18 THE CLIMATE CHALLENGE Defence of the realm


As climate change intensifi es, the UK’s environment and buildings face mounting risks. Kirsty Girvan of the UK Green Building Council outlines why urgent, systemic action is needed to adapt to the changes being seen.


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T


he climate crisis is no longer a distant threat. The UK is experiencing more frequent and


AS UKGBC’S ‘UK CLIMATE RESILIENCE ROADMAP’ PLUS REPEATED REPORTS FROM THE CLIMATE CHANGE COMMITTEE MAKE CLEAR, ADAPTING OUR BUILDING STOCK MUST BE A TOP PRIORITY


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intense storms, fl oods, droughts, wildfi res, and heatwaves. hese haards are reshaping our environment, economy and daily lives. ithout urgent and coordinated action, the impacts will worsen, putting lives, livelihoods and long-term prosperity at ris. he UK is warming at a faster rate than the global average. ll of the top  warmest years on record have occurred this century, and with global emissions yet to pea, temperatures are projected to continue rising for decades. n the UK, this will mean a range of challenging impacts. Firstly, hotter, drier summers: The Climate Change Committee forecasts that by 2, the average summer will be .C warmer than -2 levels. he hottest summers from recent years will become the norm, and reduced rainfall will raise the ris of drought and strain water systems. econdly, warmer, wetter winters he


orld eather ttribution organisations modelling expects heavier winter rainfall and more wet days, increasing fl ood riss from overwhelmed rivers and surface water. ccording to the et ffi ce, between - and 2-223, the number of hot days above 2C has more than doubled, and very hot days above 3C have more than tripled.


These ongoing trends demand a national, long term response grounded in data, funding, and coordinated strategy. esilience cannot be delivered in siloes. t must be systemic and cross-sectoral, addressing haards lie overheating or fl ooding requires looing after both the structural vulnerabilities of buildings as well as their users and communities.


IMPACT OF CLIMATE RISKS Climate change is already putting unprecedented pressure on homes, infrastructure, and public services. verheating is rising the nglish ousing urvey shows that households reporting part of their home as uncomfortably hot” increased from  in 222 to 3 in 223. ven under the current climate, more than half of UK homes are vulnerable to overheating.


The damage to building assets from


fl oods results in heavy fi nancial losses. he ssociation of ritish nsurers showed that in 223, weather related insurance claims were the highest on record, up 3 in 222, and of the 3m paid out to homeowners for weather related damage, half of this was due to fl ooding. s UKCs he UK Climate esilience


oadmap and repeated reports from he Climate Change Committee mae clear, adapting our building stoc must be a top priority. ecisions made today will defi ne the resilience of the built environment for


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