Improving climate resilience in buildings, homes and outdoor spaces

The spaces where we live, work and play must be able to cope with weather and climate conditions now and into the future. Fortunately, making our buildings, homes and outdoor sites more resilient to climate change is something that both homeowners and building professionals can contribute to.

We are continuing to see the importance of preparing our communities and cities for changing conditions. For example, summers in Minnesota now regularly bring impacts like heat waves and wildfire smoke to different parts of the state.

When designing or renovating structures and sites, professional architects and engineers typically rely on historical weather data and building codes that are created using historical data. With our changing climate, this could pose risks to project owners and occupants because historical data may not accurately represent the conditions that buildings and sites need to tolerate now and in the future.

Future climate and the built environment

When we look at future climate in Minnesota, the range, frequency, and intensity of climate and weather conditions are expected to be substantially different from what we have experienced in the past.

Take Rochester, Minnesota for example: as we move into the late century (2060-2079), climate scientists expect higher average daily maximum temperatures and 22 to 33 more days that reach above 90° F (when compared with 1995-2014).

High heat can affect many aspects of project design, from cooling system capacity to the integrity of different building materials. A structure built or renovated today and expected to last for the next 50 to 100 years will need to be designed and constructed in a way to accommodate these higher heat conditions.

Other climate hazards that may affect the built environment and occupants in Minnesota include increasing intensity of heavy precipitation events and related flooding, more frequent and severe storms, wind and hail, and increasing wildfires that may affect air quality.

Read more about climate change affecting Minnesota in this statewide overview.

How do we create structures and sites that are prepared for future conditions?

For professionals working in building design and construction, the University of Minnesota Climate Adaptation Partnership (MCAP) partnered with HGA Architects and Engineers to develop a process for incorporating future climate data, risk assessment, and adaptation strategies into project design.

This process involves three interrelated activities:

Understand exposure

Resilient building design begins by understanding what climate data are telling us about the future for a given project location. Using this information, we can understand which climate hazards could affect a building project throughout its lifespan.

Many tools can help do this, including the MN CLiMAT tool, which provides locally specific future climate data for Minnesota and includes many climate variables relevant to the built environment.

Assess risk

Not all climate hazards carry the same level of risk. For example, wildfire smoke that affects the health of sensitive occupants may be considered a higher risk compared to flooding that periodically reduces access to parking spaces. Both are climate risks, but the severity of their consequences differs.

A clear understanding of different levels of climate risk can help building owners decide how risks need to be addressed. 

Plan and implement resilient strategies

Understanding climate hazards and risks is foundational to developing appropriate solutions. In this step, the project team selects strategies to address climate risks, prioritizes these strategies, and assesses tradeoffs.

For example, there may be an adaptation strategy that is very effective at addressing a climate concern, but the concern is relatively low risk and the strategy is costly. Conversely, some adaptation strategies have additional benefits, like reducing energy costs.

Some examples of climate adaptation strategies for projects include:

• Exterior shade devices: Leverage overhangs, awnings, exterior shutters, or louvers to reduce indoor temperatures and block heat gain. (Climate hazard: extreme heat).
• Rain gardens: Install rain gardens to infiltrate, increase evapotranspiration, and temporarily store runoff during and after rain events. (Climate hazards: extreme heat, severe weather, flooding).
• Reinforced roofing: Reinforce roof sheathing, use wind- and impact-rated roofing materials, and increase anchoring for rooftop equipment. (Climate hazard: severe weather).
• Smart building systems: Smart building systems enable accurate management of indoor thermal comfort and environmental quality. (Climate hazards: extreme heat, severe weather, energy insecurity).