111/1467-7717.00067">since 1990</a>, after experiencing the <a href="https://earthquake.usgs.gov/learn/today/index.php?month=6&day=20&submit=View+Date">Manjil-Roudbar earthquake in Iran</a>. Just after midnight on June 21, I was woken up by the magnitude 7.6 earthquake. More than <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/world/2019/nov/08/iran-earthquake-significant-casualties-likely-after-59-tremor-hits-north-west">40,000 people lost their lives and over 300,000 were injured</a>. </p>
<h2>The last option for saving lives</h2>
<p>Referring to an earthquake as a “<a href="https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/world/2023/02/09/turkey-earthquake-live-updates-death-toll/11218360002/">killer earthquake</a>” ignores the harsh reality that the buildings killed people. Until having an effective earthquake <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0012825220302300">early warning</a>, we need to rely on building codes and urban and physical planning. However, <a href="https://www.preventionweb.net/files/10591_HESITokyoPapers.pdf">most cities and villages</a> <a href="https://www.gfdrr.org/sites/default/files/publication/BRR%20Exec%20Summary.pdf">in earthquake-prone areas</a> either do not have or are unable to <a href="https://www.undrr.org/media/79595/download">fully implement seismic codes</a> to prevent construction in high hazard zones and enforce building codes. </p>
<p>If a strong earthquake occurs in a region where buildings aren’t constructed to withstand the impact, the only hope for people trapped would be timely, effective and equipped SAR operations.</p>
<p>Search-and-rescue is the last option when it comes to saving lives after a disaster. Most SAR efforts are carried out by <a href="https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2017-09-14/disaster-relief-is-powered-by-civilians">local people</a> and <a href="https://unocha.exposure.co/insarag-1">SAR teams</a>.</p>
<h2>Urbanization and earthquakes</h2>
<p>Rapid urbanization, vertical development and heavy building materials, make it very difficult for untrained and unequipped survivors to locate and extract trapped people from complex and hazardous piles of debris. The need for trained and equipped <a href="https://www.publicsafety.gc.ca/cnt/rsrcs/pblctns/rbn-srch-rsc/index-en.aspx">SAR teams in urban areas has long been established</a>. </p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/509619/original/file-20230212-17-hk916d.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="an aerial photo showing a devastated urban area" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/509619/original/file-20230212-17-hk916d.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/509619/original/file-20230212-17-hk916d.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=338&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/509619/original/file-20230212-17-hk916d.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=338&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/509619/original/file-20230212-17-hk916d.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=338&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/509619/original/file-20230212-17-hk916d.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=424&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/509619/original/file-20230212-17-hk916d.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=424&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/509619/original/file-20230212-17-hk916d.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=424&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">A drone photo showing the massive devastation in Aleppo, Syria, caused by the Feb. 6 earthquake in Syria and Turkey.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">(Shutterstock)</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Many countries have created urban search-and-rescue teams, like <a href="https://www.publicsafety.gc.ca/cnt/mrgnc-mngmnt/rspndng-mrgnc-vnts/hvyrbn-srch-rsc-en.aspx">Canada’s Heavy Urban Search and Rescue Teams or Task Forces</a>. </p>
<p>There is a clear positive correlation between the number of <a href="https://www.iitk.ac.in/nicee/wcee/article/10_vol10_5989.pdf">buildings collapsed and the number of people killed in the earthquakes</a>. In strong earthquakes (measuring more than seven <a href="https://www.usgs.gov/faqs/moment-magnitude-richter-scale-what-are-different-magnitude-scales-and-why-are-there-so-many">on the moment magnitude scale</a>) in high-density urban areas, up to 70 per cent of the collapsed buildings’ occupants become trapped under debris.</p>
<p>After the earthquake, SAR operations race against time because the chances of survival for people trapped under the collapsed buildings fades away rapidly. </p>
<p>Fade-away time — <a href="https://www.iitk.ac.in/nicee/wcee/article/10_vol10_6043.pdf">the length of time between the disaster event and a trapped individual’s chances for survival reaching zero</a> varies depending on multiple factors including age, level of injury, weather conditions and the situation of the victim. For example, for a person with major blood loss, the average maximum chance for survival is almost two days, compared with an average maximum of <a href="https://doi.org/10.1017/s1049023x00003253">6.8 days for someone who is uninjured</a>. </p>
<h2>Complicated rescues</h2>
<p>Rescuing individuals from high-rise multistory buildings is much more complicated and as such, the role of heavy SAR teams becomes critical. In low-density urban or rural areas, the majority of trapped individuals can be rescued within two days without using sophisticated tools, however, this is not the case in <a href="https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/prehospital-and-disaster-medicine/article/surviving-collapsed-structure-entrapment-after-earthquakes-a-timetorescue-analysis/D24F04BFBA9EDA264EA11010418B09B5">multistory buildings</a>.</p>
<p>The <a href="https://www.britannica.com/event/Mexico-City-earthquake-of-1985">1985 Mexico City earthquake</a>, <a href="https://www.nist.gov/el/earthquake-kobe-japan-1995">the 1995 Kobe earthquake</a> and the <a href="https://news.un.org/en/story/2022/01/1109632">2010 Haiti earthquake</a> are prime examples of such complex situations and search and rescue operations. </p>
<p>SAR operations become much more complex if earthquakes occur overnight, because the occupancy rates of the buildings are usually at their highest level and more people are inside the collapsed buildings, such as the timing of the recent earthquakes in Turkey and Syria. </p>
<p>Relying on international SAR teams for the critical hours of search and rescue is not very realistic. Despite the creation of coordinated bodies such as the United Nations <a href="https://www.insarag.org/">International SAR Advisory Group</a>, these teams arrive at the impacted areas too late.</p>
<p>During the 2010 Haiti and 2015 Nepal earthquakes, about 53 international teams arrived in these countries — most arrived after three days. In Haiti, <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/world/2010/jan/23/haiti-ends-quake-rescue-operations">132 people were rescued by the 52 international SAR teams with 1,820 personnel</a>.</p>
<h2>Investing in search-and-rescue capacity</h2>
<p>Putting all these past experiences, evidence and realities together, the bottom line is that earthquake-prone countries — including Canada — need to build capacity and invest in local and national SAR teams to be able to conduct effective and timely search and rescue during the first two days after the event. </p>
<p>Nonetheless, this must be established in conjunction with ensuring new buildings are constructed according to codes and existing buildings are retrofitted as much as possible to minimize the impact of earthquakes. </p>
<p>These are long-term and continued investments that would save many lives in the rare instances of their deployment. The challenge lies in that such long-term investments are not very attractive to those in decision-making positions. Long-term emergency plans require funding, capacity building and investment in search-and-rescue resources. </p>
<p><em>This is a corrected version of a story originally published on Feb. 13, 2023. The earlier story said the Mexico City earthquake was in 1995 instead of 1985.</em></p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/199661/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Ali Asgary does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>The devastating outcomes of earthquakes is worsened when buildings cannot withstand the impact. Also, increased urban density and new construction materials are complicating search-and-rescue efforts.Ali Asgary, Professor, Disaster & Emergency Management, Faculty of Liberal Arts & Professional Studies & Director, CIFAL York, York University, CanadaLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1955932022-12-30T08:27:09Z2022-12-30T08:27:09ZFive human technologies inspired by nature – from velcro to racing cars<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/500467/original/file-20221212-114007-p3m533.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=0%2C0%2C3055%2C2024&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Many of humanity's innovations have taken inspiration from the natural world.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/great-white-shark-carcharodon-carcharias-surface-1706225779">Alessandro De Maddalena/Shutterstock</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>Nature has, over millions of years, evolved solutions to adapt to an array of challenges. As the challenges facing humanity become more complex, we are seeing inspiration being increasingly drawn from nature. </p>
<p>Taking biological processes and applying them to technological and design problems is called <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/topics/agricultural-and-biological-sciences/bioinspiration">bioinspiration</a>. This is a fast-growing field, and our ability to copy nature is becoming more sophisticated. Here are five striking examples where nature has guided human innovation – and in some cases, could lead to even more exciting breakthroughs. </p>
<h2>1. Navigation</h2>
<p>Using <a href="https://www.nps.gov/subjects/bats/echolocation.htm">echolocation</a>, bats are able to fly in <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/B9780128093245210316">complete darkness</a>. They emit sound and ultrasound waves, then monitor the time and magnitude of these waves’ reflections to create <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S1071581907000833">three-dimensional spatial maps</a> of their surroundings. </p>
<p>The sensors that identify obstacles when reversing in many modern cars are <a href="https://www.techbriefs.com/component/content/article/tb/pub/features/articles/36374">inspired</a> by bat navigation. The direction and distance of an obstacle is calculated by emitting ultrasound waves which reflect off objects in a car’s path.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/498452/original/file-20221201-6347-cjueta.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/498452/original/file-20221201-6347-cjueta.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=429&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/498452/original/file-20221201-6347-cjueta.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=429&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/498452/original/file-20221201-6347-cjueta.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=429&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/498452/original/file-20221201-6347-cjueta.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=539&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/498452/original/file-20221201-6347-cjueta.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=539&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/498452/original/file-20221201-6347-cjueta.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=539&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">The echolocation concept has been adopted by many technologies in modern life, Amin Al-Habaibeh, Author provided.</span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Sensory navigation technologies have also been <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1877050915031312">proposed</a> to improve the safety of those with restricted vision. Ultrasound sensors installed on the human body would offer sound-based feedback of a person’s surroundings. This would allow them to move more freely by eliminating the threat of obstacles.</p>
<h2>2. Construction equipment</h2>
<p>Woodpeckers <a href="https://www.batzner.com/resources/blog-posts/why-woodpeckers-peck-and-prevent-them-from-pecking-your-house/#:%7E:text=They%20peck%20at%20wood%20to,is%20attached%20to%20a%20building.">knock</a> on the hard surface of trees to forage for food, build nests and attract a mate. Construction tools, such as handheld hydraulic and pneumatic hammers, mimic the <a href="https://apologeticspress.org/the-jackhammer-in-your-backyard-2315/">vibrating bill of a woodpecker</a> using a frequency roughly equivalent to a woodpecker’s hammering (<a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S1672652914600457">20 to 25 Hz</a>). </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="A woodpecker feeding chicks in its nest in a hole of a tree." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/499263/original/file-20221206-25-zf8fph.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/499263/original/file-20221206-25-zf8fph.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/499263/original/file-20221206-25-zf8fph.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/499263/original/file-20221206-25-zf8fph.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/499263/original/file-20221206-25-zf8fph.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/499263/original/file-20221206-25-zf8fph.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/499263/original/file-20221206-25-zf8fph.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Woodpeckers knock on the hard surface of trees to forage for food, build nests and attract a mate.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/great-spotted-woodpecker-dendrocopos-major-perched-2060062277">Vaclav Matous/Shutterstock</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>But the vibration of these power tools can damage the hands of construction workers. This can, in some cases, cause <a href="https://www.hse.gov.uk/mvr/topics/vibration.htm">vibration white finger</a>, a condition where sufferers experience permanent numbness and pain in their hands and arms. </p>
<p><a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0960982222009964">Research</a> is now studying how woodpeckers protect their brains from the impact of repeated drilling. One <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S175161611830688X?via%3Dihub">study</a> found that woodpeckers have several impact-absorbing adaptions that other birds do not have. </p>
<p>Their skull is adapted to be tough and hard, and their tongue wraps around the back of the skull and anchors between their eyes. This protects a woodpecker’s brain by softening the impact of the hammering and its vibrations.</p>
<p>Research such as this is guiding the design of <a href="https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3417/11/22/10584/htm">shock absorbers and vibration control devices</a> to protect the users of such equipment. The same concept has also inspired innovations such as <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2214785319341987">layered shock-absorbing structures</a> for building design.</p>
<h2>3. Building design</h2>
<p>Scallops are molluscs with a fan-shaped, corrugated external shell. The zig-zag shape of these <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/topics/engineering/corrugated-sheet">corrugations</a> strengthens the shell’s structure, enabling it to withstand high pressure under water.</p>
<p>The same process is used to increase the strength of a cardboard box, with corrugated paper material being glued between the two external cardboard layers. The introduction of a corrugated surface significantly increases a material’s strength, in the same way that folding a piece of paper into a zig-zag shape allows it to take an additional load.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/498782/original/file-20221204-55844-i0v9vg.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/498782/original/file-20221204-55844-i0v9vg.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=350&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/498782/original/file-20221204-55844-i0v9vg.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=350&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/498782/original/file-20221204-55844-i0v9vg.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=350&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/498782/original/file-20221204-55844-i0v9vg.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=440&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/498782/original/file-20221204-55844-i0v9vg.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=440&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/498782/original/file-20221204-55844-i0v9vg.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=440&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">A folded piece of paper in a zig-zag shape could withstand heavy load. Amin Al-Habaibeh, Author provided.</span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>The dome-shaped structure of a scallop’s shell also enables it to withstand significant loads. This structure is self-supporting as it distributes the weight evenly over the entire dome shape, reducing the load on a single point. This improves the structure’s stability without the need for reinforcing steel beams and has inspired the <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0378778821003182">design of many buildings</a>, including St Paul’s Cathedral in London. </p>
<h2>4. Transport aerodynamics</h2>
<p>Sharks have two dorsal fins which provide several aerodynamic advantages. They <a href="https://dlnr.hawaii.gov/sharks/anatomy/fins-swimming/#:%7E:text=Dorsal%20fins%20stabilize%20the%20shark,and%20helping%20to%20conserve%20energy.">stabilise the shark</a> from rolling, while their aerofoil shape creates an area of low turbulence behind them and so increases the efficiency of the shark’s forward movement. </p>
<p>Shark fins have been replicated in motorised transportation. For example, racing cars use fins to both reduce turbulence when travelling at high speed and <a href="https://www.roadandtrack.com/motorsports/a28497386/shark-fin-race-car-wing-explained/">improve stability</a> when cornering. </p>
<p>Many road cars now have a small “shark fin” installed on their roof, which is used to integrate their <a href="https://natalexauto.com/blogs/natalex-auto-blog/what-is-the-shark-fin-on-the-roof-of-a-car">radio antenna</a>. This reduces drag compared to the traditional pole antenna.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/498796/original/file-20221204-55991-d268zz.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/498796/original/file-20221204-55991-d268zz.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=336&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/498796/original/file-20221204-55991-d268zz.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=336&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/498796/original/file-20221204-55991-d268zz.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=336&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/498796/original/file-20221204-55991-d268zz.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=423&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/498796/original/file-20221204-55991-d268zz.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=423&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/498796/original/file-20221204-55991-d268zz.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=423&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Shark-fin antenna in a modern car. Amin Al-Habaibeh. Author provided.</span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>We have also taken inspiration from nature to increase the efficiency of aircraft flight. An owl’s wings act as a <a href="https://royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/10.1098/rspb.2020.1748">suspension system</a>; by changing the position, shape and angle of their wings, they are able to <a href="https://royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/10.1098/rspb.2020.1748">reduce the effect</a> of turbulence while in flight. And <a href="https://www.nationalgeographic.co.uk/science-and-technology/2021/03/owl-wings-may-hold-the-key-to-turbulence-proof-planes">research</a> into owl flight may open the door to turbulence-free air travel in the future.</p>
<h2>5. Velcro</h2>
<p>The hook-and-loop <a href="https://www.velcro.co.uk/blog/2018/06/how-do-velcro-brand-fasteners-work/#:%7E:text=Hook%20and%20loop%20fasteners%20have,and%20loop%20fastener%20will%20be.">fastening mechanism</a> of <a href="https://www.velcro.com/news-and-blog/2016/11/an-idea-that-stuck-how-george-de-mestral-invented-the-velcro-fastener/">velcro</a> was inspired by the ability of the burrs of burdock plants to fasten to human clothing.</p>
<p>Plants use burrs to <a href="https://homeguides.sfgate.com/plants-burrs-26416.html">attach seed pods</a> to passing animals and people, in order to disperse seeds over wider areas. Burrs possess small hooks that interlock with the small loops in soft material.</p>
<p>Velcro replicates this by using a strip lined with hooks together with a fabric strip. When pressed together, the hooks attach to the loops and fasten to one another. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/498799/original/file-20221204-25475-ps5jqg.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/498799/original/file-20221204-25475-ps5jqg.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=244&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/498799/original/file-20221204-25475-ps5jqg.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=244&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/498799/original/file-20221204-25475-ps5jqg.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=244&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/498799/original/file-20221204-25475-ps5jqg.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=307&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/498799/original/file-20221204-25475-ps5jqg.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=307&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/498799/original/file-20221204-25475-ps5jqg.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=307&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Hook and Loop structure under the microscope. Amin Al-Habaibeh, Author provided.</span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Velcro is used in a wide range of products worldwide. According to <a href="https://www.nasa.gov/offices/ipp/home/myth_tang.html#:%7E:text=Velcro%20was%20used%20during%20the,associated%20with%20the%20Space%20Program.">Nasa</a>, it was used in space during the Apollo missions from 1961 to 1972 to fix equipment in place in zero gravity.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/195593/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Amin Al-Habaibeh does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Humans often look to nature for the solutions to complex problems – here are five times where biological processes have inspired innovation.Amin Al-Habaibeh, Professor of Intelligent Engineering Systems, Nottingham Trent UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1892852022-12-20T22:18:24Z2022-12-20T22:18:24ZSmart buildings: What happens to our free will when tech makes choices for us?<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/481358/original/file-20220826-14-d0tvbm.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=10%2C8%2C988%2C389&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">A so-called smart building. What will become of our free will when choices are made for us by technology embedded in the building?
</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">(Shutterstock)</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>Smart buildings, which are central to the concept of smart cities, are a <a href="https://www.cushmanwakefield.com/en/united-kingdom/insights/smart-buildings">new generation of buildings</a> in which technological devices, such as sensors, are embedded in the structure of the buildings themselves. Smart buildings promise to personalize the experiences of their occupants by using real-time feedback mechanisms and forward-looking management of interactions between humans and the built environment.</p>
<p>This personalization includes continuous monitoring of the activities of occupants and the use of sophisticated profiling models. While these issues spark concerns about privacy, this is a matter of not seeing the forest for the trees. The questions raised by the massive arrival of digital technologies in our living spaces go far beyond this.</p>
<p>As a professor of real estate at ESG-UQAM, I specialize in innovations applied to the real estate sector. My research focuses on smart commercial buildings, for which I am developing a conceptual framework and innovative tools to enable in-depth analysis in the context of smart cities.</p>
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<p>
<em>
<strong>
À lire aussi :
<a href="https://theconversation.com/get-ready-for-the-invasion-of-smart-building-technologies-following-covid-19-168646">Get ready for the invasion of smart building technologies following COVID-19</a>
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</em>
</p>
<hr>
<h2>“Choices” proposed, or imposed</h2>
<p>Thanks to <a href="https://www.btb.termiumplus.gc.ca/tpv2alpha/alpha-eng.html?lang=eng&i=1&srchtxt=ubiquitous+computing&codom2nd_wet=1#resultrecs">ubiquitous computing</a>, interactions between building occupants and nested technology are quiet and invisible. As a result, the occupants’ attention is never drawn to the massive presence of computers operating permanently in the background.</p>
<p>Personalization allows us, for example, to have the ideal temperature and brightness in our workspace at all times. This would be idyllic if this personalization did not come at a cost to the occupants, namely their freedom of action and, more fundamentally, their free will.</p>
<p>As technology increasingly mediates our experiences in the built environment, choices will be offered to us, or even imposed on us, based on the profile the building’s technology device models have created of us in function of the goals, mercantile or otherwise, of those who control them (such as technology companies).</p>
<p>Having the ability to decide either to do something or not, and to act accordingly, is a basic definition of freedom. Smart buildings challenge this freedom by interfering with our ability to act, and more fundamentally, with our ability to decide for ourselves. Is freedom of action even possible for the occupants of a building where interactions between humans and their built environment are produced using algorithms that are never neutral?</p>
<h2>Satisfied… but not free</h2>
<p>The 17th-century English philosopher <a href="https://plato.stanford.edu/entries/locke/">John Locke’s</a> famous analogy of the locked room sheds light on this question. Suppose a sleeping man is transported to a room where, upon awakening, he is engaged in activities that bring him great satisfaction, such as chatting with a long-lost friend.</p>
<p>Unbeknown to him, the door of the room is locked. Thus, he cannot leave the room if he wants to. He is therefore not free, even though he voluntarily remains in the room and gets extreme satisfaction from what he is doing there.</p>
<p>Locke’s analysis reflects the situation of smart building occupants. They benefit from the personalization of their experiences from which they derive great satisfaction. However, once they enter a space, technology controls their interactions outside of their awareness. While they may want to stay in the building to enjoy personalized experiences, they are not free. Smart buildings are a high-tech version of Locke’s locked room.</p>
<p>There’s nothing new about the problem. Already in the 19th century, in <em>Notes from the Underground</em> the Russian Fyodor Dostoyevsky identifies the challenges that computational logic poses to free will.</p>
<blockquote>
<p>You will scream at me … that no one is touching my free will, that all they are concerned with is that my will should of itself, of its own free will, coincide with my own normal interests, with the laws of nature and arithmetic. Good heavens, gentlemen, what sort of free will is left when we come to tabulation and arithmetic…?</p>
</blockquote>
<h2>Deciding on the role of technology in our living spaces</h2>
<p>Indeed, what can be said about our free will when choices are made for us by technology?</p>
<p><a href="https://plato.stanford.edu/entries/locke-freedom/">An action is something we do actively</a>, as opposed to things that happen to us in a passive way. Also, the active will to perform an action differs from the passive desire for an act to be done.</p>
<p>While algorithms are concerned with the predictability of human behaviour, things happen passively to the occupants of smart buildings. Their role is limited to receiving stimuli whilst the invisibility of the technology maintains their illusion that they have sole control over their actions.</p>
<p>These human-built environment interactions erode our will to take action, replacing it with desires shaped and calibrated by models over which we have no control. By denying the free will of their occupants, smart buildings challenge the right to action that the German philosopher <a href="https://hac.bard.edu/amor-mundi/everything-is-fragile-reading-arendt-in-the-anthropocene-2020-01-02">Hannah Arendt</a> defines as one of the most fundamental rights of humans, the one that differentiates us from animals.</p>
<p>So, should we prohibit, or at least regulate, the technology embedded in smart buildings?</p>
<p>The answer to this question takes us back to the very origins of Western democracy. Long before the Big Tech companies (<a href="https://www.investopedia.com/terms/g/gafam-stocks.asp">GAFAM</a>), the Greek Socrates (who died in 399 BC) was concerned with the nature of an ideal city. In Plato’s <a href="https://iep.utm.edu/republic/"><em>The Republic</em></a>, Socrates explains that the difference between a city where citizens have all the luxuries and a city without luxuries, which he calls “a city fit for pigs,” is the ability of the residents of the former to choose their way of life, unlike the residents of the latter where this choice is simply not possible.</p>
<p>Smart cities are the digital version of the luxury cities of antiquity. However, without granting their residents the ability to make informed choices about technology, they provide satisfaction at the expense of their rights.</p>
<p>To avoid building an entire environment according to <a href="https://www.ipl.org/essay/It-Is-Better-To-Be-A-Human-P3FJWSK6JE8R">the philosophy of pigs</a>, smart building occupants should retain the <a href="https://www.researchgate.net/publication/361924759_On_the_Economic_Nature_of_Behavioural_Control_in_Smart_Real_Estate">legally defined right</a> to decide for themselves the role of technology in their living spaces. Only then can their freedom be respected.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/189285/count.gif" alt="La Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Patrick Lecomte ne travaille pas, ne conseille pas, ne possède pas de parts, ne reçoit pas de fonds d'une organisation qui pourrait tirer profit de cet article, et n'a déclaré aucune autre affiliation que son organisme de recherche.</span></em></p>Having the ability to decide either to do something or not, and to act accordingly, is a basic definition of freedom. Smart buildings challenge this freedom.Patrick Lecomte, Professor, Real Estate, Université du Québec à Montréal (UQAM)Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1956112022-12-01T21:51:00Z2022-12-01T21:51:00ZFive ways drones will change the way buildings are designed<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/498004/original/file-20221129-22-g5a643.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=62%2C170%2C5907%2C3812&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">
</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/silhouette-drone-concept-city-418802431">elwynn/Shutterstock</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>Drones are already shaping the face of our cities – used for building planning, heritage, construction and safety enhancement. But, as studies by the UK’s <a href="https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/579550/drones-uk-public-dialogue.pdf">Department of Transport</a> have found, swathes of the public have a limited understanding of how drones might be practically applied. </p>
<p>It’s crucial that the ways drones are affecting our future are <a href="https://www.routledge.com/Drone-Futures-UAS-in-Landscape-and-Urban-Design/Cureton/p/book/9780815380511">understood by the majority</a> of people. As experts in design futures and mobility, we hope this short overview of five ways drones will affect building design offers some knowledge of how things are likely to change.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/498002/original/file-20221129-16-p656p4.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="Infographic showcasing other ways drones will influence future building design." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/498002/original/file-20221129-16-p656p4.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/498002/original/file-20221129-16-p656p4.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=834&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/498002/original/file-20221129-16-p656p4.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=834&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/498002/original/file-20221129-16-p656p4.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=834&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/498002/original/file-20221129-16-p656p4.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=1048&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/498002/original/file-20221129-16-p656p4.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=1048&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/498002/original/file-20221129-16-p656p4.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=1048&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Infographic showcasing other ways drones will influence future building design.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Nuri Kwon, Drone Near-Futures, Imagination Lancaster</span>, <span class="license">Author provided</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>1. Creating digital models of buildings</h2>
<p>Drones can take photographs of buildings, which are then used to build 3D models of buildings in computer-aided design software.</p>
<p>These models have accuracy to within a centimetre, and can be combined with other data, such as 3D scans of interiors using drones or laser scanners, in order to provide a completely accurate picture of the structure for surveyors, architects and clients.</p>
<p>Using these digital models saves time and money in the construction process by providing a <a href="https://youtu.be/n6CMPW2gQNo">single source</a> that architects and planners can view.</p>
<h2>2. Heritage simulations</h2>
<p><a href="https://studiodrift.com/">Studio Drift</a> are a multidisciplinary team of Dutch artists who have used drones to construct images through theatrical outdoor drone performances at damaged national heritage sites such as the <a href="https://theconversation.com/notre-dame-and-venice-why-such-a-gap-in-generosity-130733">Notre Dame in Paris</a>, Colosseum in Rome and <a href="https://theconversation.com/the-sagrada-familia-how-gaudis-masterpiece-became-a-myth-and-a-divisive-political-tool-173456">Gaudí’s Sagrada Familia</a> in Barcelona.</p>
<p><div data-react-class="InstagramEmbed" data-react-props="{"url":"https://www.instagram.com/p/CkJC4heKVJy/?utm_source=ig_embed\u0026utm_campaign=loading\u0026hl=en","accessToken":"127105130696839|b4b75090c9688d81dfd245afe6052f20"}"></div></p>
<p>Drones could be used in the near-future in a similar way to help planners to visualise the final impact of restoration or construction work on a damaged or partially finished building.</p>
<h2>3. Drone delivery</h2>
<p>The arrival of drone delivery services will see significant changes to buildings in our communities, which will need to provide for docking stations at community hubs, shops and pick-up points. </p>
<figure class="align-right zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/498006/original/file-20221129-14-ge0pgp.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="A delivery drone in shiny white pictured against a sunset." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/498006/original/file-20221129-14-ge0pgp.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/498006/original/file-20221129-14-ge0pgp.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=352&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/498006/original/file-20221129-14-ge0pgp.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=352&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/498006/original/file-20221129-14-ge0pgp.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=352&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/498006/original/file-20221129-14-ge0pgp.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=442&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/498006/original/file-20221129-14-ge0pgp.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=442&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/498006/original/file-20221129-14-ge0pgp.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=442&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Wingcopter are one of many companies trialling delivery drones.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Wingcopter_on_Bugarura_Island.jpg">Akash 1997</a>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/">CC BY-SA</a></span>
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</figure>
<p>There are likely to be landing pads installed on the roofs of residential homes and dedicated drone-delivery hubs. Research has shown that drones can help with the last mile of any <a href="https://etrr.springeropen.com/articles/10.1186/s12544-019-0368-2">delivery</a> in the UK, Germany, France and Italy. </p>
<p>Architects of the future will need to add these facilities into their building designs.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/when-it-comes-to-delivery-drones-the-government-is-selling-us-a-pipe-dream-experts-explain-the-real-costs-195361">When it comes to delivery drones, the government is selling us a pipe dream. Experts explain the real costs</a>
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</em>
</p>
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<h2>4. Drones mounted with 3D printers.</h2>
<p>Two research projects from architecture, design, planning, and consulting firm <a href="https://www.gensler.com/gri/3d-printing-takes-flight">Gensler</a> and another from a consortium led by Imperial College London (comprising University College London, University of Bath, University of Pennsylvania, Queen Mary University of London, and Technical University of Munich) named <a href="https://www.imperial.ac.uk/news/239973/3d-printing-drones-work-like-bees/">Empa</a> have been experimenting with drones with mounted 3D printers. These drones would work at speed to construct emergency shelters or repair buildings at significant heights, without the need for scaffolding, or in difficult to reach locations, providing safety benefits.</p>
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<iframe width="440" height="260" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/pDKNEO0gDuE?wmode=transparent&start=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe>
<figcaption><span class="caption">Demonstration of a 3D printing drone.</span></figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Gensler have already used drones for <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/s41586-022-04988-4.">wind turbine repair</a> and researchers at Imperial College are exploring bee-like drone swarms that work together to construct blueprints. The drones coordinate with each other to follow a pre-defined path in a project called Aerial Additive Manufacturing. For now, the work is merely a demonstration of the technology, and not working on a specific building.</p>
<p>In the future, drones with mounted 3D printers could help create highly customised buildings at speed, but how this could change the workforce and the potential consequences for manual labour jobs is yet to be understood.</p>
<h2>5. Agile surveillance</h2>
<p>Drones offer new possibilities for surveillance away from the static, fixed nature of current systems such as closed circuit television.</p>
<p>Drones with cameras and sensors relying on complex software systems such as biometric indicators and “face recognition” will probably be the next level of <a href="https://skylarklabs.ai/">surveillance</a> applied by governments and police forces, as well as providing security monitoring for homeowners. Drones would likely be fitted with monitoring devices, which could communicate with security or police forces. </p>
<p>Drones used in this way could help our buildings <a href="https://www.evolo.us/category/2016/">become more responsive</a> to intrusions, and adaptable to changing climates. Drones may move parts of the building such as shade-creating devices, following the path of the sun to stop buildings overheating, for example.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/195611/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>The authors do not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and have disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>From building planning to heritage restoration and advance surveillance, drones are set to change the face of our cities – here’s how.Paul Cureton, Senior Lecturer in Design (People, Places, Products), Lancaster UniversityOle B. Jensen, Professor of Urban Theory and Urban Design, Aalborg UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1946362022-11-21T19:16:30Z2022-11-21T19:16:30ZWhat mirrored ants, vivid blue butterflies and Monstera house plants can teach us about designing buildings<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/495523/original/file-20221116-19-oq2ili.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=0%2C950%2C2904%2C1940&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">
</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://unsplash.com/photos/OZ2rS2zCjNo">Coleen Rivas/Unsplash</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>Almost all buildings today are built using similar conventional technologies and manufacturing and construction processes. These processes use a lot of energy and produce <a href="https://www.unep.org/resources/publication/2022-global-status-report-buildings-and-construction">huge carbon emissions</a>. </p>
<p>This is hardly sustainable. Perhaps the only way to truly construct sustainable buildings is by connecting them with nature, not isolating them from it. This is where the field of bioarchitecture emerges. It draws on principles from nature to help solve technological questions and address global challenges. </p>
<p>Take desert organisms, for example. How do they survive and thrive under extreme conditions? </p>
<p>One such desert species is the Saharan silver ant, named for its shiny mirror-like body. Its reflective body <a href="https://www.bnl.gov/newsroom/news.php?a=111737">reflects and dissipates heat</a>. It’s an adaptation we can apply in buildings as reflective walls, or to pavements that don’t heat up.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="several ants surround a beetle on the desert sand" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/495776/original/file-20221117-13-adq7pk.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/495776/original/file-20221117-13-adq7pk.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/495776/original/file-20221117-13-adq7pk.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/495776/original/file-20221117-13-adq7pk.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/495776/original/file-20221117-13-adq7pk.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/495776/original/file-20221117-13-adq7pk.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/495776/original/file-20221117-13-adq7pk.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Saharan desert ants have highly developed adaptations to stay cool in the desert heat.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Saharan_silver_ants_capturing_beetle.jpg">Bjørn Christian Tørrissen/Wikimedia Commons</a>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/">CC BY-SA</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>There are so many aspects of nature we can drawn on. Picture cities with shopping centres based on water lilies, stadiums resembling seashells, and lightweight bridges inspired by cells. </p>
<p>Water lilies can teach us how to design large buildings efficiently with smooth pedestrian circulation. Seashells can inspire the walls of large-span buildings without the need for columns. Cells can show us how to develop lightweight suspending structures. </p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/building-a-second-nature-into-our-cities-wildness-art-and-biophilic-design-88642">Building a 'second nature' into our cities: wildness, art and biophilic design</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<h2>Bioarchitecture works with nature, not against it</h2>
<p>Bioarchitecture can reinvent the natural environment in the form of our built environment, to provide the ultimate and somehow obvious solutions for the threats Earth is facing. </p>
<p>Most industry-led and research-based approaches focus on the “technology to save us” from climate change. In contrast, bioarchitecture offers a more sustainable approach that aims to develop a positive relationship between buildings and nature. </p>
<p>Living organisms constantly communicate with the natural world. They move around their environment, employ chemical processes and undergo complex reactions, patterning their habitat. This means living systems constantly model and organise the environment around them. They are able to adapt and, in doing so, they change their environment too. </p>
<p>Can buildings do the same in cities? If buildings could grow, self-repair and adapt to climate, they might ultimately become truly sustainable. </p>
<p>Early examples of bioarchitecture can be found in traditional and early modern buildings. Their architects observed nature to copy its principles and design more habitable, locally made and environmentally friendly buildings. For example, Gaudi’s Sagrada Familia in Barcelona, Spain, is inspired by natural shapes that give the church its organic form. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="Highly decorative interior of church – Gaudi's Sagrada Família" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/495525/original/file-20221116-25-jg8jjc.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/495525/original/file-20221116-25-jg8jjc.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/495525/original/file-20221116-25-jg8jjc.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/495525/original/file-20221116-25-jg8jjc.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/495525/original/file-20221116-25-jg8jjc.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/495525/original/file-20221116-25-jg8jjc.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/495525/original/file-20221116-25-jg8jjc.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Gaudi`s Sagrada Familia in Barcelona is an early modern example of bioarchitecture.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://unsplash.com/photos/Z5WBz_9U7sE">Sung Jin Cho/Unsplash</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>More recent works showcase bioarchitecture that learnt from nature coupled with technology and innovation. Examples include using bio-based materials such as wood, hemp and bamboo, applying <a href="https://www.britannica.com/science/biophilia-hypothesis">biophilia</a> through using greenery on external walls and plants indoors to boost our connection with nature, and restoring the environment by making buildings part of it. </p>
<p>Considering the climate emergency, we should strengthen buildings’ coherence with nature. Bioarchitecture can do this.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/bamboo-architecture-balis-green-school-inspires-a-global-renaissance-121248">Bamboo architecture: Bali's Green School inspires a global renaissance</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<h2>So what can a butterfly teach us?</h2>
<p>The blue Menelaus butterfly offers another striking example of design solutions from nature. Despite its radiant blue colour, it is not actually blue and does not have any pigments. Producing and maintaining pigments is expensive in nature, as it requires a lot of energy. </p>
<p>The Menelaus butterfly has an ingenious way to achieve its unique colour without pigments. Its brilliant blue shine comes from scattering light, similar to soap bubbles glimmering in rainbow colours under the sun, despite being completely transparent. The light is scattered by micro-grooves on the butterfly’s wings – so small that they can only be seen with an ultra-high-resolution microscope.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="Brilliant blue butterfly on dark green leaf" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/495522/original/file-20221116-21-a46cwt.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/495522/original/file-20221116-21-a46cwt.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=337&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/495522/original/file-20221116-21-a46cwt.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=337&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/495522/original/file-20221116-21-a46cwt.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=337&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/495522/original/file-20221116-21-a46cwt.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=424&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/495522/original/file-20221116-21-a46cwt.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=424&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/495522/original/file-20221116-21-a46cwt.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=424&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">The Menelaus blue butterfly.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://unsplash.com/photos/jJXN1q7ERks">Damon on Road/Unsplash</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>This is nature’s way to achieve high performance with cheap forms instead of costly materials. Learning from the Menelaus butterfly, we can have windows with climate-adaptable properties – changing their colour and scattering light according to the position of the sun. Butterfly wings have already inspired the <a href="https://www.cyprismaterials.com/">development of new materials</a>, and the next step is to use these on buildings.</p>
<p>In this way, we can design biobuildings that reflect excessive radiation and reduce cooling needs and glare. And the beautiful part is that this may all be done without obstructing views and without the need for shading devices or tinted windows. </p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/five-ways-that-natural-nanotechnology-could-inspire-human-design-100064">Five ways that natural nanotechnology could inspire human design</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<h2>And what does a pot plant have to do with buildings?</h2>
<figure class="align-right zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/495524/original/file-20221116-21-jobvcs.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="Image of four large leaves of indoor plant" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/495524/original/file-20221116-21-jobvcs.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/495524/original/file-20221116-21-jobvcs.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=800&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/495524/original/file-20221116-21-jobvcs.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=800&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/495524/original/file-20221116-21-jobvcs.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=800&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/495524/original/file-20221116-21-jobvcs.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=1005&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/495524/original/file-20221116-21-jobvcs.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=1005&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/495524/original/file-20221116-21-jobvcs.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=1005&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">The leaves of the Monstera plant.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://unsplash.com/photos/70l1tDAI6rM">Chris Lee/Unsplash</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Then there is Monstera, a sought-after indoor plant that climbs up the walls. It’s also called the “Swiss cheese plant” for the holes on its leaves. Have you ever thought about how it thrives and grows like no other plant indoors? </p>
<p>Monstera simply needs to <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/B9780123858511000044">sustain fewer cells</a> to maintain extra large leaves because of their holes. This enables it to capture more of the sunlight it needs to grow and spread out over a bigger area.</p>
<p>Now imagine if we designed hollow building structures such as columns and beams. This could help minimise the need for materials and cut carbon emissions by reducing the embodied energy that goes into making these materials.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/how-the-wings-of-owls-and-hummingbirds-inspire-drones-wind-turbines-and-other-technology-136684">How the wings of owls and hummingbirds inspire drones, wind turbines and other technology</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<h2>Nature offers a vast design catalogue</h2>
<p>We can look at nature as a catalogue of designs and solutions to be reimagined as bioarchitecture. So, we could have shiny silver pavements like the silver ant, metallic-coloured but transparent windows like the Menelaus butterfly, and buildings that use the minimum of materials like Monstera’s leaves.</p>
<p>Nature is wealthy, nature is generous. Through bioarchitecture, buildings can dive into that wealth and become a part of the generosity. Truly sustainable biobuildings can be constructed that work with nature and reverse the harm our conventional building technologies have done to the planet.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/194636/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Aysu Kuru does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Bioarchitecture draws on design principles from nature to construct buildings that work in ways that help tackle climate change and reverse environmental damage.Aysu Kuru, Lecturer in Architecture and Construction, University of SydneyLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1902032022-10-17T19:13:24Z2022-10-17T19:13:24ZEmpty buildings consume more energy than you think<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/490001/original/file-20221017-14-g3xky2.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=53%2C101%2C4439%2C2889&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Buildings consume more energy when empty or partially occupied for extended periods because they are designed to depend on human interactions.</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">(Shutterstock)</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>Over the past few decades, the booming global population, growing cities and changing climate have brought global attention to the need to build energy-efficient and sustainable buildings.</p>
<p>Evidence suggests that <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scs.2022.103832">residential energy use</a> increased during the pandemic. But what do we know about how people impact energy use in buildings they don’t occupy? </p>
<p><a href="https://carleton.ca/hbilab/">In a recent paper</a>, our team at the Human-Building Interaction Lab uncovered that <a href="https://doi.org/10.1007/s12273-021-0864-x">empty buildings consume more energy than we thought</a>. </p>
<p>Buildings consume more energy when empty or partially occupied for extended periods because they are designed to depend on human interactions.</p>
<h2>Empty buildings</h2>
<p>Our research found that empty buildings consume more energy in colder climates because the heating, ventilation and air conditioning (HVAC) systems need to compensate for lost heat usually generated by the daily activities of people in these buildings.</p>
<figure class="align-right zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/489906/original/file-20221016-27-hio90z.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="A figure that illustrates the number of occupants in a sample building during a workday." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/489906/original/file-20221016-27-hio90z.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/489906/original/file-20221016-27-hio90z.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=500&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/489906/original/file-20221016-27-hio90z.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=500&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/489906/original/file-20221016-27-hio90z.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=500&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/489906/original/file-20221016-27-hio90z.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=629&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/489906/original/file-20221016-27-hio90z.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=629&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/489906/original/file-20221016-27-hio90z.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=629&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">An illustration of the number of occupants in a sample building during a workday.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">(Farzam Kharvari)</span>, <span class="license">Author provided</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>A primary reason behind the increase in energy use is <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.enbuild.2015.10.044">static schedules that are used for designing buildings</a>. Static schedules provide an hourly estimate of the number of people that would occupy these buildings. While these schedules are incorporated into the building design, they do not consider the actual number of people or their movements in buildings. As a consequence, <a href="https://doi.org/10.1007/s12273-021-0864-x">our buildings were not able to adapt to emptiness during lockdowns</a>.</p>
<p>Although <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.buildenv.2020.106966">the research on replacing static schedules with stochastic schedules — schedules that consider various factors and attributes including, but not limited to occupancy — is growing</a>, our research demonstrated that implementing simple strategies like installing smart technologies can help empty buildings adapt to partial occupancy.</p>
<h2>Using smart technologies</h2>
<p>Technologies that sense the presence of people or count the number of occupants <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.enbuild.2015.10.044">can help to mitigate the negative impacts of static schedules</a>. </p>
<figure>
<iframe width="440" height="260" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/BQRA5AoT984?wmode=transparent&start=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe>
<figcaption><span class="caption">Smart technology can help empty buildings save energy.</span></figcaption>
</figure>
<p><a href="https://doi.org/10.1080/19401493.2020.1807604">The simplest tech used widely in offices is occupancy sensors for lighting</a>. A wide variety of products that control lighting in buildings, from simple auto-switches to smart dimmable lights, are easily available today. They primarily work with a simple indoor motion-detecting device that controls lighting and are capable of saving electricity efficiently.</p>
<p><a href="https://www.nrel.gov/docs/fy13osti/55780.pdf">Smart plugs can also reduce electricity consumption</a>. Smart plugs allow you to control your devices remotely. But more importantly, they can be used to control the devices that use electricity when they are on standby and have the potential to reduce electricity usage for equipment.</p>
<p>Another tech used in buildings is <a href="https://doi.org/10.1080/23744731.2020.1831318">demand-controlled ventilation (DCV)</a>, which helps to control the airflow and adjust the ventilation of the HVAC systems based on the occupancy. Research has shown that <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.buildenv.2020.106966">DCV is capable of saving energy significantly, especially in colder climates</a> because the HVAC system needs to heat less outdoor air for the indoor spaces during partial occupancy.</p>
<p>It was also shown that reducing the thermostat setpoint in empty spaces significantly impacts energy savings in offices as the HVAC systems heat the space to a lower temperature. The arrival of <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.buildenv.2021.108104">smart thermostats can boost saving more energy in empty buildings</a>. Having dedicated thermostats for different spaces within a building <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.enbuild.2021.110776">can not only result in saving energy, but also provide occupants with better thermal comfort</a>.</p>
<h2>Strategy is key</h2>
<p>While using smart technology can help buildings adapt to partial occupancy, considering this partial occupancy during the design phase can maximize the building’s potential energy savings. For instance, offices with multiple floors or partitions can consider moving employees to one side or to one specific floor during partial occupancy. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="A person draws a blueprint of an office building" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/490004/original/file-20221017-12-ekiijp.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/490004/original/file-20221017-12-ekiijp.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/490004/original/file-20221017-12-ekiijp.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/490004/original/file-20221017-12-ekiijp.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/490004/original/file-20221017-12-ekiijp.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/490004/original/file-20221017-12-ekiijp.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/490004/original/file-20221017-12-ekiijp.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Designing smart and adaptive buildings to save energy trumps the use of smart technology alone.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">(Shutterstock)</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Whether you are considering getting a new smart thermostat for your office or buying smart plugs, new tech can get expensive. </p>
<p>It is, therefore, important to start equipping buildings with solutions that encourage optimum energy and monetary savings. These potential savings can vary based on the climate, type of building and many other factors. </p>
<p>Individually assessing each building to gauge the performance of different technology and strategies can help sustain buildings in the absence of human interactions or partial occupancy periods. This in turn will help reduce emissions and strengthen our fights against climate change.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/190203/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Farzam Sepanta does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Buildings are designed for people to live in, but what happens when no one is present or only half of the occupants are there?Farzam Sepanta, PhD Candidate, Building Engineering, Carleton UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1897972022-10-16T19:02:36Z2022-10-16T19:02:36ZYour home, office or uni affects your mood and how you think. How do we know? We looked into people’s brains<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/485805/original/file-20220921-22-kvej8r.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=0%2C0%2C1920%2C1077&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">
</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://unsplash.com/photos/DIewyzpUbRc">Natalia Yakovleva/Unsplash</a>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/">CC BY-SA</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>Think of a time when you felt vulnerable. Perhaps you were in a hospital corridor, or an exam hall, about to be tested. Now, focus on the building you were in. What if, without you knowing, the design of that space was affecting you?</p>
<p>We study <a href="https://psychology.org.au/community/advocacy-social-issues/environment-climate-change-psychology/psychologys-role-in-environmental-issues/what-is-environmental-psychology">environmental psychology</a>, a growing field of research investigating the relationship between humans and the external world. This includes natural, and human-made environments, such as buildings. </p>
<p>Researchers could just ask people what they feel when inside a building – how pleasant or unpleasant they feel, the intensity of that feeling, and how in control they feel.</p>
<p>But we use neuroscience to see how the brain is stimulated when inside a building. The idea is for people to one day use that information to design better buildings – classrooms that help us concentrate, or hospital waiting rooms that reduce our anxiety.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/build-me-up-how-architecture-can-affect-emotions-22950">Build me up: how architecture can affect emotions</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<h2>Why study buildings this way?</h2>
<p>We spend <a href="https://www.health.vic.gov.au/chief-health-officer/healthy-indoor-environments">at least 80% of our lives</a> inside buildings. So it is critical we understand whether the buildings we occupy are affecting our brain and body.</p>
<p>Buildings – hospitals, schools, offices, homes – are often complex. They can have various contents (fixtures, fittings and objects), levels of comfort (such as the light, sound, and air quality). Other people occupy the space. </p>
<p>There are also a range of design characteristics we can notice inside a building. These include colour (wall paint, chair colour), texture (carpet tiles, timber gym floor), geometry (curved walls or straight, angular ones), and scale (proportions of height and width of a room).</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/we-can-use-colour-to-communicate-how-we-feel-heres-how-90157">We can use colour to communicate how we feel – here's how</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<h2>What did we do?</h2>
<p>We wanted to see what effect changing some of these characteristics had on the brain and body.</p>
<p>So we asked participants to sit in the middle of a virtual-reality (VR) room for 20 minutes.</p>
<p>We designed the room with a door (to show height) and chair (to show depth), keeping it empty of other cues that might influence people. We modelled the room using dimensions set by the local building code.</p>
<p>Other studies have compared <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jenvp.2019.101344">complex environments</a>, which are more realistic to everyday life. But we chose to use a simple VR room so we could understand the impact of changing one characteristic at a time.</p>
<p>To measure brain activity, we used a technique called electroencephalography. This is where we placed electrodes on the scalp to measure electrical activity as brain cells (neurons) send messages to each other.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/485808/original/file-20220921-13-7qqec9.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="Fitting cap of electrodes" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/485808/original/file-20220921-13-7qqec9.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/485808/original/file-20220921-13-7qqec9.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=429&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/485808/original/file-20220921-13-7qqec9.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=429&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/485808/original/file-20220921-13-7qqec9.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=429&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/485808/original/file-20220921-13-7qqec9.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=539&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/485808/original/file-20220921-13-7qqec9.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=539&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/485808/original/file-20220921-13-7qqec9.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=539&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Participants wore a cap covered in electrodes to detect electrical activity in the brain.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Donna Squire</span>, <span class="license">Author provided</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>We also monitored the body by measuring heart rate, breathing and sweat response. This could reveal if someone could detect a change to the environment, without being consciously aware of that change.</p>
<p>Lastly, we asked participants to report their emotions to understand if this matched their brain and body responses.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/buildings-have-their-own-microbiomes-were-striving-to-make-them-healthy-places-134975">Buildings have their own microbiomes – we're striving to make them healthy places</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<h2>What did we find?</h2>
<p>We published a series of studies looking at the impact of room size and colour.</p>
<p>Making the room bigger resulted in brain activity usually linked to <a href="https://doi.org/10.1523/ENEURO.0104-22.2022">attention and cognitive performance</a>. This is the type of brain activity we would see if you were doing a crossword, your homework or focusing on a tricky report you were writing for work.</p>
<p>A blue room resulted in brain activity associated with <a href="https://doi.org/10.1111/psyp.14121">emotional processing</a>. This is the pattern we’d typically see if you were looking at something that you felt positive about, such as a smiling face, or a scenic sunset.</p>
<p>Changing the size and colour of a room also changed <a href="https://doi.org/10.1002/hbm.26061">brain network communication</a>. This is when different parts of the brain “talk” to one another. This could be communication between parts of the brain involved in seeing and attention, the type of communication needed when viewing a complex scene, such as scanning a crowded room to spot a friend.</p>
<p>The rooms also changed the participants’ autonomic response (their patterns of breathing, heart activity and sweating).</p>
<hr>
<figure>
<iframe width="100%" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/dPHOQvLOCD4" title="YouTube video player" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen="" height="400"></iframe>
<figcaption>Your brain and body give away what you feel and think about different rooms, even if you can’t tell us yourself.</figcaption>
</figure>
<hr>
<p>Despite these brain and body responses, we found no change in what participants told us about their emotions in each of these different conditions. </p>
<p>This suggests the need to shift from just asking people about their emotions to capturing effects they may not be consciously perceive or comprehend.</p>
<h2>What does this mean for designing buildings?</h2>
<p>This work tells us that characteristics of buildings have an impact on our brains and our bodies.</p>
<p>Our next steps include testing whether a larger room affects brain processes we use in everyday life. These include working memory (which we’d use to remember our shopping list) and emotion recognition (how we recognise what different facial expressions mean). </p>
<p>This will enable us to understand if we can design spaces to optimise our cognitive performance.</p>
<p>We also want to understand the implications on a wider population, including people who may be experiencing poor mental health, or diagnosed with an underlying condition where the environment may have a larger impact on their response. </p>
<p>This will help us to understand if we can change our built environment for better health and performance.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/prisons-and-asylums-prove-architecture-can-build-up-or-break-down-a-persons-mental-health-109989">Prisons and asylums prove architecture can build up or break down a person's mental health</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<h2>Why is this important?</h2>
<p>Architects have long claimed buildings <a href="https://theconversation.com/build-me-up-how-architecture-can-affect-emotions-22950">affect our emotion</a>. But there has been a lack of brain-based evidence to back this.</p>
<p>We hope our work can help shape building planning and design, to support the brain processes and emotions we might require under different circumstances.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/189797/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Isabella Bower receives funding from Deakin University, the Academy of Neuroscience for Architecture and Creative Futures Pty. Ltd. She is affiliated with the Australasian Cognitive Neuroscience Society as the Student Representative and Pint of Science Australia as the Chief of Staff.</span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Peter Enticott receives funding from the Australian Research Council, the National Health and Medical Research Council, and the Medical Research Future Fund.</span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Richard Tucker has received no funding relevant to the research presented in this article. </span></em></p>We hope our work can help shape building planning and design. That could be classrooms that help us concentrate, or hospital waiting rooms that reduce our anxiety.Isabella Bower, Research Fellow and PhD Candidate, Deakin UniversityPeter Enticott, Professor of Psychology (Cognitive Neuroscience), Deakin UniversityRichard Tucker, Associate Professor, Associate Head of School (Research), co-leader of the research network HOME, Deakin UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1911462022-09-21T23:58:48Z2022-09-21T23:58:48ZNew York’s $250 million lawsuit against Donald Trump is the beginning, not end, of this case – a tax lawyer explains what’s at stake<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/485999/original/file-20220921-23-khyuk0.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=231%2C378%2C6783%2C4196&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">New York Attorney General Letitia James announced a $250 million lawsuit against former president Donald Trump on Sept. 21, 2022 .</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://media.gettyimages.com/photos/attorney-general-letitia-james-speaks-during-a-press-conference-at-picture-id1425941143">Michael M. Santiago/Getty Images </a></span></figcaption></figure><p><em>New York Attorney General Letitia James hit former president Donald Trump with a <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/live/2022/09/21/nyregion/trump-fraud-lawsuit-ny-james">US$250 million lawsuit</a> on Sept. 21, 2022, citing “staggering” amounts of falsified business information and fraud.</em></p>
<p><em>The civil lawsuit alleges that Trump, his company – the <a href="https://www.trump.com">Trump Organization</a> – and three of his children lied to lenders and insurers about billions of dollars’ worth of assets. This follows a <a href="https://www.vanityfair.com/news/2022/08/letitia-jamess-trump-investigation-is-nearing-its-endgame">three-year investigation </a> into Trump’s New York-based real estate business.</em></p>
<p><em>The Conversation spoke with <a href="https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=iGSWDoAAAAAJ&hl=en&oi=ao">Bridget J. Crawford,</a> an expert on tax and property law at Pace University, to help navigate the various dimensions and the potentially broader, criminal implications of this lawsuit.</em></p>
<h2>What are Trump and his children accused of in the lawsuit?</h2>
<p>The complaint is over <a href="https://ag.ny.gov/press-release/2022/attorney-general-james-sues-donald-trump-years-financial-fraud">200 pages long</a> and contains many specific claims. But, at its heart, the complaint says the Trump Organization made false financial or business statements in order to get loans or to keep those loans on favorable terms, in a way that was dishonest or fraudulent. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="Vehicles pass the Trump Park Avenue building on a sunny day." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/485984/original/file-20220921-24-c6n5wh.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/485984/original/file-20220921-24-c6n5wh.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/485984/original/file-20220921-24-c6n5wh.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/485984/original/file-20220921-24-c6n5wh.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/485984/original/file-20220921-24-c6n5wh.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/485984/original/file-20220921-24-c6n5wh.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/485984/original/file-20220921-24-c6n5wh.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Trump Park Avenue – just how much is it worth?</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://newsroom.ap.org/detail/TrumpLegalTroubles/a2f0eeeced6e4692ad28139ee0bfbf37/photo?Query=Trump%20Park%20Avenue&mediaType=photo&sortBy=arrivaldatetime:desc&dateRange=Anytime&totalCount=29&currentItemNo=0">AP Photo/Frank Franklin II</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Trump didn’t allegedly overestimate the cost of buildings, which is a technical term, but rather he is accused of inflating the value of certain businesses and properties. </p>
<h2>How does overstating the value of properties help Trump?</h2>
<p>Banks want to make loans to people who are likely to be able to repay them. And how does the bank measure whether someone is likely to repay? It’s knowing the recipient of a loan has enough collateral to satisfy the bank’s concerns. Trump said he had collateral worth a certain amount. James is saying that the values are really wrong, and really wrong over a period of years, in multiple different filings. Moreover, the lawsuit says this is not just a mistake, or an, ‘Oops I got it wrong.’ Rather, the attorney general alleges a systematic pattern of fraud. </p>
<h2>What should we make of this being a civil, not criminal, action?</h2>
<p>James is bringing a lawsuit regarding the Trump Organization’s compliance with <a href="https://www.nysenate.gov/legislation/laws/CVP">New York’s civil laws</a>, meaning business and lending laws and the like – hence it is a civil suit. </p>
<p>That said, James made clear that she has also referred certain matters to both the IRS and to the federal prosecutors in the Southern District of New York for criminal investigation.</p>
<p>So this being a civil lawsuit does not mean we won’t potentially see criminal charges further down the line. Just, at this point, the New York attorney general is focused on the civil law violations. </p>
<p>In other words, this could be just the beginning of a longer story. </p>
<h2>What does the lawsuit demand in way of relief?</h2>
<p>This is where it gets interesting, I believe. James is calling for very dramatic relief, including permanently preventing Trump, along with three of his children – Donald Trump Jr., Eric Trump and Ivanka Trump – from serving as a director or officer of any corporation conducting business activities in New York. It could preclude them from having any formal business ties in New York. This would be a severe blow to the family’s business interests.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/485998/original/file-20220921-26-9jazmu.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="A group of people dressed in formal, dark clothing stand in front of white steps" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/485998/original/file-20220921-26-9jazmu.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/485998/original/file-20220921-26-9jazmu.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=480&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/485998/original/file-20220921-26-9jazmu.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=480&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/485998/original/file-20220921-26-9jazmu.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=480&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/485998/original/file-20220921-26-9jazmu.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=603&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/485998/original/file-20220921-26-9jazmu.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=603&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/485998/original/file-20220921-26-9jazmu.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=603&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Former president Donald Trump and four of his children are seen at Ivana Trump’s funeral in July 2022 in New York.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://media.gettyimages.com/photos/donald-trump-melania-trump-barron-trump-jared-kushner-kimberly-picture-id1242030390">Jose Perez/Bauer-Griffin/GC Images</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>How would an IRS investigation differ from the New York one?</h2>
<p>It would be about federal tax laws, in particular. <a href="https://www.irs.gov/compliance/criminal-investigation">The IRS will</a> be looking for an answer to this question: “Did Trump overstate the valuation of any property he gave to charity?” The New York attorney general is concerned that he did.</p>
<p>The possible overvaluation relates to two different properties in Westchester, a county outside of New York City, and in Florida. What is at issue for the IRS is whether Trump correctly claimed the proper deduction, or whether he overstated, in a fraudulent way, the value of what he gave to charity. An overstatement of what he gave away would mean that the former president took a bigger income tax deduction than the one he was entitled to. Again, this is not just a matter of, “Oops, I made a mistake.” The attorney general alleges a widespread and longstanding pattern of misrepresentation of business values.</p>
<p>By handing this part of the investigation over to the IRS, the New York attorney general is signaling that she intends to stay in her lane, so to speak. James is basically saying, “I am talking about fair business practices in New York. If there is a tax issue, I am referring it over to the IRS.”</p>
<p>But all of the issues grow out of the same core set of facts and practices – how is the Trump family valuing its businesses and properties, and is it being done in a way that is honest?</p>
<h2>Does the lawsuit increase the chances of criminal charges?</h2>
<p>It certainly increases the possibility there might be criminal charges in the future. It also fans the flames that Trump continues to stoke in claiming that he is being unfairly targeted, which appears to be part of his attempt to discredit the American legal system. In fact, he is being asked to play by the same rules that apply to everyone else.</p>
<p>I will be very interested to see whether and how the IRS responds – the IRS strives to be an apolitical organization, but unfortunately, anything involving this particular former president is treated by a vocal minority as inherently political. </p>
<h2>How common is it for this type of lawsuit to happen?</h2>
<p>It is very unusual. There would have had to be evidence of an egregious pattern of fraud for any attorney general, of any political party, to file a complaint of this sort. In fact, the whole investigation, from the length of time it has taken to the amount of money involved, makes this a very uncommon case.</p>
<h2>What happens next?</h2>
<p>The New York attorney general has asked for a variety of actions, including the removal of the current trustees of certain trusts holding Trump Organization assets.</p>
<p>Trump has already responded, calling it <a href="https://www.nydailynews.com/news/politics/us-elections-government/ny-trump-fraud-allegations-ag-letitia-james-lawsuit-gop-reactions-20220921-i6324ukflfei3bd5zhlnv5jdny-story.html">a witch hunt</a>, which is consistent with the way he has responded to lawsuits in the past. I expect he will employ any available procedural tactics to delay answering this suit as long as he can. Eventually, he will be called to respond, and he will have to answer the claims put to him.</p>
<p>If he refuses to respond, the attorney general can act to protect the public, and the Trump family businesses would not be authorized to operate in New York. Ultimately, the state can shut the businesses down, if need be.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/191146/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Bridget J. Crawford does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>New York’s lawsuit against Trump could mean he and three of his kids are prevented from operating a business again in the state – but the IRS will determine whether federal tax crimes also took place.Bridget J. Crawford, Professor of Law, Pace University Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1904702022-09-15T08:08:54Z2022-09-15T08:08:54ZFive steps Nigeria must take to stop buildings collapsing in Lagos<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/484555/original/file-20220914-12-vk96ha.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Members of the Nigerian Institute of Building during a walk against building collapse in Lagos in March 2022.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/news-photo/the-nigerian-institute-of-building-in-conjunction-with-news-photo/1239147206?adppopup=true">Adekunle Ajayi/NurPhoto via Getty Images</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>Buildings in Lagos state, Nigeria’s economic hub, have in recent years been collapsing in greater numbers than ever. Between 2000 and 2021 the city <a href="https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/tqem.21781">experienced 167 reported cases</a>, with significant <a href="https://www.brookings.edu/blog/africa-in-focus/2022/04/06/quantifying-frequent-building-collapse-and-disaster-risk-reduction-in-nigeria/">human and economic losses</a>. </p>
<p>The <a href="https://www.vanguardngr.com/2022/09/lagos-records-30-collapse-buildings-in-7-months-lasema/">latest data</a> from <a href="https://lasema.lagosstate.gov.ng/">Lagos State Emergency Management Agency</a> showed that between January and July 2022, Lagos recorded 24 cases of total building collapse, six of partial collapse and one of impending collapse. <a href="https://punchng.com/building-collapse-84-lagosians-killed-in-two-years/">Eighty-four Lagosians have been killed</a> in building collapse incidents in the last two years. </p>
<p>Ghana’s capital, Accra, in contrast, had only <a href="https://www.researchgate.net/figure/Some-of-the-Reported-Cases-of-Collapsed-Buildings-in-Ghana-Post-2000_tbl2_325269397">eight building collapses</a> between April 2000 and February 2016.</p>
<p>This grim Nigerian data reflects the failure of the Lagos state government to protect its citizens.</p>
<p>Drawing from my <a href="https://theconversation.com/building-collapses-are-all-too-common-in-lagos-heres-why-165674">previous research</a>, I have identified that high-rise residential buildings make up most of the collapses in Lagos. The reasons include the use of substandard materials and unqualified or unskilled builders. </p>
<p>Other factors include non-adherence to the <a href="https://estateintel.com/reports/national-building-code-of-the-federal-republic-of-nigeria">National Building Code</a>, illegal conversion of existing structures and ineffective monitoring by regulatory agencies. </p>
<p>The <a href="https://punchng.com/why-buildings-continue-to-collapse-in-lagos-ex-physical-planning-commissioner/">recent spate of building collapse in Lagos</a> presents an opportunity for the government to get tough on the construction industry and prevent future incidents. Citizens also have a part to play.</p>
<p>In this article I set out five critical issues I consider indispensable for building safety, stability and sustainability. They are all germane, given the disastrous <a href="https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/tqem.21781">state of building development</a> in Lagos in the past four years. </p>
<h2>1. Test the integrity of all high-rise buildings</h2>
<p>The starting point is to recognise that <a href="https://www.brookings.edu/blog/africa-in-focus/2022/04/06/quantifying-frequent-building-collapse-and-disaster-risk-reduction-in-nigeria/">high-rise structures are at the highest risk of collapse</a>. This is due to structural inadequacies and professional ineptitude on the part of the developers. </p>
<p><a href="https://fig.net/resources/proceedings/fig_proceedings/fig2018/papers/ts02j/TS02J_oyedele_9284.pdf">Previous studies</a> suggested that government didn’t implement the recommendations from past integrity tests of buildings in Lagos. This was likely due to a lack of political will to ensure fundamental standards were maintained. It suggests the government might only be paying lip service to building safety.</p>
<p>Urgent and frequent integrity tests of all high-rise buildings in Lagos are needed. Those built more than five years ago are in particular need of testing. A structural integrity test confirms the stability of buildings and determines whether they are fit for people to live in. </p>
<p>Government must also ensure that buildings that are not structurally habitable are either strengthened or demolished immediately. </p>
<h2>2. Identify and prosecute offenders</h2>
<p>Government must identify and prosecute landowners, investors, consultants, architects, quantity surveyors and engineers involved in previous cases. It must also publish all permits received during those projects and all documents related to safety testing. </p>
<p>This will show its commitment to putting an end to the loss of lives and property. It will also enable a thorough investigation into the causes of building collapses and ensure there are consequences for failures. </p>
<p>It will encourage more responsible practices in the construction industry.</p>
<h2>3. Overhaul and restructure agencies and ministries</h2>
<p>The <a href="https://punchng.com/lagos-commissioner-resigns-over-building-collapse/">recent resignation</a> of the Lagos State Physical Planning and Urban Development commissioner was a step in the right direction. Nevertheless, the agencies and ministries responsible for monitoring the construction process appear overwhelmed and handicapped in enforcing building regulations. This is due to ineffective monitoring, lack of human resources and corruption among officials in charge of building approval. </p>
<p>There is also a serious governance issue that must be addressed. Building control should be a local government responsibility. In Nigeria, however, it falls under the state government. Nigeria currently runs a three-tier federal system comprising federal, state and local governments. </p>
<p>As a result of the <a href="https://www.jstor.org/stable/24734693">constitutional reforms</a> made between the 1970s and 1990s some of these tiers of responsibility were arbitrarily altered. The building control function was transferred from local to state governments.</p>
<p>Thus, a total overhaul and restructuring of all the agencies and ministries responsible for monitoring the construction process is urgently required. This could be done by prosecuting complicit government officials involved in the approval of previous collapsed buildings. </p>
<p>Improved tactics and logistics in monitoring construction could also be deployed.</p>
<p>Building control must be returned to the local governments and they must ensure that they have enough qualified, quality personnel.</p>
<h2>4. Integrate governance of the construction industry</h2>
<p>Governments, professional bodies and citizens all have essential roles to play in preventing building collapse in Lagos. The starting point is the sensitisation of citizens and building developers by the emergency management agencies and professional bodies. They should focus on the need to obtain planning permission, engage professionals in the construction of their buildings and report cases of illegal construction activities in their community. </p>
<p>Government must also collaborate with professional bodies and make sure that individuals or building developers consult certified professionals like engineers.</p>
<h2>5. Enforce laws and policies</h2>
<p>A review of enforcement and <a href="https://epp.lagosstate.gov.ng/regulations/LSURPD_LAW_2010.pdf">building control regulations in Lagos state</a> shows the problem is not inadequacy of relevant laws and monitoring agencies. Rather it’s a lack of proper enforcement of building regulations. </p>
<p>The state government must quickly take decisive steps to implement existing building control regulations and measures for transparency and accountability in its processes. Simple but important things like information display boards at construction sites should be enforced. There is also an urgent need for public awareness of the regulatory requirements for buildings. The public should demand transparency from developers and landlords.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/190470/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Olasunkanmi Habeeb Okunola does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Lagos, Nigeria’s commercial capital city, is notorious for frequent building collapses. A risk reduction expert offers five recommendations on how to prevent these disasters.Olasunkanmi Habeeb Okunola, Visiting Scientist at Global Change Institute and Institute for Environment and Human Security, University of the WitwatersrandLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1894092022-08-30T16:23:47Z2022-08-30T16:23:47ZWooden housing boom needed to boost climate goals, says new study – but is it possible?<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/481809/original/file-20220830-31761-1isx65.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=0%2C0%2C3840%2C2160&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">
</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/close-dof-unrecognizable-male-builder-picks-1961969287">Flystock/Shutterstock</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>Housing 90% of people moving to cities in mid-rise buildings made from engineered wood could save the construction industry 106 billion tonnes of CO₂ by 2100, according to <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/s41467-022-32244-w">a new study</a>. This, the researchers argued, would rein in the industry’s total emissions, which threaten to consume between 35% and 60% of the remaining carbon budget for halting global heating at 2°C with the continued use of cement and steel.</p>
<p>I did not contribute to this study, but I work in the same field as its authors. My research also involves accounting for the greenhouse gas emissions of buildings. Not just the operational emissions, such as those resulting from burning fossil gas for heating, but the embodied emissions too: the atmosphere-warming gases that were released when the bricks were fired or when the steel in its girders was produced. </p>
<p>I am always looking for elegant solutions to the many challenges climate change presents. And while I admire the ambition of these proposals, I am sceptical as to whether they are feasible.</p>
<p>Engineered wood (unlike timber, which is wood that has been cut into boards or beams) describes a number of composite construction materials made by gluing wood together to give it uniform and predictable qualities. One well-known engineered wood product is cross-laminated timber, or CLT, which is made from perpendicularly arranged wood panels. </p>
<p>The increased stability and strength with which this endows CLT makes it a suitable replacement for conventional materials such as concrete and brick, and it can bear the necessary load to make mid-rise buildings (typically between five and ten storeys tall) as the study suggests. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="The wooden frame of an incomplete mid-rise building that is five storeys tall." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/481810/original/file-20220830-21491-q5adad.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/481810/original/file-20220830-21491-q5adad.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/481810/original/file-20220830-21491-q5adad.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/481810/original/file-20220830-21491-q5adad.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/481810/original/file-20220830-21491-q5adad.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/481810/original/file-20220830-21491-q5adad.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/481810/original/file-20220830-21491-q5adad.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">A mid-rise building under construction in Toronto, Canada.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/toronto-canada-june-16-2019-view-1425924893">JHVEPhoto/Shutterstock</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>The manufacturing process for engineered wood requires more energy than cutting wood into timber, however, and so it generates more emissions. Some bonding adhesives may also be toxic. So would a woody construction boom really benefit the environment and keep enough carbon in buildings and out of the atmosphere?</p>
<h2>Construction lifetimes</h2>
<p>There are two things to consider when working out the emissions involved in using engineered wood. First, the CO₂ captured by the growing tree from which the wood originated. This sets a negative carbon balance: the material at this stage absorbs more carbon than it releases. </p>
<p>Second, the manufacturing process which produces engineered wood uses energy and so emits carbon. The balance between the two is still negative, meaning manufacturing emits less than is absorbed by the wood during growth. And so more carbon is stored overall at the start of the building’s lifetime. </p>
<p>What happens at the end of that lifetime will ultimately determine if a building predominantly constructed with engineered wood remains carbon negative. If the material from a deconstructed building is sent to landfill and left to rot without the gases being captured, or if it is incinerated, the carbon stored in the engineered timber will return to the atmosphere, and there will be no net carbon storage.</p>
<p>According to the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors, homes and other buildings like offices have a <a href="https://www.rics.org/globalassets/rics-website/media/news/whole-life-carbon-assessment-for-the--built-environment-november-2017.pdf">whole life carbon cycle</a> of roughly 60 years. This is how long the building is expected to last and accounts for carbon stored and emitted during construction, use and deconstruction.</p>
<p>Only if engineered timber is completely recycled into new products will the assumptions about carbon storage in harvested wood products hold. But a building built from engineered wood will still contain numerous conventional materials, including metal fasteners, screws, nails, tiles and glass. These can contain a significant amount of embodied carbon that the article does not seem to account for.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="The partially demolished wooden frame of a building." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/481811/original/file-20220830-33816-u3jh7b.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/481811/original/file-20220830-33816-u3jh7b.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=399&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/481811/original/file-20220830-33816-u3jh7b.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=399&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/481811/original/file-20220830-33816-u3jh7b.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=399&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/481811/original/file-20220830-33816-u3jh7b.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=502&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/481811/original/file-20220830-33816-u3jh7b.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=502&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/481811/original/file-20220830-33816-u3jh7b.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=502&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">All that wood will need to find a second life elsewhere.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/demolition-building-deconstruction-site-debris-remains-2185193867">Piotr Milewski/Shutterstock</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Building to net zero</h2>
<p>According to the study, plantations expanding by 3.6 million hectares each year would provide enough engineered wood to create housing for new urban residents until 2100. At the moment, the world’s plantations expand at roughly 2 million hectares annually, according to the study.</p>
<p>Significantly increasing the area of land dedicated to producing timber may not be possible in all countries, particularly where land is scarce and competition with food production is fierce. Any new plantations may not grow according to expectations due to droughts or wildfires.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="A pile of logs with a stand of trees and a lorry laden with wood behind it." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/481813/original/file-20220830-27-8zmlc6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/481813/original/file-20220830-27-8zmlc6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=391&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/481813/original/file-20220830-27-8zmlc6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=391&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/481813/original/file-20220830-27-8zmlc6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=391&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/481813/original/file-20220830-27-8zmlc6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=491&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/481813/original/file-20220830-27-8zmlc6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=491&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/481813/original/file-20220830-27-8zmlc6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=491&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Space for new timber plantations is not guaranteed.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/plantation-eucalyptus-bluegum-trees-being-harvested-145232647">Sirtravelalot/Shutterstock</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Some countries might struggle to afford the investment in an engineered wood construction sector on their own. National planning regulations vary too, so that the large-scale expansion of cities using engineered wood may be difficult to approve and achieve. The plan described by the researchers would also require concerted action across lots of different countries.</p>
<p>The study inspires optimism for a future in which the world’s growing urban population will find shelter in new, climate-neutral housing. But it makes assumptions which will be difficult to realise. Perhaps its greatest contribution is illuminating the tremendous challenges which must be overcome to build a net zero world.</p>
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<img alt="Imagine weekly climate newsletter" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/434988/original/file-20211201-21-13avx6y.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/434988/original/file-20211201-21-13avx6y.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=600&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/434988/original/file-20211201-21-13avx6y.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=600&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/434988/original/file-20211201-21-13avx6y.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=600&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/434988/original/file-20211201-21-13avx6y.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=754&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/434988/original/file-20211201-21-13avx6y.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=754&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/434988/original/file-20211201-21-13avx6y.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=754&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
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<p><strong><em>Don’t have time to read about climate change as much as you’d like?</em></strong>
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<hr><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/189409/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Ljubomir Jankovic received funding from EPSRC, EU, EUREKA, ARTEMIS, KTP, Innovate UK, Research England and AHRC.</span></em></p>Engineered wood is a sustainable alternative to cement and steel in construction.Ljubomir Jankovic, Professor of Advanced Building Design, University of HertfordshireLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1872122022-08-02T15:19:47Z2022-08-02T15:19:47ZHeatwave-proofing homes could save lives – and cut carbon<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/478131/original/file-20220808-16-fke5qm.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=0%2C0%2C3600%2C2398&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Insulating walls and windows can keep hot air outside during future heatwaves.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/spray-polyurethane-foam-roof-technician-spraying-1087263845">C12/Shutterstock</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>Buildings are designed to keep people safe and comfortable according to the local climate: warm when it’s cold outside, dry when it’s wet and sheltered when it’s stormy. If the climate changes, buildings may struggle to serve our needs in the new conditions. The UK’s <a href="https://theconversation.com/heatwave-britain-hits-40-3-c-heres-how-scientists-know-when-a-temperature-record-has-been-broken-187235">recent 40°C heatwave</a> showed that many existing structures – especially the homes where we <a href="https://www.greenbuildingadvisor.com/article/how-much-of-your-life-do-you-spend-in-buildings">spend two-thirds</a> of our lives – <a href="https://theconversation.com/britain-isnt-built-to-withstand-40-c-here-is-where-infrastructure-is-most-likely-to-fail-187229">aren’t up to the task</a>.</p>
<p>Older people with existing health problems are <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0048969717302292">among the most vulnerable</a> during hot weather, as the heat can exacerbate <a href="https://www.birminghammail.co.uk/news/midlands-news/six-groups-most-risk-heatwave-24501068">potentially fatal conditions</a> such as respiratory and heart diseases and even Alzheimer’s. An early estimate suggests as many as <a href="https://www.newscientist.com/article/2331349-40c-heatwave-may-have-killed-1000-people-in-england-and-wales/#:%7E:text=Antonio%20Gasparrini%20at%20the%20London,between%2017%20and%2019%20July.">1,000 excess deaths</a> may have occurred in England and Wales as a result of the three-day heatwave in mid-July 2022.</p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/heatwaves-can-kill-research-uncovers-the-homes-most-vulnerable-to-overheating-138665">Heatwaves can kill – research uncovers the homes most vulnerable to overheating</a>
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<p>Each country must upgrade its buildings to keep people safe as the world warms. This is part of what climate change experts call <a href="https://www.un.org/en/climatechange/climate-adaptation?gclid=Cj0KCQjw852XBhC6ARIsAJsFPN0yqO4DmQBnfU1tHBvo2JU52I_XLd8a1ZHOUbZUf1xouHusWeQ0_dAaAtIWEALw_wcB">adaptation</a>. The other half of that obligation is mitigation: cutting emissions as fast possible to minimise the temperature increase. By adapting homes to withstand stronger heatwaves, countries have an opportunity to meet both needs at the same time.</p>
<p>You will have heard some of the solutions for decarbonising buildings: increased roof and wall insulation and double-glazed windows for energy efficiency, and replacing gas boilers with alternatives such as heat pumps which can run on renewable electricity. These same measures will also help people stay safe during future heatwaves. </p>
<p>Just as better insulation keeps warm air inside during winter, it keeps it outside during summer. Shutters or blinds that block sunlight are a simple option for lowering indoor temperatures by keeping out even more heat. It even helps to paint roofs a light colour to better reflects the sun’s rays. In the Australian state of New South Wales, a policy to completely <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2022/apr/09/plan-to-ban-dark-roofs-abandoned-as-nsw-government-walks-back-sustainability-measures#:%7E:text=The%20New%20South%20Wales%20government,measures%20announced%20by%20his%20predecessor.">ban dark-coloured roofs</a> was recently considered.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="Black shutters adorn windows on a brick house." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/477156/original/file-20220802-17-wlgzm.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/477156/original/file-20220802-17-wlgzm.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/477156/original/file-20220802-17-wlgzm.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/477156/original/file-20220802-17-wlgzm.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/477156/original/file-20220802-17-wlgzm.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/477156/original/file-20220802-17-wlgzm.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/477156/original/file-20220802-17-wlgzm.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Shutters have been used for centuries in hot countries to banish the midday sun.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/0705-riga-latvia-brick-building-rectangular-1974071459">Nadia_if/Shutterstock</a></span>
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</figure>
<p>Most homes in the UK are <a href="https://www.theccc.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2017/01/Annex-2-Heat-in-UK-Buildings-Today-Committee-on-Climate-Change-October-2016.pdf">heated with gas boilers</a> but have no equivalent system for cooling. Heat pumps can help. These machines are essentially <a href="https://greenbusinesswatch.co.uk/guides/air-source-heat-pumps#:%7E:text=An%20air%20source%20heat%20pump%20works%20very%20much%20like%20a,compressor%20to%20increase%20the%20temperature.">refrigerators working backwards</a>. Where a fridge sucks heat from its interior and disperses it through the coils on its back, a heat pump sucks the heat from the air (or ground) outside and transfers it to the inside of your house to keep you warm in winter. The process runs on electricity, so it does this without needing to burn gas. </p>
<p>Heat pumps can be programmed to work a reverse cycle, allowing them to pump cold water rather than hot water through the radiators to cool your house in summer. But this cooling cycle has to be built into the heat pump system when it’s installed – it’s not as simple as flicking a switch. Unfortunately, the UK government offers little guidance. The Energy Saving Trust, a government body tasked with making homes more energy efficient, neglects even to mention in its guide to heat pumps that they are <a href="https://energysavingtrust.org.uk/advice/in-depth-guide-to-heat-pumps/">capable of cooling</a>. </p>
<p>The rate at which heat pumps are installed <a href="https://medium.com/all-you-can-heat/the-climate-change-committee-report-are-we-on-track-to-decarbonise-buildings-69ba73c2e873">almost doubled</a> during 2021 in the UK. As a result, there will be many homes with new heat pumps, funded with public subsidies, that can only provide heating.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="A large grey air conditioner unit attached to the brick exterior of a house." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/477159/original/file-20220802-20-9t90ei.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/477159/original/file-20220802-20-9t90ei.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/477159/original/file-20220802-20-9t90ei.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/477159/original/file-20220802-20-9t90ei.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/477159/original/file-20220802-20-9t90ei.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/477159/original/file-20220802-20-9t90ei.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/477159/original/file-20220802-20-9t90ei.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Installed properly, a heat pump can cool as well as heat a home.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/air-conditioner-airair-heat-pump-heating-2066407610">Klikkipetra/Shutterstock</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Better homes overall</h2>
<p>This lack of foresight in national responses to climate change is frustrating. Insulating buildings would help permanently lower energy bills for millions, but the UK government has starved energy efficiency measures of <a href="https://www.carbonbrief.org/analysis-cutting-the-green-crap-has-added-2-5bn-to-uk-energy-bills/">resources over the past decade</a>. Recently, plans were abandoned that would have <a href="https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2022-07-29/uk-scales-back-1-billion-funding-to-help-homes-cut-energy-use">doubled funding</a> for low-income housesholds to become more energy efficient. Meanwhile, the UK’s newly built homes suffer from much of <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2022/jul/30/total-climate-meltdown-inevitable-heatwaves-global-catastrophe?CMP=Share_AndroidApp_Other">the same poor insulation</a> as older ones.</p>
<p>Some countries are being more proactive. Italian homeowners can claim 110% of the cost of energy efficiency improvements <a href="https://www.itv.com/news/2021-10-21/italy-offering-to-pay-full-cost-of-upgrading-to-green-homes-plus-a-bonus">against their taxes</a>, up to €100,000 (£84,000) over five years. That is more than enough to upgrade a house to net-zero standard, <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2021/jan/23/buyers-of-brand-new-homes-face-20000-bill-to-make-them-greener">estimated at £26,000</a> in the UK.</p>
<p>If homes need less energy to heat or cool because they have been made more energy efficient, it would help reduce (and perhaps even eradicate) fuel poverty. If they are able to maintain comfortable indoor temperatures and air quality through better ventilation, they can better accommodate people working or learning from home should there be another pandemic. </p>
<p>And, if the technology is powered by a dispersed renewable energy network, comprised of rooftop solar panels feeding excess energy to the grid, society will be more resilient to future spikes in the price of energy. Beyond any benefits these actions might have for tackling climate change, they simply reflect the reality of modern life.</p>
<p>The solutions are simple, but implementing them will be complex – all countries must coordinate their responses more effectively. A lot of money, both public and private, will be spent on cutting emissions to net zero. Unless countries plan for adapting to rising temperatures at the same time, the opportunity for more comfortable, resilient and liveable homes will be lost.</p>
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<img alt="Imagine weekly climate newsletter" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/434988/original/file-20211201-21-13avx6y.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/434988/original/file-20211201-21-13avx6y.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=600&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/434988/original/file-20211201-21-13avx6y.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=600&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/434988/original/file-20211201-21-13avx6y.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=600&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/434988/original/file-20211201-21-13avx6y.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=754&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/434988/original/file-20211201-21-13avx6y.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=754&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/434988/original/file-20211201-21-13avx6y.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=754&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
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<p><strong><em>Don’t have time to read about climate change as much as you’d like?</em></strong>
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<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Ran Boydell has received commissions and grant funding from the Scottish government.</span></em></p>Adapt to climate change with insulated walls, window shutters and reverse-cycle heat pumps.Ran Boydell, Associate Professor in Sustainable Development, Heriot-Watt UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1851012022-07-05T13:52:14Z2022-07-05T13:52:14ZCities need to embrace green innovation now to cut heat deaths in the future<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/472366/original/file-20220704-12-qj8yqk.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=910%2C1053%2C7023%2C4682&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">The severe heat wave in western Canada and the U.S. Pacific Northwest, between June and July 2021 caused 1,400 deaths.</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">(Shutterstock)</span></span></figcaption></figure><iframe style="width: 100%; height: 100px; border: none; position: relative; z-index: 1;" allowtransparency="" allow="clipboard-read; clipboard-write" src="https://narrations.ad-auris.com/widget/the-conversation-canada/cities-need-to-embrace-green-innovation-now-to-cut-heat-deaths-in-the-future" width="100%" height="400"></iframe>
<p>In late June 2021, <a href="https://doi.org/10.1126/sciadv.abm6860">North America’s most severe heat wave in history</a> hit British Columbia and the U.S. Pacific Northwest. In many areas, temperatures soared above 40 C, 15 C hotter than the normal average high. Although other places in North America regularly hit these highs, <a href="https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2022/05/220504144530.htm">the extreme contrast to “normal” is what exposes acute infrastructure, economic, environmental and social vulnerabilities</a>. </p>
<p>Heat waves silently roll in with only a shimmer of visible evidence, but leave a wake of mortality greater than floods, wildfires or hurricanes. <a href="https://doi.org/10.1029/2021GL097036">By mid-July, this one had caused 1,400 deaths</a>. <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2021/08/11/climate/deaths-pacific-northwest-heat-wave.html">Emergency rooms across the Pacific Northwest were overwhelmed with visits 100 times greater than normal</a>. Lytton, B.C. — where temperatures soared to 49.6 C — was largely vaporized by a <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/world/2021/jul/25/lytton-canada-heat-wildfire-record-temperatures">wildfire that scorched the town in 30 minutes</a>.</p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/what-is-a-heat-dome-an-atmospheric-scientist-explains-the-weather-phenomenon-baking-texas-and-the-southwest-185569">What is a heat dome? An atmospheric scientist explains the weather phenomenon baking Texas and the Southwest</a>
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<p>Research warns that if current <a href="https://doi.org/10.1038/s41558-021-01092-9">greenhouse gas levels are sustained, “record-shattering” heat waves are up to seven times more likely</a> than they have been over the past few decades. As an urban climate policy analyst, I believe that North America’s 2021 extreme heat event should compel governments to scale innovations from leading cities and countries to advance resilient, restorative and renewable cities.</p>
<h2>Preparedness is important, but prevention is critical</h2>
<p>In response to last year’s heat wave, British Columbia has begun to roll out <a href="https://news.gov.bc.ca/releases/2022PSSG0035-000904">a heat action plan</a> comprising an alert system through smartphones and media, on-the-ground co-ordination including cooling centres, an education campaign and outreach to vulnerable populations.</p>
<figure class="align-right ">
<img alt="A sign that reads 'Extreme Heat Cooling Centre' placed outside a centre by the City of Vancouver" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/472358/original/file-20220704-21-6f9yeb.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=276%2C100%2C5120%2C3164&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/472358/original/file-20220704-21-6f9yeb.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/472358/original/file-20220704-21-6f9yeb.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/472358/original/file-20220704-21-6f9yeb.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/472358/original/file-20220704-21-6f9yeb.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/472358/original/file-20220704-21-6f9yeb.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/472358/original/file-20220704-21-6f9yeb.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Cooling centres became safe havens for those affected by the heat wave in Vancouver, B.C., in 2021.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">(Shutterstock)</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Effective heat action plans reduce death tolls. This was seen in Italy when <a href="https://doi.org/10.3390%2Fijerph18168362">integrated intervention with socially isolated seniors cut heat mortality risks threefold</a> between the late 1990s and 2016.</p>
<p><a href="https://www2.gov.bc.ca/gov/content/life-events/death/coroners-service/death-review-panel">The B.C. Coroners Service has also recommended similar “prevention and long-term, risk mitigation measures.”</a></p>
<p>In the long-term, prevention is critical because of increasingly intense heat and growing underlying vulnerabilities including declining urban tree canopy and a growing building stock with outdated performance standards.</p>
<h2>Urban tree canopy loss exposes mortality</h2>
<p>The vast majority of urban fabric is losing tree canopy, displaced by asphalt, concrete and large building footprints. Heat-wave-related deaths are concentrated in neighbourhoods with lower urban tree canopy.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="Trees provide shade to streets and buildings" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/471881/original/file-20220630-24-1snc9x.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/471881/original/file-20220630-24-1snc9x.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=399&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/471881/original/file-20220630-24-1snc9x.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=399&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/471881/original/file-20220630-24-1snc9x.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=399&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/471881/original/file-20220630-24-1snc9x.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=501&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/471881/original/file-20220630-24-1snc9x.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=501&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/471881/original/file-20220630-24-1snc9x.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=501&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Trees reduce the temperature in urban areas by providing shade to streets and buildings.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">(Shutterstock)</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Trees provide shade, <a href="https://coolcalifornia.arb.ca.gov/how-cool-vegetation-works#_ftn1">reducing temperatures by as much as 11 C to 25 C</a>. They allow rain to penetrate into soil and retain water. As temperatures rise, liquid water in leaves and soils devours heat, transforming it into vapour. This transpiration and evaporation dramatically cools surrounding areas. One large tree can transpire 380 litres of water daily — the cooling equivalent of five standard air conditioners running 20 hours.</p>
<p>But the U.S. urban tree cover is declining at a rate of 700 square kilometres annually, <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ufug.2018.03.006">according to the U.S. Forest Service</a>. In Canada, <a href="https://www.nrcan.gc.ca/our-natural-resources/forests/state-canadas-forests-report/16496">urban development is one the biggest drivers of permanent forest loss</a>.</p>
<p>While the most intense urban heat islands tend to be high density zones, <a href="https://www.sightline.org/2018/09/06/seattle-trees-development-not-a-tree-apocalypse/">cities like Seattle found the greatest cumulative urban tree canopy loss in its single-family neighbourhoods</a>. One-third of British Columbia’s heat mortalities were in single-family homes.</p>
<h2>Leading cities are planting seeds for a new future</h2>
<p><a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.landurbplan.2020.103899">Awareness of the diverse benefits is critical for consolidating support for tree protection</a>. Trees reduce extreme heat vulnerability, flood risk and storm-water management cost. They filter airborne particulate matter, sequester carbon and cut building energy demand.</p>
<p>Many cities like <a href="https://vancouver.ca/files/cov/urban-forest-strategy.pdf">Vancouver</a> and <a href="https://www.fs.usda.gov/features/baltimores-urban-tree-canopy-flourishes">Baltimore</a> have strengthened park and street planting. Private land — the majority of urban geography — is, however, a bigger challenge. Effective regulation and innovative incentives must reinforce awareness.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="Clearing in a forest with construction and buildings" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/471888/original/file-20220630-14-lcgatr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/471888/original/file-20220630-14-lcgatr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=338&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/471888/original/file-20220630-14-lcgatr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=338&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/471888/original/file-20220630-14-lcgatr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=338&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/471888/original/file-20220630-14-lcgatr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=424&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/471888/original/file-20220630-14-lcgatr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=424&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/471888/original/file-20220630-14-lcgatr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=424&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Building construction poses the biggest threat to urban tree canopies.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">(Shutterstock)</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>While tree canopies suffer from thousands of individual cuts, their greatest blows today are dealt during building construction when sites are razed. Costs and benefits must be effectively calculated. “<a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2013/11/zero-net-deforestation-is-the-wrong-target-warn-experts/">Zero net loss</a>” policies that permit a large, 50-year-old tree to be replaced by one or two seedlings are a gross loss.</p>
<p><a href="https://www.toronto.ca/wp-content/uploads/2017/11/9297-City-Planning-Toronto-Green-Standard-2017_MidHiRise_Standard.pdf">Toronto justifies development charge reductions on sites that protect urban tree canopy because of storm-water management cost savings</a>. </p>
<p>To maximize benefits and manage risks at scale, provinces and states should work with cities to legislate tree canopy protection and restoration.</p>
<h2>Contemporary air conditioning impedes resilient design</h2>
<p>The reflexive response to home cooling is air conditioners. However, surging <a href="https://www.technologyreview.com/2021/06/28/1027424/the-northwests-blistering-heatwave-underscores-the-fragility-of-our-grids/">electricity demand from air conditioning during extreme heat stresses grids</a>, increasing blackout risk with more devastating consequences. This <a href="https://www.politico.com/news/2022/05/31/spiking-temperatures-could-cause-more-blackouts-this-summer-they-wont-be-the-last-00034858">risk rises as demand grows to electrify the transportation and industrial sectors to tackle climate change</a>.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="A view of the city of Phoenix, Arizona, with sparce tree cover" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/471890/original/file-20220630-13-34j4j6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/471890/original/file-20220630-13-34j4j6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=417&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/471890/original/file-20220630-13-34j4j6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=417&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/471890/original/file-20220630-13-34j4j6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=417&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/471890/original/file-20220630-13-34j4j6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=524&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/471890/original/file-20220630-13-34j4j6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=524&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/471890/original/file-20220630-13-34j4j6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=524&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">The urban tree canopy in Phoenix, Arizona, is down to nine per cent.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">(AP Photo/Matt York)</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Before the widespread adoption of air conditioning, many homes in hot cities had exterior shutters or shades, covered porches as well as floor and window plans to allow cross ventilation. Main streets had awnings and trees. <a href="https://www.deeproot.com/blog/blog-entries/phoenix-az-once-and-future-forest/">In the 1920s, Phoenix — the hottest U.S. city — had 50 per cent urban tree canopy. This is down to nine per cent today.</a> These solutions cost less than air conditioning and new power supply.</p>
<h2>Climate-anticipatory home retrofits can eliminate heat risk</h2>
<p>Building standards — currently based on historical conditions — must be updated for existing and new homes based on the climate anticipated over the next century. </p>
<p><a href="https://www2.gov.bc.ca/assets/gov/birth-adoption-death-marriage-and-divorce/deaths/coroners-service/death-review-panel/extreme_heat_death_review_panel_report.pdf">The B.C. Coroners Service recommended retrofits in the least energy efficient homes occupied by low-income households where heat-wave deaths were concentrated</a>.</p>
<p><a href="https://energiesprong.org/about/">Netherlands-based Energiesprong</a> — the world’s most successful home retrofit model — used public procurement in social housing to drive down costs by 50 per cent. Precisely measured, prefabricated insulated panels and roofs are installed on 50-year-old homes, along with a solar panel and an air source heat pump, replacing aged assets and eliminating indoor extreme heat risk and virtually all greenhouse gases.</p>
<p>In <a href="https://www.retrofitcanada.com/news/43-years-in-the-making-the-sundance-housing-cooperatives-journey-to-net-zero">an Energiesprong-inspired demonstration in Edmonton</a> during the 2021 heat wave, occupants of upgraded 1970s townhomes switched their new heat pumps to cooling mode. They used 300-400 per cent less energy than a typical air-conditioned home.</p>
<p>Strategic investment in home retrofits and urban tree canopies can yield great returns on government and household ledgers, bring down heat-wave-related deaths and advance resilient, restorative and renewable cities.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/185101/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Alex Boston and the Simon Fraser University special initiative where he serves as Executive Director, Renewable Cities, receives funding from senior and local governments and utilities on consulting projects; philanthropic and non-governmental grant makers with affordability, nature and climate change mitigation and adaptation program and economic development objectives.</span></em></p>North America’s 2021 extreme heat event should compel governments to scale innovations from leading cities and countries to advance resilient, restorative and renewable cities.Alex Boston, Fellow, MJ Wosk Centre for Dialogue; Executive Director, Renewable Cities, Simon Fraser UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1759212022-06-16T19:52:59Z2022-06-16T19:52:59ZKeen to retrofit your home to lower its carbon footprint and save energy? Consider these 3 things<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/445398/original/file-20220209-15-foccrx.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=8%2C0%2C5982%2C3988&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">
</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Monica Silvestre/Pexels</span>, <span class="license">Author provided</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>If you’re anything like me, you’re increasingly <a href="https://www.abc.net.au/news/2021-09-16/work-from-home-productivity-commission-study/100465258">working from home</a>, one that was built before energy efficiency measures were introduced in Australia. </p>
<p>With temperatures along the east coast plunging and <a href="https://theconversation.com/why-did-gas-prices-go-from-10-a-gigajoule-to-800-a-gigajoule-an-expert-on-the-energy-crisis-engulfing-australia-184304">power bills skyrocketing</a>, heating (and cooling) our homes is an energy intensive, expensive affair.</p>
<p>Almost <a href="https://www.abc.net.au/news/2021-11-04/energy-efficiency-carbon-offset-homes-sharehouse-rentals/100590596">8 million homes</a> across Australia lack sufficient insulation, use sub-par heating and cooling equipment, or are badly designed. </p>
<p>Indeed, these 8 million pre-energy rated homes <a href="http://www.powerhousingaustralia.com.au/resources/">account for 18% of Australia’s greenhouse gas emissions</a>. And <a href="https://theconversation.com/if-youre-renting-chances-are-your-home-is-cold-with-power-prices-soaring-heres-what-you-can-do-to-keep-warm-184472">research finds</a> 26% of Australians across all housing types can’t stay warm at least half of the time during winter.</p>
<p>Retrofitting this housing stock to be more energy efficient is essential to successfully meet Australia’s target of cutting emissions 43% by 2030, while finding comfort in our future of intensifying climate extremes.</p>
<p><div data-react-class="Tweet" data-react-props="{"tweetId":"1536988473495736320"}"></div></p>
<p>My <a href="https://www.intechopen.com/chapters/79914">research into net-zero emissions retrofitting</a> identifies three broad categories that must be considered when retrofitting existing homes to be more climate friendly: </p>
<ol>
<li><p><a href="https://multicomfort.saint-gobain.co.uk/recommended-level-of-light-into-a-building/">visual comfort</a>: the sufficient quality, quantity and distribution of light</p></li>
<li><p><a href="http://www.greeneducationfoundation.org/green-building-program-sub/learn-about-green-building/1239-thermal-comfort.html">thermal comfort</a>: determined by the temperature, humidity, air flow and a person’s physical condition</p></li>
<li><p>energy consumption: the amount of energy we use, and the <a href="https://www.yourhome.gov.au/materials/embodied-energy">energy used</a> in manufacturing, transporting, constructing, maintaining, and removal of materials to build our homes.</p></li>
</ol>
<h2>1. Visual comfort</h2>
<p>It’s vital to understand how much sunlight the outside and interior of your home is exposed to. One can, accordingly, re-organise interior functions based on the demand for lighting, heating or cooling needs. </p>
<p>During summer, spaces used often during the day, such as your home office, could benefit from being in places that receive less direct sunlight, so are cooler. In winter, consider moving your home office set up to a room with higher levels of direct sunlight, where it’s warmer.</p>
<p>This will naturally reduce the amount of energy needed to cool or heat these rooms while allowing for comfortable working conditions. </p>
<p>Other ways we can find more visual comfort include modifying the size of windows and skylights to let in more sunlight. To diffuse harsh lighting, consider <a href="https://www.geelongaustralia.com.au/common/public/documents/8d37431053e9065-Imap%202-1%20Sunshading.pdf">adding screens, sun baffles, overhangs, or pergolas</a> over windows. </p>
<p>You can also replace your lights with LEDs equipped with linear controllers and motion sensors in places where lights tend to be left on. <a href="https://www.energy.gov.au/households/lighting#:%7E:text=LEDs%20are%20better%20value%20for,bulbs%20ending%20up%20in%20landfill.">LEDs use around 75% less energy than halogen light bulbs</a>. </p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/469149/original/file-20220616-11-lzxmcp.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/469149/original/file-20220616-11-lzxmcp.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/469149/original/file-20220616-11-lzxmcp.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/469149/original/file-20220616-11-lzxmcp.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/469149/original/file-20220616-11-lzxmcp.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/469149/original/file-20220616-11-lzxmcp.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/469149/original/file-20220616-11-lzxmcp.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/469149/original/file-20220616-11-lzxmcp.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Moving your home office to rooms with more sunshine can help you save energy in winter.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Unsplash</span>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/">CC BY</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>2. Thermal comfort</h2>
<p>Older Australian homes are <a href="https://blog.csiro.au/draught-proof-house/">incredibly draughty</a>, and a lot of the energy we spend cooling or heating our homes escapes outside due to poor insulation. Retrofitting to improve your home’s natural ventilation can reduce the number of times you need to switch on the heater or air conditioner. </p>
<p><a href="https://www.greenbuilding.org.au/Articles/Sealing-Building-Envelope.htm">Sealing outside and internal surfaces</a> until they’re airtight is crucial. <a href="https://build.com.au/how-improve-your-homes-insulation">Different surfaces</a> – whether walls, floors or ceilings – require different methods, types and thicknesses of insulation. </p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/if-youre-renting-chances-are-your-home-is-cold-with-power-prices-soaring-heres-what-you-can-do-to-keep-warm-184472">If you're renting, chances are your home is cold. With power prices soaring, here's what you can do to keep warm</a>
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<p>Walls, for instance, require a “blow-in” method. This can involve installing cellulose foam or <a href="https://build.com.au/glass-wool-insulation">glasswool</a> (made from fibreglass) into the wall, via a <a href="https://build.com.au/wall-insulation">small hole through the wall cavities</a> (for cellulose foam) or laying glasswool batts in wall cavities. Floors, on the other hand, can require insulation panels fitted between timber or steel supports or foam boards. </p>
<p><a href="https://zeroenergyproject.org/build/twelve-steps-affordable-zero-energy-home-construction-design/super-insulate-net-zero-building-envelope/">Also important</a> is to choose materials and methods that maximise insulation while minimising thermal bridging. A <a href="https://blog.passivehouse-international.org/what-is-a-thermal-bridge/">thermal bridge</a> is a weak point where heat is lost, such as wall intersections, connecting points of mounting brackets, and even penetration points of electric cables.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/469147/original/file-20220616-21-adexyd.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/469147/original/file-20220616-21-adexyd.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/469147/original/file-20220616-21-adexyd.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/469147/original/file-20220616-21-adexyd.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/469147/original/file-20220616-21-adexyd.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/469147/original/file-20220616-21-adexyd.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/469147/original/file-20220616-21-adexyd.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/469147/original/file-20220616-21-adexyd.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Insulating the walls is crucial to stabilise temperatures inside.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Shutterstock</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Between <a href="https://blog.csiro.au/renovating-or-retrofitting/">ten and 35%</a> of the energy we spend cooling or heating our homes escapes through single glazed windows and doors. Installing double or triple glazed windows and doors will go a long way to keep temperatures more stable inside. </p>
<p>It’s worth noting the <a href="https://build.com.au/window-energy-rating-scheme">energy performance rating systems</a> on measurement labels, which are often attached to window and door units you can buy in stores.</p>
<p>Ultimately, a combination of improved natural ventilation and mechanical ventilation (such as air conditioners as fans) can result in considerable energy savings – <a href="https://thefifthestate.com.au/articles/making-the-building-do-the-work-natural-ventilation-design/">up to 79%</a> in some instances.</p>
<h2>3. Energy consumption</h2>
<p>While the above strategies will result in significant energy savings, it’s also vital to consider the energy required to produce and manufacture <a href="https://www.pembina.org/pub/embodied-carbon-retrofits">retrofitting materials</a>. Consider using salvaged or recycled materials where possible, or choosing locally made products which avoid emissions associated with transport.</p>
<p>Effectively installing solar panels can offset this “hidden” carbon. Let’s say you’ve done all you can to lower your home’s carbon footprint – you’ve rolled out insulation, installed double glazed windows and made the most of sunshine. </p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/stop-removing-your-solar-panels-early-please-its-creating-a-huge-waste-problem-for-australia-160546">Stop removing your solar panels early, please. It's creating a huge waste problem for Australia</a>
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</em>
</p>
<hr>
<p>You can then calculate the energy you still use to heat or cool your home. This number will determine how many rooftop solar panels you should install to break even, rather than simply installing as many panels that can fit. </p>
<p>This will not only save you money, but also minimise waste. Researchers estimate that by 2047, Australia will accumulate <a href="https://theconversation.com/stop-removing-your-solar-panels-early-please-its-creating-a-huge-waste-problem-for-australia-160546">1 million tonnes</a> of solar panel waste. </p>
<p>It’s worth opting for solar panels with micro-inverters, which capture optimal energy performance per panel while allowing you to add more panels in future if needed. </p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/469146/original/file-20220616-11210-4f8kun.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/469146/original/file-20220616-11210-4f8kun.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/469146/original/file-20220616-11210-4f8kun.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/469146/original/file-20220616-11210-4f8kun.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/469146/original/file-20220616-11210-4f8kun.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/469146/original/file-20220616-11210-4f8kun.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/469146/original/file-20220616-11210-4f8kun.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/469146/original/file-20220616-11210-4f8kun.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Solar panels can offset some of the carbon associated with manufacturing the materials you’ve purchased.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Shutterstock</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Another option is to use <a href="https://www.radiantheatingandcooling.com.au/geothermal-or-air-source-heat-pumps/">air-source heat pumps</a>, which absorb heat from outside and bring it inside (like a reverse air conditioner). These can take the form of mini-split heat pumps for individual rooms, or multi-zone installations. </p>
<p>They can sense indoor temperature, and operate at variable speeds and heating or cooling intensity, which means their energy performance is very efficient. My <a href="https://www.intechopen.com/chapters/79914">research</a> finds well-planned use of such systems can reduce the energy used for heating by 69% and cooling by 38%. </p>
<h2>It’s well worth the effort</h2>
<p>These retrofitting ideas might seem expensive, or take too much time. However, they’ll often save you money in the long run as energy prices become increasingly uncertain. </p>
<p>You can look to <a href="https://www.everybuildingcounts.com.au/?__hstc=213300875.d01baaf20feef1321eed69f68f6b9ce7.1644286749265.1644286749265.1644286749265.1&__hssc=213300875.1.1644286749266&__hsfp=475898586">Every Building Counts</a>, an initiative by the <a href="https://new.gbca.org.au/">Green Building Council</a> and the <a href="https://www.propertycouncil.com.au/">Property Council of Australia</a>, which provides practical plans for emission reduction.</p>
<p>Australia can also learn from ongoing efforts by the <a href="https://energiesprong.org/?country=the-netherlands">Energiesprong network</a> in the Netherlands. This network is industrialising energy efficiency with <a href="https://energiesprong.org/this-dutch-construction-innovation-shows-its-possible-to-quickly-retrofit-every-building/">prefabricated retrofitting building elements</a>. </p>
<p>Some initiatives include lightweight insulated panels that can simply be placed in front of existing walls of homes. These panels are precisely fitted after carefully laser scanning a facade and robotically cutting openings to match existing homes. Harnessing contemporary technology is vital for a speedy net-zero transition.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/biden-just-declared-heat-pumps-and-solar-panels-essential-to-national-defense-heres-why-and-the-challenges-ahead-184632">Biden just declared heat pumps and solar panels essential to national defense – here's why and the challenges ahead</a>
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</em>
</p>
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<img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/175921/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Nimish Biloria has received funding in the past from organisations such as The Department of Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development and Communications: Smart Cities and Suburbs Program, Transport for New South Wales, HMI Technologies, Leigh Place Aged Care, and the City of Sydney</span></em></p>Almost 8 million Aussie homes lack sufficient insulation, use sub-par heating and cooling equipment, or are badly designed. These homes account for 18% of Australia’s emissions.Nimish Biloria, Associate Professor of Architecture, University of Technology SydneyLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1736312022-01-12T13:38:23Z2022-01-12T13:38:23ZA 21st-century reinvention of the electric grid is crucial for solving the climate change crisis<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/438574/original/file-20211220-49229-2ukdcl.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=0%2C0%2C4000%2C2461&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Integrating solar panels with farming can provide partial shade for plants.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://images.nrel.gov/">Werner Slocum/NREL</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>In the summer of 1988, scientist James Hansen <a href="https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/pt?id=uc1.b5127807">testified</a> <a href="https://books.google.com/books?id=jkY0AAAAIAAJ&amp;printsec=frontcover&amp;source=gbs_ge_summary_r&amp;cad=0#v=onepage&amp;q&amp;f=false">to Congress</a> that carbon dioxide from burning fossil fuels was dangerously warming the planet. Scientific meetings were held, voluminous reports were written, and national pledges were made, but because fossil fuels were comparatively cheap, little concrete action was taken to reduce carbon emissions.</p>
<p>Then, beginning around 2009, first wind turbines and then solar photovoltaic panels decreased enough in cost to become competitive in electricity markets. More installations resulted in more “<a href="http://www.rapidshift.net/solar-pv-shows-a-record-learning-rate-28-5-reduction-in-cost-per-watt-for-every-doubling-of-cumulative-capacity/">learning curve</a>” cost reductions – the decrease in cost with every doubling of deployment. Since 2009, the prices of wind and solar power have decreased by an astonishing 72% and 90%, respectively, and they are now the <a href="https://www.lazard.com/perspective/levelized-cost-of-energy-levelized-cost-of-storage-and-levelized-cost-of-hydrogen/">cheapest electricity sources</a> – although some challenges still exist.</p>
<p><iframe id="fbXLH" class="tc-infographic-datawrapper" src="https://datawrapper.dwcdn.net/fbXLH/5/" height="400px" width="100%" style="border: none" frameborder="0"></iframe></p>
<p>With the planet facing increasingly intense heat waves, drought, wildfires and storms, a path to tackle the climate crisis became clear: Transition the electric grid to carbon-free wind and solar and convert most other fossil fuel users in transportation, buildings and industry to electricity.</p>
<p>The U.S. is headed in that direction. <a href="https://www.iea.org/news/renewable-electricity-growth-is-accelerating-faster-than-ever-worldwide-supporting-the-emergence-of-the-new-global-energy-economy">Early projections</a> suggest the world just wrapped up a record year of renewable electricity growth in 2021, following a <a href="https://www.greentechmedia.com/articles/read/wind-and-solar-defied-the-2020-economic-contraction-in-the-u.s">record 33,500 megawatts</a> of solar and wind electricity installed in the U.S. in 2020, according to BloombergNEF data. Even <a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2021/11/10/2022-will-be-a-record-year-for-wind-and-solar-new-report-finds.html">faster growth is expected</a> ahead, especially given the Biden administration’s plans to tap <a href="https://theconversation.com/the-us-just-set-ambitious-offshore-wind-power-targets-what-will-it-take-to-meet-them-158136">high-value offshore wind resources</a>. But will it be <a href="https://www.ipcc.ch/sr15/">fast enough</a>? </p>
<p>The Biden administration’s goal is to have a <a href="https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/statements-releases/2021/04/22/fact-sheet-president-biden-sets-2030-greenhouse-gas-pollution-reduction-target-aimed-at-creating-good-paying-union-jobs-and-securing-u-s-leadership-on-clean-energy-technologies/">carbon emissions-free grid by 2035</a>. One recent study found that the U.S. will need to <a href="https://energyinnovation.org/publication/2030-report-powering-americas-clean-economy/">nearly triple its 2020 growth rate</a> for the grid to be 80% powered by clean energy by 2030. (As difficult as that may sound, China reportedly installed 120,000 megawatts of wind and solar in 2020.)</p>
<p>The foundation of this transition is a dramatic change in the electric grid itself. </p>
<h2>3 ways to bring wind and solar into the grid</h2>
<p>Hailed as the <a href="https://theconversation.com/the-current-war-directors-cut-shows-how-the-electric-power-system-we-take-for-granted-came-to-be-125916">greatest invention of the 20th century</a>, our now-aging grid was based on fundamental concepts that made sense at the time it was developed. The original foundation was a combination of “base load” coal plants that operated 24 hours a day and large-scale hydropower.</p>
<p>Beginning in 1958, these were augmented by nuclear power plants, which have operated nearly continuously to pay off their large capital investments. Unlike coal and nuclear, solar and wind are variable; they provide power only when the sun and wind are available.</p>
<p>Converting to a 21st-century grid that is increasingly based on variable resources requires a completely new way of thinking. New sources of flexibility – the ability to keep supply and demand in balance over all time scales – are essential to enable this transition. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="Wind turbines next to a road on a rugged ridge." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/438580/original/file-20211220-19-n7q183.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/438580/original/file-20211220-19-n7q183.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/438580/original/file-20211220-19-n7q183.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/438580/original/file-20211220-19-n7q183.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/438580/original/file-20211220-19-n7q183.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/438580/original/file-20211220-19-n7q183.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/438580/original/file-20211220-19-n7q183.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Pine Tree Wind Farm near Tehachapi, California, provides renewable power to Los Angeles.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://images.nrel.gov/">Dennis Schroeder/NREL</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>There are basically three ways to accommodate the variability of wind and solar energy: use storage, deploy generation in a coordinated fashion across a wide area of the country along with more transmission, and manage electricity demand to better match the supply. These are all sources of flexibility.</p>
<p>Storage is now largely being provided by lithium-ion batteries. <a href="https://about.bnef.com/blog/battery-pack-prices-fall-to-an-average-of-132-kwh-but-rising-commodity-prices-start-to-bite/">Their costs have plummeted</a>, and <a href="https://theconversation.com/these-3-energy-storage-technologies-can-help-solve-the-challenge-of-moving-to-100-renewable-electricity-161564">new storage technologies</a> are being developed.</p>
<p>Expanded transmission is especially valuable. When the Northeast is experiencing peak electric demand in the early evening, there is still sun in the West. And, with more transmission, the large wind resources in the center of the country can <a href="https://theconversation.com/the-us-needs-a-macrogrid-to-move-electricity-from-areas-that-make-it-to-areas-that-need-it-155938">send electricity toward both coasts</a>. Transmission studies have shown that <a href="https://www.nrel.gov/analysis/seams.html">stronger interconnections among the country’s three power grids</a> are highly beneficial.</p>
<p>Making buildings more efficient and controlling their demand can also play a big role in cleaning up the grid. <a href="https://publishing.aip.org/publications/latest-content/100-renewable-energy-using-building-science/">Buildings</a> use 74% of U.S. electricity. Interconnected devices and equipment with smart meters can reduce and reshape a building’s power use.</p>
<p><iframe id="HNrNh" class="tc-infographic-datawrapper" src="https://datawrapper.dwcdn.net/HNrNh/4/" height="400px" width="100%" style="border: none" frameborder="0"></iframe></p>
<h2>Innovations that make 100% clean power possible</h2>
<p>Many analysts believe the U.S. can cost-effectively and reliably operate a power grid <a href="https://gspp.berkeley.edu/faculty-and-impact/news/recent-news/the-us-can-reach-90-percent-clean-electricity-by-2035-dependably-and-without-increasing-consumer-bills">with 80% to 90% clean electricity</a>, but decarbonizing the last 10% to 20% will be notably more challenging. While short-duration storage, lasting four hours or less, is becoming ubiquitous, we will likely need to provide power during some periods when wind and solar resources are at low levels (what the Germans call dunkelflaute, or “dark doldrums”). An expanded national transmission network will help, but some amount of long-duration storage will likely be needed.</p>
<p>Numerous options are being explored, including <a href="https://www.greenbiz.com/article/big-money-flows-long-duration-energy-storage">alternative battery technologies</a> and green hydrogen.</p>
<p><a href="https://www.colorado.edu/asmagazine/2021/10/25/scientists-win-4-million-efficient-battery-development">Flow batteries</a> are among the promising approaches that we are working on at the <a href="https://www.colorado.edu/rasei/">Renewable and Sustainable Energy Institute</a> at the University of Colorado. In a typical design, liquid electrolyte flows between two storage tanks separated by a membrane. The tanks can be scaled up in size corresponding to the desired storage duration. </p>
<p><a href="https://ideas.ted.com/what-on-earth-is-green-hydrogen-hint-its-a-fuel-that-could-be-the-key-to-a-carbon-free-future/">Green hydrogen</a> is a potential storage option for very long durations. It is produced by splitting water molecules with an electrolyzer powered by renewable electricity. The hydrogen can be stored underground (or in above-ground tanks) and either burned in combustion turbines or converted back to electricity in fuel cells. Green hydrogen is currently very expensive but is expected to become more affordable as the <a href="https://reneweconomy.com.au/csiros-stunning-predictions-for-low-cost-battery-storage-and-hydrogen-electrolysers/">cost of electrolyzers decreases</a>.</p>
<p>In addition, new business, market design and grid operator models are emerging. <a href="https://www.cleanenergyresourceteams.org/solargardens">Community solar gardens</a>, for example, allow homeowners to purchase locally produced solar electricity even if their own roofs are not suitable for solar panels. <a href="https://www.energy.gov/oe/activities/technology-development/grid-modernization-and-smart-grid/role-microgrids-helping">Microgrids</a> are another business model becoming common on campuses and complexes that produce electricity locally and can continue to operate if the grid goes down. Clean microgrids are powered by renewable energy and batteries.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="A man stands on a roof with solar panels and a community in the background." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/439156/original/file-20220103-42040-g7xcu6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/439156/original/file-20220103-42040-g7xcu6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/439156/original/file-20220103-42040-g7xcu6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/439156/original/file-20220103-42040-g7xcu6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/439156/original/file-20220103-42040-g7xcu6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/439156/original/file-20220103-42040-g7xcu6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/439156/original/file-20220103-42040-g7xcu6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Bishop Richard Howell stands near some of the 630 solar panels on the roof of his Minneapolis church. The community solar project provides clean energy to the community.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://newsroom.ap.org/detail/CommunitySolar/19c76868bd6a46e2b6303f0fe8d8f3c1/photo">AP Photo/Jim Mone</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Innovative market designs include <a href="https://www.irena.org/-/media/Files/IRENA/Agency/Publication/2019/Feb/IRENA_Innovation_ToU_tariffs_2019.pdf?la=en&hash=36658ADA8AA98677888DB2C184D1EE6A048C7470">time-of-use rates</a> that encourage electricity use, such as for charging electric vehicles, when renewable electricity is plentiful. <a href="https://greeningthegrid.org/integration-in-depth/balancing-area-coordination">Expanded balancing area coordination</a> draws on variable solar and wind resources from a wide region to provide a smoother overall supply. Improved grid operations include <a href="https://www.irena.org/-/media/Files/IRENA/Agency/Publication/2020/Jul/IRENA_Advanced_weather_forecasting_2020.pdf%20?%20%20la=en&hash=8384431B56569C0D8786C9A4FDD56864443D10AF">advanced forecasting of wind and solar</a> to minimize wasted power and reduce the need for costly standby reserves. <a href="https://www.greentechmedia.com/articles/read/dynamic-line-rating-pushing-the-transmission-grid-envelope-on-clean-energy-capacity">Dynamic line rating</a> allows grid operators to transmit more electricity through existing lines when favorable weather conditions permit.</p>
<p>Across the economy, greater attention to energy efficiency can enable power sector transformation, minimizing costs and improving reliability.</p>
<p>[<em>You’re smart and curious about the world. So are The Conversation’s authors and editors.</em> <a href="https://memberservices.theconversation.com/newsletters/?source=inline-youresmart">You can read us daily by subscribing to our newsletter</a>.]</p>
<p>Nuclear power is also essentially carbon-free, and keeping existing nuclear plants running can make the transition to renewables easier. However, new nuclear plants in the U.S. are very expensive to build, have long construction times and may prove too costly to operate in a manner that would help firm variable solar and wind.</p>
<p>In our view, the urgency of climate change demands an all-out effort to address it. Having a 2035 emissions goal is important, but the emissions reduction path the U.S. takes to reach that goal is critical. The No. 1 need is to minimize adding carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases to the atmosphere. The world already has the tools to get the grid 80% to 90% carbon-free, and technical experts are exploring a wide range of promising options for achieving that last 10% to 20%.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/173631/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Charles F. Kutscher has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond his academic appointment.</span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Jeffrey S. Logan also works at the National Renewable Energy Laboratory.</span></em></p>Renewable energy is expanding at a record pace, but still not fast enough. Here are the key areas to watch for progress in bringing more wind and solar into the power grid in 2022.Charles F. Kutscher, Fellow and Senior Research Associate, Renewable & Sustainable Energy Institute, University of Colorado BoulderJeffrey Logan, Associate Director of Energy Policy and Analysis, Renewable & Sustainable Energy Institute, University of Colorado BoulderLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1695512022-01-11T14:45:50Z2022-01-11T14:45:50ZTechnology has made buildings less climate-friendly: but we can look back in time for solutions<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/440224/original/file-20220111-16-1eip6wm.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=0%2C0%2C4000%2C2646&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Technological advances have made many buildings less environmentally friendly.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/micuradu/9311630443">Micuradu/Flickr</a>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/4.0/">CC BY-NC-SA</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>It’s been <a href="https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2021/10/04/new-technology-answer-climate-change-not-targets/">claimed</a> that technology is the answer to the climate crisis. By eventually separating economic growth from its effects on the environment through improving energy efficiency, the argument runs, better technology promises to prevent <a href="https://theconversation.com/theres-no-end-to-the-damage-humans-can-wreak-on-the-climate-this-is-how-bad-its-likely-to-get-166031">catastrophic</a> global warming.</p>
<p>But among the many things that this argument fails to consider is the <a href="https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/13563467.2019.1598964">reality</a> that new technology has often encouraged extravagant forms of consumption: from private cars and planes to kitchens full of appliances and air conditioning in countries with mild climates. </p>
<p>Technology has also caused what’s called the “<a href="https://esrc.ukri.org/about-us/50-years-of-esrc/50-achievements/the-rebound-effect/">rebound effect</a>”: where improving energy efficiency leads to cheaper energy and therefore higher rates of energy consumption. For example, buying a more fuel-efficient car will reduce your average fuel cost per trip and thus is likely to lead to more trips, taking away at least some of your anticipated energy savings. </p>
<p>A similar trend appears in architecture, where advances in artificial cooling, heating and computer-aided design have – rather than creating more efficient designs – actually introduced <a href="https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/667480/from-waste-to-resource-productivity-evidence-case-studies.pdf">wasteful</a> building styles. </p>
<p>In <a href="https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/2093761X.2016.1237397">my work</a>, I call this phenomenon the “architectural rebound effect”. This effect becomes especially clear when we look at how <a href="https://www.dezeen.com/tag/facades/">building façades</a> (the “skin” that covers buildings) have evolved over the past 100 years.</p>
<h2>Façade failures</h2>
<p>The <a href="https://cris.brighton.ac.uk/ws/portalfiles/portal/379433/CdR+Final+Diaz+%26+Southall+Published+Version.pdf">Cité de Refuge</a> residential building in Paris, designed by Swiss-French architect Le Corbusier in 1933, boasts one of the earliest examples of a façade made entirely out of glass. But with no windows or air conditioning, its summer indoor temperatures reached up to <a href="https://lmdvlugtdml.wordpress.com/home/lmd-words/miscellaneous-writings-and-publications/le-corbusiers-cite-de-refuge-historical-technological-performance-of-the-air-exacte/">33°C</a> – making it a “<a href="https://cris.brighton.ac.uk/ws/portalfiles/portal/379433/CdR+Final+Diaz+%26+Southall+Published+Version.pdf">notable failure</a>” in architecture.</p>
<p>To fix this, the façade was fitted with external shading devices and about a third of its glass was made opaque. This strategy was mostly effective: computer simulations have shown that the upgraded design reduced indoor summer temperatures to <a href="https://cris.brighton.ac.uk/ws/portalfiles/portal/379433/CdR+Final+Diaz+%26+Southall+Published+Version.pdf">below 25°C</a>. </p>
<p>From the 1950s, fully glazed façades without shading devices began to dominate city skylines thanks to increasingly efficient and cheap <a href="https://archive.curbed.com/2017/5/9/15583550/air-conditioning-architecture-skyscraper-wright-lever-house">air-conditioning systems</a> that allowed temperatures inside these buildings to be regulated. </p>
<p>But these new glass boxes came with their own set of environmental problems. For instance, <a href="https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/13602360903119405">research</a> has shown that office buildings built in the Manhattan borough of New York between 1965 and 1969 consumed twice as much energy per unit floor area than buildings erected between 1950 and 1954. </p>
<p>One reason for this is probably the difference in the window-to-wall ratio between these groups of buildings. While the later buildings had a ratio between 53% and 72%, the earlier buildings’ ratio sat between 23% to 32%. This means that more heat was allowed into and out of the former group of buildings during summer and winter, increasing their need for artificial cooling and heating. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="An apartment building with red, yellow and blue external features" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/437794/original/file-20211215-21-f60i8n.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/437794/original/file-20211215-21-f60i8n.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=338&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/437794/original/file-20211215-21-f60i8n.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=338&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/437794/original/file-20211215-21-f60i8n.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=338&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/437794/original/file-20211215-21-f60i8n.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=425&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/437794/original/file-20211215-21-f60i8n.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=425&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/437794/original/file-20211215-21-f60i8n.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=425&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">The Cité de Refuge after its refurbishment, with external shades and opaque glass.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Cit%C3%A9_de_Refuge.jpg">IanTomFerry/Wikimedia</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Another problem with fully glazed façades is the excessive glare they cause inside buildings, which means that indoor blinds must be pulled down most of the time. This blocks occupants’ views to the outside and increases reliance on artificial lighting, increasing energy consumption even further. </p>
<p>These problems with fully glazed façades still plague buildings today. Now, parametrically designed shading devices are often used as a solution. Unfortunately, these tend to block outdoor views for those working inside, while keeping the need for <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0038092X12002046">artificial light</a>.</p>
<h2>Limiting freedoms</h2>
<p>Should we prevent architects from exercising their aesthetic freedom in designing these extravagant buildings that harm our planet? One solution could be to set a maximum limit on the amount of energy a building is allowed to consume. This would require architects to use <a href="https://www.re-thinkingthefuture.com/sustainable-architecture/a3992-what-are-passive-design-strategies/">passive design strategies</a> – techniques that enable humans to live in challenging climates without expending unnecessary energy. </p>
<p>For example, by the year 400 BC, Persians had devised an ingenious way to <a href="http://jfa.arch.metu.edu.tr/archive/0258-5316/2012/cilt29/sayi_2/223-234.pdf">store ice</a> during hot summer months using ice pits called “yakhchals”. These were vaulted reservoirs with a height of up to 15 metres and a depth of approximately six metres.</p>
<p>By allowing hot air to exit through an opening at the top of the reservoir and burying ice deep in the earth, the base of the yakhchal – and the ice inside – would <a href="https://www.maxfordham.com/research-innovation/the-physics-of-freezing-at-the-iranian-yakhchal/">remain cold</a> throughout the summer.</p>
<p>An example from the modern era is the <a href="http://thegreentreefoundation.org/energy_concious_building/case_studies.pdf">Inspector General of Police Complex</a> building in Gulbarga, India, which uses a wind tower fitted with water sprays to create a comfortable environment in a hot and humid climate. Droplets from the sprays absorb heat from incoming air, reducing the air’s temperature by up to 13°C before it enters the building.</p>
<p>It’s vital to first decide how best to measure buildings’ maximum energy limit. In current building energy rating schemes, “<a href="https://aiacalifornia.org/energy-use-intensity-eui/">energy use intensity</a>” is often used, which refers to the amount of energy consumed per unit of floor area. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="A brick building in the desert" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/437800/original/file-20211215-25-1v88ihf.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/437800/original/file-20211215-25-1v88ihf.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=393&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/437800/original/file-20211215-25-1v88ihf.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=393&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/437800/original/file-20211215-25-1v88ihf.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=393&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/437800/original/file-20211215-25-1v88ihf.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=494&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/437800/original/file-20211215-25-1v88ihf.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=494&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/437800/original/file-20211215-25-1v88ihf.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=494&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">This yakhchal in Iran was used to keep ice cool.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Iran_desert,_yakh-chal_(%D9%89%D8%AE_%DA%86%D8%A7%D9%84_en_persan)_,_goat_herd_-_glaci%C3%A8re,_troupeau_de_ch%C3%A8vres_(9261276542).jpg">Jeanne Menj/Wikimedia</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>But a flaw of this metric is that it allows overly large, grandiose buildings to be certified as <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KUuVoMCVwQo&ab_channel=InternationalPassiveHouseAssociation">low energy</a>. A more appropriate metric could focus on energy consumed in relation to the number of people using a building – in other words, a building’s energy use per person.</p>
<h2>Making masterpieces</h2>
<p>A possible objection is that this could result in “boring” buildings with no aesthetic appeal. In this case, we could encourage architects to express their creativity through building structures not designed to house people and therefore require little to no operational energy to run.</p>
<p>This would considerably reduce the environmental impact of such architectural masterpieces. On average, <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0378778810001696">80% to 90%</a> of a building’s carbon emissions arise from operating it, not building it.</p>
<p>What’s more, many iconic buildings have failed to function as they were designed to. Mies von der Rohe’s <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/artanddesign/2021/aug/30/curse-mies-van-der-rohe-puddle-strewn-gallery-david-chipperfield-berlin-national">New National Gallery</a> in Berlin suffered from cracking windows and heavy condensation, while Frank Gehry’s MIT-based <a href="https://www.wired.com/2007/11/mit-sues-frank/">Stata Centre</a> in Massachusetts has leaky roofs and excessive mould. These buildings have not been demolished, however, but left standing as examples of top-quality design.</p>
<p>Perhaps if architects channelled their desire for daring aesthetic into sculpture-like structures rather than buildings designed for habitation, they could continue to keep pushing the limits of design without making the planet pay.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/169551/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>I wish to thank Graham McKay, author of the blog misfits’ architecture, for being an inspiration behind the many ideas presented in this article.</span></em></p>Lessons from ancient architecture can help us design buildings that provide comfort and convenience without costing the earth.Bashar Al Shawa, PhD Student in Architecture, University of BathLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.