NATURE OF SPATIAL PRACTICES: PAIVA HENRIQUE

HOUSING RESPONSES TO CLIMATE CHANGE:

Analyzing architectures of transition in flood-prone zones.
Author. Karen Paiva Henrique

ABSTRACT
The worlds climate is changing at unprecedented rates. As temperatures increase, sea level rises, and
extreme weather events become more frequent, the worlds population will be increasingly affected by
flooding. Rising waters already pose a considerable threat in urban areas throughout the globe,
endangering coastal communities and causing millions of dollars in damage and repair. Rooted on the
environmental variations caused by climate change and its impact on human populations, the paper will
reflect upon two traditional measures utilized in the prevention of flooding: the implementation of hardinfrastructure projects and the relocation of populations at risk. As the paper will delineate, hardinfrastructure projects that have been applied for generations in order to control the forces of water, are
currently challenged by the possibility of obsolescence. At the same time, the relocation of families to
safer grounds, often defined by financial, physical and political constraints, is called into question for the
consequent dismantlement of social groups and the potential abandonment of entire urban settings.
Hence the paper argues in favor of a paradigm shift in architecture and planning practices from
strengthening boundaries toward establishing a more fluid relationship between water and land. The
inevitability of flooding urges architects to consider water as a design element, allowing it to infiltrate the
land and to become part of the built environment. To this end, the study evaluates three contemporary
housing responses to flooding: the FLOAT House, by Morphosis; the New Aqueous City, by
nARCHITECTS; and the Turnaround House, by Nissen Adams LLP. These examples unveil alternative
approaches to the inhabitation of floodplains, challenging traditional architectural solutions by
incorporating into design the conditions of transition intrinsic to areas affected by flooding.

INTRODUCTION
In the beginning of the year 2012, the mainstream press announced that the government of Kiribati, a
small island in the Pacific Ocean, was analyzing the possibility of purchasing 9 sq miles (29 sq km) of
Fijis Island Viti Levu to help secure a home for its approximately 100,000 inhabitants (Kiribati Mulls
Fiji Land Purchase 2012; Hayden 2012). The island, located just a few meters above sea level, faces a
rising sea threatening to submerge at least 50 percent of its urban territory on the next 40 years.1
Later on the same year, the worlds attention focused on Hurricane Sandy, which arrived in the
US East Coast on October 29, leaving a trail of destruction behind. The rapidly accumulating waters made
thousands of people homeless, affecting structures, and damaging heating and electrical systems. In
Lower Manhattan, home for significant elderly populations, buildings affected by the hurricane would
have to remain unoccupied for at least one month, until the contamination of fuel oil in their basements
was remediated (Kleinfield 2012).

According to a World Bank report earlier this decade, Kiribati's capital of Tarawawhere nearly half the population lives
will be 25-54 per cent inundated in the south and 55-80 per cent in the north by mid-century unless there is significant
adaptation. (Tarawa 2013)

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One month later Venice would face the sixth worst flood the city ever experienced since records
began in 1872, with water levels reaching five feet higher than normal. Seventy percent of the lagoon city
was under water, including its famous St. Marks square, which, located in one of citys lowest lying
areas, became a giant swimming pool for tourists (Mackenzie and Pullella 2013).
The year 2012 testifies an increase in the frequency and intensity of water related events as
represented by the previous examples. Currently, urban residents occupying Low Elevation Coastal Zones
(ten meters or less above sea level), especially vulnerable to flooding, reach beyond the mark of 360
million (Hoornweg et al. 2010). Out of the twenty megacities in the world, fifteen are at risk from
inundations (Hoornweg et al. 2010). As cities continue to grow, and human occupation pushes the
margins of urban development outward, city dwellers increasingly occupy areas that are prone to
flooding. If flooding affected 178 million people throughout the globe in the year 2010 (Hoornweg et al.
2010), the world can only expect this number to rise significantly in the years to come. According to
William W. Hay in presentation given at the 2012 Geological Society of America Annual Meeting,
current sea level measurements already reach or exceed the maximum predicted by the 2007 IPCC
Report, which estimated a sea level rise between 0.2 and 0.5 meters by 2100.
In spite of its geographical position and regardless of the form that flooding undertakes (either as
a single devastating event, an incremental, slowly occupying force or a recurrent pressure), the forces of
rising waters present one common outcome: its impact on the innumerous families it encounters on its
path of destruction. While governmental agencies advocate for the removal of families from areas prone
to inundations or continue to implement infrastructural strategies to keep the sea out, this paper argues in
favor of a more flexible occupation of the zone contiguous to main water bodies.
The present study will first analyze the limitations of current hard-infrastructure projects and then
examine the social implications of displacement. The paper will finally present three housing projects that
challenge the traditional approach of controlling the tides, giving insights on how to incorporate the
temporary and recurrent presence of water in built form. Through this exercise, the work intents to
challenge current paradigms defining our built environment, unveiling new opportunities for architecture
to be conceived in the presence of water, and offering alternatives to achieve continuity for the
livelihoods of those inhabiting the floodplain.

AN ASSESSMENT OF HARD- INFRASTRUCTURE PROJECTS

Among all natural disasters triggered by climate change, flood is regarded as the most frequent (Abhas,
Bloch, and Lamond 2012). Sea level rise, changes in rainfall patterns, higher frequency and duration of
drought periods leading to land subsidence, and an amplified frequency of storms, exemplify some of the
alterations in climate patterns leading to water related events from flash floods to coastal surges. Reports
on climate change developed by multiple agencies2 agree that communities established in urban areas are
the most susceptible to natural disasters, especially those related to water. Human populations have
historically settled in the margins of water, assuming a natural risk for flooding. As settlements grow
older and larger, their geographic advantage becomes their biggest vulnerability. With a high percentage
of impervious surfaces, together with limited, aging, and poorly maintained drainage and disposal
infrastructures, overcrowded cities prevent water from being naturally discharged and offer the perfect
setting for large inundations to take place (Abhas, Bloch, and Lamond 2012). According to the World
Bank, in 2010, 75 percent of the worlds megacities were at risk from rising sea level and storm surges.
In order to safeguard urban settlements against flooding, guaranteeing the safety of inhabitants
and the protection of human-made structures, several coastal cities rely on major infrastructural projects.
Among these are drainage networks, canalization of streams, and seawalls, which prevent rising waters
from invading the land. Hard-infrastructure projects have been applied for decades, but the systems can

Such as Climate Change 2007: Synthesis Report (2007), Cities and Climate Change: An Urgent Agenda (2010), and
Cities and Flooding: A Guide to Integrated Urban Flood Risk Management for the 21st Century (2012).

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prove to be inadequate and highly ineffective in face of current climate variations and sea level rise
predictions (Abhas, Bloch, and Lamond 2012). According to Michael Oppenheimer often being literally
set in stone, such hard-infrastructure is dependent on a stable climate and sea level, and these are
options we simply cannot count on any longer (Oppenheimer 2011, 38). In 2005, Hurricane Katrina
confronted the limitations of such coastal protection structures (Nordenson and Seavitt 2011). The failure
of New Orleans levee system led to catastrophic consequences in material and, more important, human
losses. Nevertheless, hard-infrastructure projects are still extensively applied. Project MOSE, currently
under construction in Venice, Italy, consists of a seawall defense mechanism composed of 78 mobile
barriers, designed to hold the Adriatic Seas seasonal acqua alta (high-tide). It is not guaranteed however
that the project, initiated in the 1970s and to be completed in 2015, will be able to withstand current and
future sea level rise (Nordenson and Seavitt 2011).
Besides their potential ineffectiveness, conventional hard-infrastructure measures such as
seawalls and embankments are frequently applied at the expense of the connection between city dwellers
and nature. One example for such disconnection is the Mau Wall. Built after the great flood of 1941 in
the city of Porto Alegre, Brazil, the system consists of a 2.6 km long and 3 meters high wall, sectioned by
a series of gates. Toward protecting the downtown area against the forces of rising waters, the wall
divides the city from its lake both physically and visually. Since its construction, the wall has suffered the
criticism of architects, urban planners, and the general community, all questioning both the implications
of building a physical barrier between nature and the urban realm, and the systems effectiveness in the
event of a flood, since its gates havent been regularly operated since construction.

THE CONSEQUENCES OF DISPLACEMENT

The consequences of any natural disaster go far beyond the financial impact caused by the damage of
physical structures, or the psychological implications of losing personal belongings with inestimable
sentimental value. Extreme weather events, such as those characterized by flooding, have traditionally led
to the displacement of entire communities. Several studies have shown that the number of populations
displaced by climate change have increased significantly in recent years. The Internal Displacement
Monitoring Center and the Norwegian Refugee Council announced in 2011 that the number of people
displaced by natural hazard disasters rose from 17 million people in 2009 to 42 million in 2010. Biermann
and Boas (2010) predict that this number will reach 200 million or over by 2050.
The displacement of populations at risk from environmental hazards has great impact on their
livelihoods. Communities are the product of a shared living experience in space through time. They are
constituted by a group of people interacting to achieve common benefits, and, through relationships with
other people, cultures and their built environment, are highly connected to the places they are formed
upon (Flora and Flora 2008). Through time these relationships grow and social bonds multiply. This
process of community building, when based on a diverse, inclusive and flexible framework, leads to the
establishment of social networks that sustain mutual trust and support each individual within the system
(Flora and Flora 2008). The diverse connections consolidated in the process constitute social capital,
crucial on the development of any balanced and thriving society, and source for equity and wealth.
Displacement acts as the counter force for community establishment and the development of
social capital. The pressures triggering mobility, here defined by the process of flooding, break social
bonds, and, with the impairment of social cohesion, informal contracts, mutual trust, and daily
interactions become less frequent. Communal and individual aspects of society are affected, leading to,
for example, higher crime rates and lower school performance (Putnam 2000).
The process of relocation commonly follows flooding. In face of natural threats such as
inundations, governments throughout the world have traditionally focused on displacing families,

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relocating them into safer grounds.3 Such effort, often delineated by financial, physical and political
constraints, frequently determines the dismantlement of the social groups in which families have
coexisted for generations. As Robert Putnam states, for people, as for plants, frequent repotting disrupts
root systems (Putnam 2000, 201). Developing new roots requires time.
Understanding displacement through the lenses of community development and social capital
redefines the need to cope with its originating pressures. If the forces posed by rising waters when
confronted with traditional methods of construction lead to the necessity of relocating families, new
methods of design must be pursued whenever possible in order to guarantee the permanence of
individuals and their built environments, and sustain their livelihoods.

TOWARD A NEW PARADIGM: Housing Responses to Flooding

In face of rising waters future predictions, together with the limitations posed by current water
containment systems and relocation processes, planners and designers must reevaluate their traditional
approach to flooding. The inevitability of flooding asks designers to consider water as a design element,
infiltrating the land to become part of the built environment. However, allowing for the dynamic presence
of water requires architects to go beyond solutions determined by the traditional canons of the discipline.
It urges for the invention of more flexible built forms able to adapt to both dry and wet conditions.
Following the pressures exerted by flooding, several architects have adopted rising waters as the
core element of their design strategies. Floating homes have become ubiquitous in the architectural
scenario, especially in countries such as the Netherlands, where the relationship between built
environment and surrounding waters has been consolidated for centuries. Such projects outline a shift in
architecture practices, from strengthening boundaries to establishing a more fluid relationship between
water and land, allowing the movements of the tides to determine unique aspects of the resultant built
form.
One of such structures is the Float House (Figure 1), designed by Morphosis in collaboration with
the UCLA Architecture and Urban Design program. Located at New Orleans Lower Ninth Ward, the
house was conceptualized as a self-sufficient structure. The design follows the Two-Bay Shotgun
typology, taking inspiration from the traditional New Orleans style, broadly disseminated in the region
between the late 1800s and the early 1900s.4 The most unique feature of this house is its base,
denominated by the designers as the chassis,5 and conceived to float in the event of a flood. Besides being
able to rise in accordance to changes on water levels, the structures pre-fabricated chassis is responsible
for generating and sustaining its water and electrical power needs. Solar energy is harvested from the sun,
stored, and converted into electrical power. All energy produced in excess is redirected to the citys
energy grid. Rainwater is collected on the sloped roof and filtered on the chassis for daily use. At the
same time, efficient materials and appliances utilized in the design minimize energy loss and water
consumption, while a geothermal system keeps temperatures within the structure at a comfortable level.

One example of relocation plans orchestrated by the government is Kiribati, cited in the beginning of this paper.
The Two-Bay Shotgun or Shotgun Single typology is characterized by the linear distribution of spaces perpendicular to the
street and a pitched roof sloping toward the houses longest longest dimensions. (Feireiss 2009)
5 According to the designers, the base is inspired by GMs skateboard chassis, which is engineered to support several car body
types, the FLOAT Houses chassis is designed to support a variety of customizable house configurations (FLOAT House
2012)
4

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Figure 1 Floating House Schematic Diagram

Source: Karen Paiva Henrique

Allowing the house to float, instead of building it 10 feet above the ground as most of the houses
designed for New Orleans Lower Ninth Ward, preserves and emphasizes the citys porch culture. Since
the houses first floor is elevated only a few steps above the ground level in dry conditions, the structure
remains close to the street most of the time, allowing for a greater interaction between inhabitants and
their neighbors, and fostering the creation of community bonds.
A similar interest on community contact is promoted by the New Aqueous Neighborhood
(Figure 2), designed by nARCHITECTS for New Yorks waterfront. Part of the project Rising Waters:
Projects for New Yorks Waterfront, the proposal features commercial, residential, and leisure zones.
Each individual building, constructed on stilts above the water and connected to land through a series of
floating pathways, accommodates varying water levels. Similar to the FLOAT house, the inventiveness
of the project lies on its supporting system. The multifamily housing complex is suspended by a doubleT structure composed by two main vertical supports, resting on stilts above the water level, connected by
one horizontal truss. The complexs upper level houses a public green area, which connects the different
buildings, establishing a shared space for community interaction and guaranteeing a dry backyard to be
utilized regardless of variations on the water level below.

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Figure 2 New Aqueous Neighborhood - Schematic Diagram

Source: Karen Paiva Henrique

While the FLOAT House and the New Aqueous Neighborhood accept varying water levels
as a precondition of the sites in which they are located, both designs envision structures that remain
constantly dry, either by rising together with the tides or because they are built above the water level,
therefore preventing any contact with floodwaters. The Turnaround House (Figure 3), designed by
Nissen Adams LLP, on the other end, blurs the lines between water and built object. The Turnaround
House proposes a flexible two-story home, able to adapt in face of a flood by allowing the presence of
water inside the housing structure. When the water rises, inhabitants are allowed to stay inside the house,
which remains connected to the surrounding neighborhood and to the provision of infrastructure.

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Figure 3 Turnaround House Schematic Diagram

Source: Karen Paiva Henrique

The house presents a traditional structure, composed by a concrete foundation and prefabricated
insulated walls. Different materials are adopted above and bellow a designed flood elevation of 0.6
meters, guaranteeing the structures durability.6 Besides facilitating its maintenance, the difference of
materials adopted in the house serves as a constant reminder of the transient environment in which it is
located. Another interesting design feature is the flexibility of its program. The house is designed with
activities in both floors (bedrooms on the ground floor and social spaces on the second floor), but, when
the flood warning is issued, the occupation of the house turns around and all activities originally located
on the ground floor are relocated on the structures upper level. In order to maintain the dwellings
accessibility during the flood, timber shutters located on the second-floor fold down connecting the
elevated gardens of different houses in the neighborhood, and creating a continuous raised path. The

The staircase, for example, is built with concrete below and wood above the flood line.

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Turnaround House reinterprets common design strategies in an inventive way, allowing for inhabitants
and flooding waters to coexist within one single structure.

CONCLUSION
The number of floods afflicting human populations continues to increase exponentially throughout the
globe. In the month of January 2013 alone, two countries declared state of emergency caused by
inundations: in Australia, New South Wales and Queensland were forced to evaluate the damage of their
second worst flood in many years (Deadly Floodwaters Rise in Eastern Australia 2013), while in
Mozambique, 150,000 people were displaced by the floodwaters of the Limpopo River (Thousands Flee
Mozambique Floods 2013). Yet governments seem to keep relying either on hard-infrastructure
strategies that will potentially become ineffective in the near future, or on relocating populations at the
expense of the community bonds they have formed for generations.
In order to offer an alternative for the inhabitation of floodplains, this paper has presented three
residential designs that creatively alter traditional elements of architecture, such as its structure and
program, coping with the recurrent and temporary presence of water in diverse ways. The designs secure
ones home, at the same time fostering community relations and protecting the livelihoods of those
affected by floods. Furthermore, they utilize strategies that maintain a constant awareness of flooding,
while minimizing the dwellers dependence on traditional infrastructure provision through the use of
renewable energy sources.
It is important to point out that, even if all the houses presented are new constructions, the design
strategies applied can certainly be also implemented on the adaptation of existing buildings. It seems to be
a consensus among international agencies that urban areas will be the most affected by flooding events in
the decades to come. Hence one of the biggest challenges of our generation of designers and planners will
be to cope with settlements already consolidated in face of the challenges posed by climate change. These
will most likely require the adaptation of entire built structures, possibly repurposing their ground floors
to withstand flooding. In order to deal with such challenge, imaginative design solutions must be pursued.
As shown by the examples, integrating varying water levels into design can lead to the creation of unique
solutions, in which transient waters translate into dynamic livable places for communities to be built upon
and thrive.

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