Architecture with Wet Feet
Architecture has always adapted to floods. The annual floods of the Nile often rendered ground levels uninhabitable. They simply built another layer. As the silt rose, so did the architecture. Even after the failures of Hurricane Katrina, the attitude in the United States and much of the world seems to be insistent on building bigger and bigger barriers to contain the water.
On 27 March 2009, the Red River of Fargo North Dakota filled to the brim. Many of the residents frantically shored up the levees with 2 million sandbags and the rest of them waited for disaster. Twelve years ago these same neighborhoods were less fortunate. Devastating floods ripped through the communities displacing over 50,000 people and inflicting US$3.5 billion in damages.
New Orleans, After flooding caused by Hurricane Katrina in 2005
Grand Forks, N.D. during the 1997 Red River flood
The lesson of New Orleans is that environmental refugees can come from even the most developed nations. The solutions to these problems must be deployed at all scales; from the global community down to the foundations of our homes. By now we have all seen maps illustrating the shifting shorelines of the globe in the facing rising sea levels. What these maps fail to show is the human cost of these changes. Bangladesh is facing the reality of millions of environmental refugees, while Dubai is simultaneously extending its shoreline for luxury housing. On the other hand, these maps demonstrate that these problems are global. This research is targeted towards cities at high risk, and various responses to this impending threat.
Floating Architecture | The Netherlands
After centuries of all-out warfare with water, Holland has finally shifted its resources to allow cities to absorb the occasional flood by floating above the rising waters. Similar to the California River Delta, much of the Dutch landscape was originally wetland. This land was drained and exploited for its fertile soil, further lowering the level of the land due to subsiding soils. Now nearly two-thirds of the country rests below sea level. They have used dykes to hold back the watershed flowing from the Meuse and the Rhine, and they have even managed to tame the North Sea by constructing a necklace of concrete storm surge barriers just 32 miles south of Rotterdam.
Now in the wake of Hurricane Katrina and rising sea levels, they are finally calling a truce and allowing water to reclaim part of its natural territory. Large plots of land are being converted to water storage, acting as sponges when the water level rises above the existing levees. Some predict half of the country will be flooded in the next few decades. This has spawned a new generation of architecture that is designed to coexist with the inevitable flooding. All along the Maas, Meuse, and Rhine rivers are examples of architecture that are for the first time expecting regular floods. Building foundations are becoming hybrid, resting on dry land most of the year, and capable of floating during a flood. Flexible tubing for sewer and electrical wires allow the buildings to be tossed without being torn from their utilities. These new types of amphibious architecture, from the common houseboats to 500-bed hostels are already beginning to speckle the Dutch “landscape.”
Hybrid foundations in Massbommel, 56 miles east of Rotterdam
Maximum potential flood depth after failure of coastal dunes near Terheijde and Scheveningen
"Absolute protection is impossible, there will always remain a small chance that strong and impressive protection works fail. The flooding of New Orleans (September 2005) has illustrated the damage and disruption that may occur when large metropolitan areas are flooded. Therefore, in addition to flood prevention, it is crucial to be prepared for flooding as well. This policy is needed to minimize damage, casualties and disruption when the rare disaster becomes reality.”
-2006, Dutch Ministry of Transport, Public Works and Water Management
While in The Netherlands, research will be guided by the following questions:
1) Can existing architecture be adapted to conform to these new policies?
2) Are there any examples of physical project relocation?
3) Are these strategies ubiquitous or have they been limited to the immediate flood zone?
Sinking Architecture | Venice, Italy (Preserving the Next Atlantis)
In Venice, each full moon brings high water “Acqua Alta,” flooding city streets, houses, and paralyzing commerce by making it impossible for boats to pass beneath the city bridges. Many residents are being forced to abandon the ground floors of their buildings due to higher water levels. The city faces the constant reminder of these high tides which intermittently flood the streets from September to December. This high water is eating away the city, building by building; the salt levels reaching higher and infiltrating the eroding stucco. The maintenance can be costly, and even lead to collapse if neglected.
The petrified piles used to prop up the buildings of Venice have lasted for centuries. Arguably the most successful historical paradigm for wet architecture, The city of Venice is now undergoing massive renovations. Often existing foundations are being temporarily floated on raft foundations in order to create new elevated piles for the building to rest on. For example, the Oratorio dei Crociferi, on the Island of Riella Santa Sofia required much work: “The flood of 1966 had gravely damaged the oratory. Restoration of the walls involved the brickwork to a height of three metres, with the insertion of two layers of insulating material. The roof-covering was renewed. A tidewater catchment tank was set under the floor to prevent rising flood water from welling up” - Venice in Peril
Some citizens of Venice now rest their hopes in a proposed hinged sea barrier, still others are beginning to look to retrofitting buildings and streets to allow them to float during the high waters.
Tables and chairs fastened to the ground in Venice
Elevated walkways during Acqua Alta
Flooded pastry shop during “Acqua Alta”
Proposed Sea Barriers
While in Venice, the research will be guided by the following questions:
1) What are the strategies for preservation of existing Architecture?
2) Are there alternatives to the temporary walkways, and how quickly are they deployed?
3) In what condition have the abandoned ground floors been left, and are there other potential uses for these spaces?
Selected Bibliography:
Said, R. The River Nile, Geology, Hydrology and Utilization (Pergamon, Oxford, 1993)
USA TODAY. “The current risk of levees in the U.S.” February 2009
Dutch Ministry of Transport, Public Works and Water Management “Flood maps in the Netherlands” April2009
H2OLLAND “Architecture with Wet Feet.” The Royal Institute of Dutch Architects BNA, April 2009
BBC NEWS “Dutch pioneer floating eco-homes.” March. 2009
PBS “The Sinking of Venice.” March 2009
Venice In Peril. The British Commitee for the Preservation of Venice. 2 April 2009
TIDAL FORECASTING AND EARLY WARNING CENTRE Apr. 2009