With more people flocking to live in major cities every year, it’s safe to say that urbanisation is on a meteoric rise. After all, it’s no surprise when you think about the benefits and conveniences that the trend of urban living can offer to communities across the globe. From job opportunities, to better access to healthcare and amenities, urban areas serve as hubs of innovation and growth.
However, while the benefits of urbanisation are indeed plentiful, it’s just as important to pay attention to the challenges that urban developments can bring. Some of the major concerns that crop up with rapid urbanisation include increased population densities, exacerbated impacts of climate change, and poorly coordinated urbanisation efforts which can unfortunately create unsafe and unhealthy environments for urban residents. This is where disaster risk planning for urban developments comes into play.
This article explores the multifaceted approach required for effective disaster risk planning in urban environments.
What Is Disaster Risk Planning?
Before we go full steam ahead into disaster risk planning for urban developments, it’s beneficial to have a rough understanding of what disaster risk planning entails. In essence disaster risk planning is a comprehensive approach that aims to identify, assess and mitigate potential risks and vulnerabilities within an urban area. Its primary objective is to minimise the impact of disasters, both natural and human-made, on people, property, and the environment.
Building Urban Structures That Are Able To Withstand Climatic Conditions
In our ever changing world, the impact of climate change is truly undeniable. With bushfires consistently on the rise, global warming and extreme weather events becoming more and more of the norm, it becomes absolutely crucial to rethink the way we design and plan our urban developments.
Take for example, the big shift towards the development of bushfire-resistant buildings in Australia. These buildings are carefully designed to withstand the intense heat and flames associated with bushfires, ensuring that residents are safe during times of emergency. Additionally, another essential aspect of disaster preparedness is fire equipment maintenance. Regular maintenance of fire equipment and fire safety infrastructure (i.e. fire doorwells, stairways, and smoke ventilation, etc.) is essential to ensuring the effectiveness of fire safety measures in urban areas that are prone to bushfires.
Natural Disasters & Designing For Durability
I’m sure we can all agree that we’ve experienced far too many earthquakes than we’ve been comfortable with over the last few years. While natural disasters are inevitable, the increase in the occurrence of said disasters demands a rethinking of building our design principles.
For example, to ensure that our urban developments remain durable amidst natural disasters and extreme weather events, engineers are now looking towards using cutting-edge technologies and innovative construction methods in urban developments. Some examples of these new technologies and methods include wind-resistant features, efficient drainage systems, and flexible building materials into their designs to ensure buildings can withstand the impact of these events.
Alongside this, more architects and civil engineers are working to develop methodologies for resilient design in the face of the ongoing climate crisis. The nature of resilient design will naturally change depending on the region that architects are looking to design for. As we mentioned, Australian developments are increasingly investing in fire-resistant cladding and other design elements that will help protect structures in the event of a bushfire or even when exposed to extreme heat.
Getting The Community Involved
Contrary to popular belief, the burden of creating robust and resilient urban structures doesn’t just fall on the shoulders of architects and engineers. While engineers and architects do indeed set the fundamental foundations for disaster risk planning, a collaborative action between developers and the community is what takes disaster risk planning to the next level. After all, it’s not just skyscrapers that require disaster risk planning in their design – residential homes also need to be developed with future dangers and risks in mind.
Public education drives and community workshops are just a few of the techniques that urban developers are now embracing to aid communities in understanding the effect that climate-change can have on urban developments. Thanks to this collective approach, communities are able to get involved in risk management strategies for an increasingly secure environment. It’s an all hands on deck approach that harnesses the power of working together towards a shared goal.
Government Policies and Mandates
Finally, comprehensive disaster risk planning for urban developments relies heavily on government policies and mandates. Factors such as zoning laws, building codes, and environmental regulations all play a critical role in ensuring that urban developments are both safe and resilient.
For example, zoning laws are crucial to managing population density and preventing construction in high-risk areas, while building codes ensure that developers design and construct safe structures that are able to withstand climate change and natural disasters. Additionally, environmental regulations that are aimed at preserving natural habitats and green spaces not only contribute to biodiversity but also act as natural buffers against disasters like flooding and heatwaves.
All in all, government oversight is paramount in ensuring that urban developments are safe for their inhabitants.
In A Nutshell
As you can see, successful disaster risk planning requires a multifaceted approach and partnership between developers, government bodies and the community. By working together to address the safety issues that come along with rapid urbanisation, climate change and natural disasters, developers are able to create safer environments that don’t only benefit communities, but also ensure the wellbeing of future generations.
