ASCE Report Urges Climate Change Adaptation in Infrastructure and Engineering Practice

The American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) report discusses the potential significance of climate change to engineering practice.

Civil engineers are responsible for planning, constructing, operating, and maintaining physical infrastructures, expected to stay functional and safe for a service life of 50 to 100 years. However, the paper says built assets are exposed and vulnerable to climate change-induced weather extremes.

There is strong evidence for climate change with a future climate characterised by substantial increases in temperature, related increases in atmospheric water vapour, and extreme precipitation amounts and intensities in most areas. As such, engineers have increasingly demanded to incorporate climate change predictions into project design criteria.

Global climate models (GCMs) used by scientists to project global and regional climate introduce uncertainties, particularly regarding the magnitude and rate of climate change effect over the design life of the systems and elements of the built assets.

Engineers are required to design infrastructures that meet future needs. However, the uncertainty of future climate and the scale of engineering projects leads to a dilemma for practising engineers. This dilemma is a gap between climate science and engineering practice that must be bridged.

The report summarises relevant climate science methodologies, defines potential impacts on engineering practices, and offers decision criteria, solutions, and pathways to address climate impacts.

Some fascinating discussions and information in the paper will benefit practitioners in the field of engineering – students, practitioners, educators, allied professionals, infrastructure asset managers, academia, and even national and local planners.

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