Australia has a long history of extreme weather events. The impact that these events have on Australian communities has increased as the value of assets has increased and inappropriate buildings have been placed in vulnerable areas. Recent examples include the Victorian ‘Black Saturday’ Bushfires and the 2010-11 Queensland floods.
Climate change is an added consideration. Understanding of how climate change will impact extreme weather is advancing with the release of the United Nations Special Report on Extreme Weather and the Climate Commissions The Critical Decade: Extreme Weather. In Australia, climate change will result in an increase in extreme temperatures, and a change in precipitation patterns, storm tracks and bushfire risks.
Edge Environment is proud to be working with the Insurance Council of Australia on one of the few industry led initiatives addressing extreme weather impacts – the Australian Resilience Taskforce (ART). More information about the ART can be found here
Edge Environment recently delivered a keystone project under the ART – the Building Resilience Knowledge Database (BRKD). The BRKD is a database of information about building materials and their resilience to extreme weather events. The project is designed to drive collaboration with the building products industry and to stimulate innovation in building materials and design in order to meet the challenge of a more resilient built environment.
More can be accessed through the ICA’s website, https://www.resilient.property
If you have any questions regarding this project please contact [email protected].