Coping with extreme weather

Public spaces should be proactively designed to adapt to a changing climate.

© iStockphoto/Fred De Bailliencourt

Valuable lessons can be learned from other places which have experienced more extreme climates over many centuries. Spaces should seek to ameliorate flood risk through their layout and composition and support cooler microclimates through the elements they incorporate and the shade and shelter they provide.

Public spaces should be comfortable to use in heat stress situations and able to cope with extreme weather situations such as heavy rain and winds. This may have implications for everything from securing Christmas lights and hanging baskets to space for seating, water and tree planting to provide rest, cooling and shade.

Spaces such as Nottingham’s Old market square and Manchester’s Piccadilly Gardens integrate strong design features that provide the capacity for events but also incorporate water features and extensive tree planting.

Lessons from recent floods illustrate the importance of designing for flood capacity. In Sheffield, many of the parks experienced flooding when the River Don burst its banks – parks with integrated sustainable drainage features faired much better than those without. In Chicago, flooding from the city's alleyways has been reduced through the use of permeable surfaces and innovative street design.

Landscape architects and city engineers now need to move to the next stage in planning spaces so that they actively contribute to surface temperature and run-off control. That will mean investing in high-quality and resilient materials for the public realm, prioritising civic areas that are heavily used for different types of activities. They should also work collaboratively to ensure sites are joined up with the wider green infrastructure.

Learning from other places that experience hotter, wetter, windier weather can be instructive. For example, the London Climate Change Partnership commissioned research to see what policies and measures have been adopted in other cities to manage risk from high temperatures to inform London’s thinking on the London Heat Island Strategy and now the  London Climate Change Adaptation Strategy.

Parks Victoria is responding to drought and extreme temperatures in Australia by implementing a coordinated strategy of water and energy conservation, green space management and public education.

Recognising the important role that public spaces play in combating climate change, CABE Space has released guidance on climate change adaptation covering flood risk management, a holistic approach to developing sustainable neighbourhoods, approaches to sustainable urban drainage and combating the urban heat island effect.

Priority: adapt public space to climate change
Tags: public space, buildings and spaces