CLIMATE CHANGE 81
homeowners were not willing to replace their timber doors with UPVC flood doors. Similarly, it is difficult to stop homeowners from replacing flood doors and windows with products of their choice at a later date, so it would be unsafe to design new developments or buildings that rely upon flood resistance and resilience measures.’ He has already seen a change in direction
in the UK. ‘Historically, the priority of flooding related policy in the UK was to ‘keep the water out’. Tis has now changed, and the focus is on ‘making space for water’, aiming to direct flood water in open spaces and away from buildings rather than defending against it.’ For example, Price & Myers worked on the Tames Hospice in Maidenhead, next to Bray Lake and close to Te Cut canal and the River Tames. Te solution was to artificially raise the levels of
the buildings to above the 100-year plus 70% climate change allowance storm event, while at the same time dropping the levels in other areas of the site to provide a safe, non-damaging place for water to go. ‘Raising the ground levels to protect new buildings from flooding can result in flood water displacement elsewhere, so proposed development should aim to create more space for flood water storage in comparison with the existing situation.’ Another option for rising river and tidal
levels is buildings that rise with the water, such as Brockholes Visitors Centre by the river Ribble in Lancashire, where Price & Myers worked on a waterside building by Adam Khan Architects that could rise on a pontoon. Taken to its logical conclusion, completely floating buildings, such as the Floating Dairy Farm by Goldsmith, moored
in Rotterdam Harbour, offer a resilient option for a more watery future, using modern technology and materials to create a 21st-century version of the floating villages seen in cultures from Bangladesh to China. It is in cities – where the UK government,
for example, wants to concentrate on brownfield housebuilding – that the challenges of dealing with flood water are most acute, says Linardatos: ‘Te value of the land and the construction cost of new projects in urbanised areas lead to high-density developments where the available space for floodwater management is compromised. Public sewers are usually overloaded and unable to manage run-off from the catchment areas that they serve, and there is no clear strategy for tackling the flood risk from surface water.’ While planning rules for new developments have strict water management policies, infills
PROJECT AYLA GOLF CLUBHOUSE
This clubhouse in Aqaba, Jordan, is part of a mixed-use resort with a championship golf course designed to be one of the most eco-friendly in the world. Openings capture coastal breezes, and sunlight is filtered through perforated Corten steel screens, similar to the traditional Arabic mashrabiya. Inspired by dunes and Bedouin tents, the building has a shell of shotcrete made with soil from the site, doused in local minerals and pigments by an Aqaba artist.
Architect Oppenheim Architecture
Client Ayla Oasis Development Company
Local architect Darb Architects and Engineers
General contractor Modern Tech Construction
PROJECT COLLEGE OF LIFE SCIENCES
The multi-award-winning college, part of a new university on the fringe of Kuwait City, was designed as a response to the harsh desert conditions experienced on the Arabian Peninsula. Heat, dry air and the solar glare were managed through the use of mashrabiya, reimagined to provide protection against heat gain, but also to redirect views from the building and allow the soft, even light from the north. The façades were tilted outward to self-shade the interior and allow users to occupy more of the floor plate, while two large atria act like heat chimneys, passively drawing cool air up through the building.
Architect CambridgeSeven Client Kuwait University Consultant Gulf Consult
PHOTO: MOHAMMAD TAQI
PHOTO: RORY GARDINER
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