Built Environment Challenges Due to Climate Change

Abstract

Climate change has become one of the most significant problems of recent years. It results in a higher incidence of extreme events, such as strong winds, heavy precipitation, floods and droughts. Their consequences have a negative impact not only on the environment, but also on the engineering structures and the safety of the population. In this article, the relationship between the built environment and the effects of climate change is characterised in order to propose systemic changes to improve the adaptation of cities to climate change. Weather- and climate-related hazards for the built environment are analysed, and the possibilities to reduce the risk and mitigate the effect of construction disasters, should they occur. Moreover, a case study conducted in Central Europe has been presented. Based on quantitative data from the Central Office of Building Control in Poland from 2006-2018, the occurrence of construction disasters, their causes and consequences were examined. It was found that the main cause of disasters occurring in Poland during this period were random events (73%), which consisted in particular of extreme weather events such as strong wind or strong wind with accompanying heavy precipitation causing floods and landslides. The highest number of construction disasters (1113) was recorded in 2008, and as many as 95.6% were caused by random events. The conclusion indicates the need to prepare the built environment for climate change and to develop appropriate solutions to reduce the risk of climate-related hazards and to mitigate their effects. Based on the conducted analyses, a conceptual framework of improved climate-resilient built environment management was proposed.

Scenario-Based Comprehensive Assessment for Community Resilience Adapted to Fire Following an Earthquake, Implementing the Analytic Network Process and Preference Ranking Organization Method for Enriched Evaluation II Techniques

“…The primary findings were based on the investigation of earthquake-prone areas. Due to low earthquake risk in many locations, the proposed indicators on community resilience under a FFE scenario should be adjusted to adapt to the most influential risks locally [187,188]. However, as the assessment techniques implemented in this study is simple and valid, it could be applied to assess more disaster scenarios.…”

Key Financial Indicators by the Size of the Construction Company - Czech Study

“…In the case of construction companies, their development and economic stability depends on winning contracts for construction works, which is the result of a well-planned bidding strategy [9] and reasonably calculated construction costs [10]. The company's activity are influenced by the environment of the construction investments [11], also materials [12] and energy requirements for buildings [13]. It is important to constantly monitor and optimize the share of external resources on the total capital with respect to the recommended values given by the golden rule [14,15] for the management of the company in various stages of its development.…”

“…As already mentioned, the Ministry of Industry and Trade [11] publishes quarterly information on key financial indicators within individual sectors according to the NACE classification. Each sector fills the inputs for the statistics with a different number of samples.…”

Reversing Years for Global Food Security: A Review of the Food Security Situation in Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA)

“…For instance, low economic growth [ 10 ], gender inequality [ 11 ], food price inflation, low agricultural productivity, drought [ 12 ], inadequate investment in irrigation [ 9 ], climate change [ 13 , 14 ], and rapid population growth [ 15 , 16 ]. Floods, severe rainfall, drought, cyclones, and storms are all climate-induced phenomena that negatively influence rural income and food security in low-income developing countries [ 16 , 17 , 18 ].…”