ROI: Codes, standards, & reporting on resilient design
Designing beyond building codes and standards provides significant resilience benefits to both building owners and occupants.
Resilient, climate-adaptive design
The climate crisis underscores the need for a resilient and climate-adaptive built environment. Resilient design encompasses many possible scales of action, including structural approaches, nature-based approaches, as well as both facilities-based and non-facilities-based approaches.1 Architects have a critical role to play in creating a future where buildings can withstand sudden shocks and chronic stresses given that they design projects that transform the lives of their clients, building occupants, and surrounding communities. Architects can share with their clients the critical importance of incorporating resilience measures which will make the built environment more climate-adaptive and sustainable, and ultimately even increase its value.
Architects are also charged with protecting public safety. If a client’s project site or program challenges the tenets of responsible practice, the architect may choose not to compete for a project, help the client find a more appropriate site, or design a project with a smaller footprint. AIA’s Resilient Project Process Guide outlines three critical questions for architects to ask on every project:
- What are the hazard and climate projections for this site?
- What are the vulnerabilities, e.g. in what ways are people and built environment susceptible to adverse effects?
- What design solutions address hazard and climate projections as well as vulnerability?
Codes, standards, & reporting
Designing beyond code provides significant resilience benefits to both building owners and occupants. Codes and standards are often not stringent enough to prevent catastrophic outcomes as a result of shocks or stresses. It has been demonstrated that designing beyond certain code requirements yields overarching positive economic outcomes when disasters do strike. Better outcomes to avoid or recover from shocks are seen in areas where codes are well-regulated and reinforced. Some leading codes and standards, such as those in New York City and Washington, D.C., are starting to adopt climate change mitigation strategies, and some reporting has been put in place aimed at tracking progress toward mitigation goals. In some places in the United States compliance is voluntary, while in others it’s enforced, and still others non-compliance is penalized.
Literature review completed by University of Washington’s Integrated Design Lab for AIA in 2020.
Most current infrastructure and building design codes and standards do not take future climate trends into account.1 Some cities and states are starting to adopt resilience strategies such as the New York City Climate Resiliency Design Guidelines and the Community Rating System for Community Resilience—which aims to increase the number of communities making voluntary, effective measures to increase flood.
Key current building code talking points
- Clients may face economic impacts for current and future non-compliance with codes and standards. Building Performance Standards Policy (BEPS) can include multiple standards, each targeted to increase performance for a different aspect of a building. These can include energy, gas, and water usage, emissions and peak energy demand, and inclusion of greenhouse gas-reducing measures.*2
- The Building Code Effectiveness Grading Schedule (BCEGS) assesses the building codes in effect in a particular community as well as how the community enforces its codes. Municipalities with effective, well-enforced codes demonstrate better loss experience, and insurance rates can reflect that. The prospect of lessening catastrophe-related damage and ultimately lowering insurance costs provides an incentive for communities to enforce their building codes rigorously—especially as they relate to windstorms and seismic damage.*3
References
- Gomez, J.A. "Climate Change: Improved Federal Coordination Could Facilitate Use of Forward-Looking Climate Information in Design Standards, Building Codes, and Certifications." GAO-17-3. Government Accountability Office. 2017.
- Building Performance Standards. Institute for Market Transformation. 2022.
- "Building Code Effectiveness Grading Schedule (BCEGS)." National Building Code Assessment Report. ISO, A Verisk Business. 2019.
Going beyond code provides significant resilience benefits for both building owners and users. Codes and standards are often not enough to prevent catastrophic outcomes during shocks or stresses. It has been demonstrated that designing beyond certain code requirements yields overarching positive economic outcomes when disasters do strike, and better outcomes occur in areas where codes are well-regulated and enforced.
Key exceeding current building code talking points
- The National Institute of Building Sciences (NIBS) shows that designing to exceed 2015 I-Code requirements—for flood, wind, earthquake, and fire—produces positive net economic benefits to developers, title holders, lenders, tenants, and the community, relative to older design requirements. The benefit-cost ratio of designing above code can range from 4:1 for earthquake and fire threats to 7:1 for hurricane surge scenarios. Benefits include reduced number of deaths, injuries, cases of PTSD, new jobs, and utilization of materials, among others.*1
- Owners who hold buildings for the long-term, such as universities, school districts, or hospitals, enjoy more of the long-term resilience benefits of building above code than other owners, who may be reticent to bear the up-front cost of building above code.*2
References
- "Natural Hazard Mitigation Saves 2019 Report." National Institute of Building Sciences. 2019.
- "Developing Pre-Disaster Resilience Based on Public and Private Incentivization." National Institute of Building Sciences; Multihazard Mitigation Council & Council on Finance, Insurance, and Real Estate. 2015.
Climate change presents a financial risk to the global economy. The Task Force on Climate-related Financial Disclosures recommends that organizations that build and/or own structures consider providing certain industry-specific metrics. Examples of potential metrics include building energy intensity by area (EUI), building water intensity (by occupants or square area), percent of freshwater withdrawn in regions with high or extremely high baseline water stress, and area of buildings, plants, or properties located in designated flood hazard areas.*1
Key climate-related financial disclosure talking points
- The Task Force on Climate-related Financial Disclosures was created to raise market awareness of climate-related financial risks and opportunities and to drive consistent reporting on climate-related risks. It is supported by more than 500 firms and associations from across different industries globally representing a combined market capitalization of $7.9 trillion, citing a 70% increase in 2021. While not yet required, or generally adopted, they have seen significant efforts from governments and regulators to embed climate-related financial disclosures into policy and guidance.*2, 3
- Climate-related financial disclosure reporting is increasing. For example, Citigroup says the bank will ask clients to measure their emissions, and climate impact may determine which clients they will be willing to serve.*4
References
- "Implementing the Recommendations of the Task Force on Climate-related Financial Disclosures." Task Force on Climate-related Financial Disclosures. 2021.
- "Climate Risk and Real Estate Investment Decision-Making." Urban Land Institute & Heitman. 2019.
- "2021 Status Report." Task Force on Climate-related Financial Disclosures. 2021.
- Segal, Mark. "Citi CEO Says Bank Will Ask Clients to Measure Emissions, Climate Impact May Determine Which Clients to Serve". ESG Today. 2021.
How to use these talking points
These talking points are intended for use in your conversations with clients, potential clients, civic leaders, vendors, contractors, and other architects. This helps demonstrate that architects are trusted partners in strengthening society, designing solutions, and transforming communities.
This is one chapter in AIA’s series ROI of High-Performance Design. Access the full resource below.
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The AIA 2030 Commitment program offers architects and firms a way to publicly show their dedication and track progress toward a carbon-neutral future. Access the yearly By the Numbers report detailing
