Week 4

Pre-Session Reflection

Personal reflections on the article “Are We Ready for Zero Carbon Buildings?”

When we think about zero carbon buildings, it is important to look beyond how a building generates at least the same amount of energy on site as it used. Embedded carbon, and low embedded carbon materials, such as timer, could be important considerations. It is also evident from the article that in many countries, there have been two major constraint that have caused an impediment towards making zero carbon buildings more common – cost and our existing attitude.

Personally, I believe the solution is quite obvious. On an individual level, the attitudes of investors, home owners, developer and builders need to change and they will as zero carbon building will make more and more economic sense when our electricity bills are increasing, there is a greater prospective return of investment. I believe, however, that on a legislative level the state and government also needs to ensure that more stringent regulations are implement which would make meeting certain performance criteria mandatory.

Post Session Reflections:

Personal reflections on the article "Design for Adaptation: Living in a Climate-Changing World"

Climate change has become an imminent reality and is currently happening. When as architects we design a building, we must think beyond current microclimatic conditions. In fact, it is vital that our design addresses future climatic changes.

In the future we will have to deal with greater extremities in weather and there are many strategies proposed by the author such as:

• Design cooling-load-avoidance measures into buildings
• Design natural ventilation into buildings.
• Limit internal gains by specifying high-efficiency lighting and equipment
• Model energy performance with higher cooling design temperatures
• Provide landscaping to minimize cooling requirements
• Address urban heat islands in building design and landscaping. 
• Changes in precipitation patterns are an expected outcome of climate change, so designing for drought is a high priority in many regions..
• Avoid new development in the driest regions. 
• Specify water-efficient fixtures and appliances. 
• Plumb buildings with water-conserving fixtures in mind. 
• Plumb buildings for graywater separation. 
• Harvest rainwater. 
• Plant native, climatically appropriate trees and other vegetation.
• Avoid building in flood zones
• Expand stormwater management capacity and rely on natural systems. 
• Design buildings to survive extreme winds. 
• Raise buildings off the ground in flood-prone areas
• Specify materials that can survive flooding.
• Install specialized components to protect buildings from flooding or allow flooding with minimal damage.
• Elevate mechanical and electrical equipment. 
• Install check valves in sewer lines. 
• Begin planning for rising sea levels in coastal areas.