Living On Water:
Amphibious Settlement
Duong Hoang Le
ARCH 463 – Sustainable Systems
Professor Andrew Linn
March 12, 2020
At 4:00 PM on Tuesday, July 30th, 2019, southern Ontario experienced an unprecedented storm. Within several hours, this catastrophic calamity engulfed the city with an equivalent sum of precipitation calculated in January and February. Severe damages forced Toronto, one of the most populated cities of Ontario, to shut down the power distribution system. With more than 1,000 power users across the city, the consequences of the event put a lot of pressure on the recovery process of public infrastructure and housing communities.1 In another part of the world, in October 2019, hundreds of residents living in Chiba, Japan had to stay in the evacuation center due to the combined effects of “torrential rains” and “mudslides.”2 An estimation of around 4,700 households did not have access to public transportation and clean water. The frequency of flooding occurred in a global scope heightens the concern about the livelihood of the communities.
Looking at the exigence of flooding from another perspective, it is imperative to consider the effect of rising sea level, especially with the matter of land loss. The two maps in coastal Louisiana (Figure 01) predict the future change with either wetlands or barrier islands following the sea level rise scenarios without taking protective or restorative actions. While influential factors such as river discharge, or sediment load are independent variables, the measure of green land open to water gradually decreases as the sea level increases up to 31.5 inches. One of the foreseeable consequences of land loss is the degradation of soil ecology. When the land is inundated in flooded water, the quality of the soil microstructure decreases, which makes the foundation of houses less stable. From a research written by the Department of Biology at the University of New England, 40
Figure 01: Projected Land Loss from Sea Level Rise in Coastal Louisiana. URL: https://www.globalchange.gov/browse/multimedia/projectedland-loss-sea-level-rise-coastal-louisiana
1 CTV Toronto, “Powerful summer storm sweeps across parts of southern Ontario,” CTV News, August 2, 2015, https://toronto.ctvnews.ca/powerful-summer-storm-sweeps-across-parts-of-southern-ontario-1.2499054
2 Tomo Uetake, “Japan floods: Ten killed and three injured as torrential rain triggers mudslides,” The Independent, October 26, 2019, https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/asia/japan-floods-rain-death-toll-mudslides-chibafukushima-a9172626.html
cm (16 inches) rise of sea level results in a “24% decrease in microbial respiration.”3 However, when it comes to building around the area that is prone to sea-level rise, , thus stabilizes the earth (Figure 02).
Figure 02: Salinization, caused by salty irrigation water. URL: http://www.fao.org/3/r4082e/r4082e08.htm
The purpose of this research paper aims to explore and assess amphibious houses as a viable solution to the urgency of the two subsequent calamities of climate change: flooding and land loss. The essay will further evaluate the implementation of amphibious houses in different case studies in the Netherland (Europe) and Jakarta (Asia). These socially impactful projects exemplify managements for preventing relocations of rural housing communities, especially among low-income households who reside in the impacted areas. Whereas the innovative floating+amphibious housing community designed by Grer Kregen of Factor Architecten seeks to find a collaborative design strategy for the flooding in Netherlands, the informal amphibious settlement in Jakarta – the capital of Indonesia – addresses the matter of land loss due to the rise of seawater. Later on, fundamental advantages, disadvantages, and future applications will be discussed. In the end, the understanding of the two study cases in two different cultural, socio-economics contexts will also serve as a foundation for future resilient approaches.
What is Amphibious House?
An amphibious house, by definition determined by Baca Architects 2014, “is a building that rests on the ground but whenever a flood occurs, the entire building rises up in its dock, where it floats, buoyed by the floodwater.”4 In other words, an amphibious/buoyant house increases mobility and resiliency to accommodate flooded conditions and allows users to settle back to the earth when it is dry, similar to an
3 Matt R. Simon, Gregory P. Zogg, and Steven E. Travis, “Impacts of sea-level rise on sediment microbial community structure and function in two New England salt marshes, USA,” J Soils Sediments 17 (December 2017): 2850, https://doi.org/10.1007/s11368-017-1710-8
4 Richard Coutts, “The Thames Amphibious House,” Construction21 International, June 15, 2018, https://www.construction21.org/case-studies/h/the-thames-amphibious-house.html
amphibious reptile (Figure 03). Evolving from the design of floating houses, which originally situate on the water, the amphibious house sits on the concrete covered foam foundation, and can rise to 18 feet above the ground. In contrast to the conventional methods of raising the main structure on a plinth to tackle flooding, the unique design of an amphibious building allows itself to adjust accordingly to the rise of the water level.
Figure 03: Diagram of Amphibious Housing’s Positions. URL: http://www.marvelbuilding.com/floating-houses-word-flood-insurance.html
There are two main types of models for the amphibious house: (1) using steel posts; (2) using a two-foundation system with a dock and a hull. Dura Vermeer, a construction engineering company, is exemplary for the first typology. Their designed mechanism protects the house from vertical motion as there are steel posts knelt to the ground. Using timber as a primary building material and waterproofed concrete for dwelling’s foundation, the house can weightlessly float with the main proportion of the house above the water surface. On the other hand, the amphibious residential project designed by Richard Coutts and Robert Barker – the founders of Baca Architects. Overlooking a picturesque waterfront in Thames River, the house is secured by the four flexible posts, and sits on a concrete dock that allows water to fill in, and ascends the house itself up to 2.5 meters.5 After every 5 years, there is a test for floatation capabilities in which water will fill up space below ground. The installation of flexible electrical and plumbing systems in the servicing hub prevents the house to be unplugged when rising. Compared to Dura Vermeer’s designs, Baca Architects faces challenges with the building cost which is around 20-25% more than the cost of regular houses. For those who lost their properties after the event of floods, this cost means much more for them in exchange for a safer living condition.
5 Oliver Wainwright, “‘Like a shimmering sea creature’: Britain’s first amphibious house,” The Guardian, February 2, 2016, https://www.theguardian.com/artanddesign/2016/feb/02/baca-architects-pioneers-of-amphibioushousebuilding-flood-defences
The Dutch Houses
a) Site Analysis
Grer Kregen of Factor Architecten first laid out the development plan for amphibious houses in the Netherlands near Maas River in Maasbommel. Maasbommel is a part of Gelderland province in which major Dutch rivers intersect including Rhine, Meuse, and Waal (Figure 04).6 Nowadays and in history, the Netherlands has been grappling with the flooding pattern due to the topography. Dutch residents are facing constant threat since two-thirds of the country is below 5 meters of sea level. As the large northwestern portion of the country continues to be submerged under sea level, there is no exaggeration to assert that people will no longer be able to occupy on land. The fight with the water for a peaceful living style seems nowhere near the expectation with the example of a disastrous flood in 1953. The flood took away lives of 2,551 Dutch residents and destroy numerous public facilities.
Figure 04: Water Drainage System. URL: https://www.slideshare.net/groenesteden/water-management-inthe-netherlands-30508193
After the rise of the water level, the drought season in Netherland is also concerning. When floodwater discharges, in-land debris contaminates the water where aquatic animals live. Subsequently, public health concern becomes more significant since there will be a shortage in the water supply. Writing a report for NL Times, an English-language news report from the Netherlands, Janene Pieters concerns that “the water
6 Uriel Rosenthal and Paul t’ Hart, Flood Response and Crisis Management in Western Europe: A Comparative Analysis (Springer Science & Business Media, 2012).
shortage mainly affects agriculture, nature, industry and shipping.”7 Assessing the typography of Maasbommel, it is apparent that there are vast acres of croplands in Maasbommel. From research done by Margaretha et al., crops growing on mainly sandy soils (such as pine forests and heathlands) are moderately sensitive to flooding.8 Nevertheless, wetlands that contain sandy particles are responsive to a heated and dry weather condition. Surprisingly, there is a prohibition for farmers in the south and east of the Netherlands to use the surface of the water for irrigation purposes. Furthermore, the use of groundwater is not encouraged in some cases. Not only the flood-drought fluctuation creates a burden for farmers to regularly work to support their families across the nation but there will be a potential disappearance of a dynamic Dutch community in Maas River.
b)
Materials and Construction Methods
7 Janene Pieters, “Officially a Nationwide Water Shortage in Netherlands,” NLTimes.NL, August 3, 2018, https://nltimes.nl/2018/08/03/officially-nationwide-water-shortage-netherlands
8 Margaretha Blom-Zandstra et al, “How will climate change affect spatial planning in agricultural and natural environments? Examples from three Dutch case study regions,” IOP Conference Series Earth and Environmental Science (November 2009): 5, https://doi.org/10.1088/1755-1315/8/1/012018.
Figure 05: Comparative framing details. (Edward Allen and Joseph Iano, “Fundamentals of Building Construction: Materials and Methods” 5th ed., 2009)
Back to 2005 when the project was starting to take shapes, 32 amphibious houses, among a total of 46 newly built houses in the community, pioneered experimental researches on temporary construction. From the base layer to the selection of building materials, technological advances of the house extensively integrate into the retrofitting design. Situating on a concrete base, the amphibious house was erected with the framework of wooden skeleton construction. To reduce the load-bearing weight of both interior and exterior and interior walls, light-wood framing construction becomes an integral part of the house. According to Edward Allen and Joseph Iano, there are two types of light wooden framing: (1) platform framing; (2) balloon framing.9 Contrasting to the early establishment of balloon framing, the platform framing breaks down the length of studs into halves, and insert sole plates at the foot of studs (Figure 05). On the foundation of the house, there is an installation of a large, hollow concrete cube in which huge steel pipes anchored. Grounded into the underground soil, the amphibious house has a fixed location with no lateral movement. Looking at the site section of the amphibious house, it is intriguing that there are vertical steel posts connect to the oceanic sediments on one hand and the continental crust on the other hand.
On the other hand, to increase the floating aspects of the Dutch amphibious house, researchers have looked into an alternate system with pontoon as a type of floating platforms. According to Mohammad et al., the platform that consists of a polystyrene raft helps controlling buoyancy. The pontoon floating system optimizes the “thickness of the expanded polystyrene (EPS) blocks in a hollow
9 Edward Allen and Joseph Iano, “Fundamentals of Building Construction: Materials and Methods,” John Wiley & Sons, Inc, 5th ed., (2019): 163.
concrete box.”10 Similar to styrofoam made for drinking cups, polystyrene is prevalent in the building industry because of well heat insulation and light-weighted. Because of these characteristics, polystyrene is popular to use as a middle inner layer “between two oriented strand board” to create “Structural insulation panels (Sips)”.11 In Amsterdam, the capital city of the Netherlands, polystyrene platform provides enough counter forces to resist the weight of the reinforced concrete structure. Even so, the need for a well-regulated plan to collect, sort, and recycle man-made products, particularly made out of plastics and polymers, seems to reach the consensus among European governments, including the Netherlands.
c) Energy Systems
Since the amphibious houses are being much exposed to the water, and removed from the urban land, hydrothermal systems and hydropower are among the feasible source of renewable energy. A study presented in the Journal of the Korean Housing Association examines the use of river water to generate hydrothermal power systems. During summer and winter, the water temperature is often below and beyond respectively to the atmospheric temperature. Additionally, by using heat pump systems, the houses can generate electricity. Another function of the amphibious house has always geared toward developing flood control systems. With the dike – a much smaller scale of a damp in the river bank – the house can properly generate “tidal power and wave power.”12 In conjunction with the limit in the lateral movement of the houses, the houses can traverse vertically. With flexible PVC piping and electrical conduits, the electrical, sewage, and gas system of the house connects seamlessly with the kinetic of the house. The success from the Dutch amphibious houses does not come from how well-suited the houses are to the site nor the advancement of both building technology and materiality alone, but it is a result of strong bonding between the houses and two other natural sources, water and earth.
10 Mohammad Ali Nekooie et al., “Morphological Decision Making for Amphibious House Platform as a Sustainable Flood Protection Strategy,” Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci., India, Sect. A Phys. Sci. 88 (2018): 286, https://doi.org/10.1007/s40010-017-0419-9.
11 Keith Cousins, “Polymers in Building and Construction: a Rapra Market Report,” U.K.: Rapra Technology Ltd., (2002): 21.
12 Changho Moon, “A Study on the Floating House for New Resilient Living,” Journal of the Korean Housing Association 26, no. 5 (October 2015): 101, https://doi.org/10.6107/jkha.2015.26.5.097.
The Indonesia Houses
a) Site Analysis
In large, Indonesia is a huge archipelagic – a cluster of small islands –and cover a distance of 5,120 km from East to West and 1,760 km from North to South. With a total of 13,667 islands, the climatic condition, related to soil formation and water, varies in different parts of the country. More importantly, the region lies in an unstable tectonic setting “Pacific Ring of Fire” with complex cross interactions between the Eurasian Plate, the Australian Plate, the Indian Plate, etc. (Figure 06). As a result, Indonesia faces an eternally catastrophic battle against the most volcanically active conditions in the world. The collision of the oceanic plate and continental plate creates a subsequent displacement of seawater onto the continents. Doctor John Baumgardner, who has done numerous geographical analyses about the mechanism of Earth tectonics, asserts that “upwellings from the bottom boundary … produce a temporary rise in the height of the ocean bottom by several kilometers.”13 The rise of sea level leads to flooding events in the river inlets which significantly impact the urban planning in Kampung Baru.
Figure 06: The tectonic settings of Indonesia and Pelabuhan Ratu station (after McCaffrey, 2009). URL: https://www.researchgate.net/figure/Thetectonic-settings-of-Indonesia-and-Pelabuhan-Ratu-station-afterMcCaffrey-2009_fig1_263027158
In Kampung Baru, Jakarta, the amphibious houses are incorporated as a solution to the turbulent climates in Indonesia. Similar to Maasbommel in Netherland, Ciliwung River is a living habitat for the Kampung Baru village, and traverses through 120 km with “very high annual discharge.”14 Among the network of rivers in Indonesia, Ciliwung River stands out because of the dramatic change with the use of the area that promulgates the discharge rate. Factoring in the long-term development of the city, it is
13 John R. Baumgardner, “Catastrophic Plate Tectonics: The Physics Behind the Genesis Flood,” 5th International Conference on Creationism (August 4-9, 2003): 3-4.
14 Marjan Khaleghi et al., “Building Amphibious Settlements in Kampung Baru, Jakarta,” ProSPER.Net, (2019): 3.
crucial to recognize the dependency of the lowincome community on the sediment of Ciliwung River. Discussing the influential factors that lead to land subsidence, Hasanuddin Z. Abidin mentions the spread of “alluvium soil” which makes it more difficult to build a strong foundation for buildings (Figure 07).15 Moreover, because of the lack of management in planning “drainage systems and buffer zones,” the village becomes susceptible to “urban flooding physically and socioeconomically”16 Overall, the conundrum with land management pose interesting challenges to the design strategies of the amphibious settlement.
b) Materials and Construction Methods
Figure 07: Impacts of land subsidence on flooding phenomena. URL: https://www.researchgate.net/publication/283783541_Study_on_th e_risk_and_impacts_of_land_subsidence_in_Jakarta
In Kampung Baru “The New City,” unique characteristics of Asian architecture, specifically with wooden structures and traditional approaches, well represent the merit of amphibious houses. Indifferent to the design of the base of amphibious houses previously sawn in Maasbommel, Netherland, there is a hollow cube-like steel foundation that allows floodwater to fill in and raise the house. Additionally, since the amphibious houses’ spatial quality in both of the two countries is for the community, pilling and spanning compositions are extensively used (Figure 08). When the water drops, the house returns to the original layout without horizontal displacements thanks to wooden pillars. Thick wooden pillars prove to be optimal since they hold up the peripheral frames while withstanding up above “4-6 meter of rising water level.”17 Adhering to the local villages of Kampung Baru’s rich cultural heritage and origins, the traditional wood industry provides important resources for vernacular settlements. Bamboo stands out as
15 H. Z. Abidin et al., “On correlation between urban development, land subsidence and flooding phenomena in Jakarta,” Open Access PIAHS (June 11, 2015): 16.
16 Khaleghi, “Building Amphibious Settlement,” 3.
17 Khaleghi, “Building Amphibious Settlement,” 4.
the most resilient natural materials in Indonesia. Having the ability to be bent, shaped, curved, or laminated, bamboo is prolific when it comes to tensile and compressive strength. Not only the plant has its natural properties being defensive to insects, but bamboo is also self-generative and helps to nourish the soil. Instead of importing materials from other places, local inhabitants cherish their local resources provided by nature. Inherited from ancestors, most of homeowners living in the village care more about preserving the living system through amphibious housings.
c) Energy System
Figure 08: Typology of Amphibious Space Composition. URL: https://www.shsconferences.org/articles/shsconf/pdf/2018/02 /shsconf_eduarchsia2018_07001.pdf
Taking into consideration the site conditions and availability of building materials, local builders want to optimize water retention while looking up to future use of a renewable heating system. First, walls of amphibious houses can integrate vertical gardens that harvest water and produce green vegetables. This bio-oriented wall design has a huge contribution to the high performance of a sustainable drainage system. Not only that, but the products from these vertical gardens can also present in family meals and please the public eyes with fresh outlooks of the amphibious houses. Deriving from this idea, designers of the house can look forward to having a collection of fishing units to accommodate sufficient protein during flooding events. Another integrative system for water-retaining purposes is underground and overhead tanks. This inexpensive method is conducive to store clean water in daily uses and especially during major flooding event. While non-potable water from the top reservoirs can be utilized for gardening, underground water can be pumped up and filtered for daily needs. Second, paving the path to future renewable energy, the Indonesian government is investing in geothermal energy. For Indonesia whose is hugely impacted by the volcanic actions, a system to produce geothermal energy is plausible (Figure 09). A geothermal system extracts the underground heat stream which activates electricity generators. To reverse 88% energy resource from fossil fuels, Indonesia sets goals to have an additional 4.6 gigawatts (GW) of thermal
power on top of the current 1.9 GW.18 If this plan is fulfilled and the Indonesian government needs to transform the informal settlements in areas like Kampung Baru, we can see positive impacts coming to improving heating systems of amphibious housings.
Comparative Assessment
Figure 09: Geothermal Energy System Diagram. URL: https://southerntimesafrica.com/site/news/sadc-countriesmust-consider-kenyas-geo-thermal-energy-concept
Through different cultural contexts and environmental conditions, amphibious houses emerge as a meaningful passage that connects all the characteristics of the built environment and the inhabitants. Not only these floating structures assure the livelihood of the community, but they also adapt to the changes in nature, whether it is in Netherland, Europe, or Indonesia, Asia. The two places both face an immense challenge of flooding events and sunken lands due to the rise of sea level. On one hand, Grer Kregen of Factor Architecten well developed amphibious structures that meet the needs of their clients, Kampung Baru villagers combine the inherited techniques from ancestors with local construction methods to build the informal settlement. Because of its adaptive system and resilient design, amphibious houses mange to become integral parts of the living system. While the Dutch amphibious houses demonstrate how artificial materials such as polystyrene pay attribute to the floating ability, bamboo – a flexible and natural material – strengthens the structural values of Indonesian houses. The design decisions to fit in building cultures in two distant locations, therefore, were significant to assure the merits of amphibious houses.
Despite the differences in materiality and energy systems, it is unquestionable that the two designs of amphibious houses still need to overcome and resolve some universal disadvantages. One of many is the cost efficiency of the projects. Such installations of hydrothermal and geothermal energy
18 “Indonesia: Scaling Up Geothermal Energy by Reducing Exploration Risks,” The World Bank (September 26, 2019), https://www.worldbank.org/en/news/press-release/2019/09/26/indonesia-scaling-up-geothermal-energy-byreducing-exploration-risks
systems require sufficient individual investment for projects. It is a matter of fact that not everyone whose lands are susceptible to flooding would completely agree with the cost of housing. As times go by, when the amphibious houses will need to step in the front line facing climate change, maintenance costs can cause a burden for some people. More importantly, the endeavor of promoting amphibious houses as a retrofitting solution to a community means that the existing building code has to adopt new regulations. For example, according to Jeff Brow, who is the director of the State Building Codes Office in Virginia, there are no specific rules on the construction guidelines of amphibious houses.19 After the initial successes of launching the idea of amphibious houses, designers and builders need to enhance collaborative efforts to mitigate the deficiency of future amphibious houses.
Conclusion
As fourteen pages of the Green New Deal sponsored by Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez unfold, we understand more about the environmental conditions of our planet. Two of many goals that the resolution explicitly enumerates are: (1) upgrading all existing buildings and constructing new buildings to achieve maximum energy and water efficiency; (2) providing higher education, high quality health care, and affordable, safe, and adequate housing to all.20 Through adaptive and resilient designs, the vision of amphibious houses speaks for these goals. Both resisting against flooding and securing the foundations to the earth, amphibious houses embrace the notion of harmonizing natural elements (earth and water) with the human. Not only inhabitants across the globe will view these houses as integrated learning and living environment, but they also have an opportunity to reflect and improve upon the building culture during the rapid climate change.
19 Peter Coutu, “Norfolk group working on creating first floating “amphibious house” on East Coast,” The Virginian Pilot (January 5, 2019), https://www.pilotonline.com/news/environment/article_2e447590-f985-11e8-b67ab3457339d39e.html
20 Rep. Ocasio-Cortez, Alexandria [D-NY-14], “H.Res.109 – 116rh Congress (2019-2020): Recognizing the Duty of the Federal Government to create a Green New Deal.” Congress.gov (July 2, 2019), https://www.congress.gov/bill/116th-congress/house-resolution/109
1. Abidin, H. Z., H. Andreas, I. Gumilar, and I. R. R. Wibowo. “On correlation between urban development, land subsidence and flooding phenomena in Jakarta,” Open Access PIAHS (June 11, 2015): 15-20. https://www.researchgate.net/publication/278030641_On_correlation_between_urban_developme nt_land_subsidence_and_flooding_phenomena_in_Jakarta
2. Allen, Edward, and Joseph Iano. Fundamentals of Building Construction: Materials and Methods Hoboken, NJ: Wiley, 2019.
3. Baumgardner, John R., “Catastrophic Plate Tectonics: The Physics Behind the Genesis Flood,” 5th International Conference on Creationism (August 4-9, 2003): 1-10.
4. Blom-Zandstra, Margaretha, Maurice Paulissen, Herman Agricola, and Ben Schaap. “How Will Climate Change Affect Spatial Planning in Agricultural and Natural Environments? Examples from Three Dutch Case Study Regions.” IOP Conference Series: Earth and Environmental Science 8 (January 2009): 012018. https://doi.org/10.1088/1755-1315/8/1/012018.
5. Cousins, Keith. Polymers in Building and Construction: a Rapra Market Report. Shawbury, Shrewsbury, Shropshire, U.K.: Rapra Technology Ltd., 2002.
6. Coutu, Peter. “Norfolk Group Working on Creating First Floating ‘Amphibious House’ on East Coast.” pilotonline.com, January 5, 2019. https://www.pilotonline.com/news/environment/article_2e447590-f985-11e8-b67ab3457339d39e.html.
7. “Indonesia: Scaling Up Geothermal Energy by Reducing Exploration Risks.” World Bank. Accessed March 15, 2020. https://www.worldbank.org/en/news/press-release/2019/09/26/indonesiascaling-up-geothermal-energy-by-reducing-exploration-risks
8. Janene Pieters. “Officially a Nationwide Water Shortage in Netherlands.” NL Times, January 31, 2020. https://nltimes.nl/2018/08/03/officially-nationwide-water-shortage-netherlands
9. Khaleghi, Marjan, Heni Puji Astuti, Sarifah Hidi Ladana, Faten Ermala Che Othman, and Zhu Deng. “Building Amphibious Settlements in Kampung Baru, Jakarta,” ProSPER.Net, (2019): 1-19. https://prospernet.ias.unu.edu/wp-content/uploads/2019/08/YRS2019_Group4_UrbanFlooding_Final.pdf
10. Moon, Changho. “A Study on the Floating House for New Resilient Living.” Journal of the Korean Housing Association 26, no. 5 (2015): 97–104. https://doi.org/10.6107/jkha.2015.26.5.097
11. Nekooie, Mohammad Ali, Roohollah Taherkhani, Reza Hosnavi, and Mahdi Nouri. “Morphological Decision Making for Amphibious House Platform as a Sustainable Flood Protection Strategy.” Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, India Section A: Physical Sciences 88, no. 2 (June 2018): 285–95. https://doi.org/10.1007/s40010-017-0419-9
12. Ocasio-Cortez, Alexandria. “H.Res.109 - 116th Congress (2019-2020): Recognizing the Duty of the Federal Government to Create a Green New Deal.” Congress.gov, February 12, 2019. https://www.congress.gov/bill/116th-congress/house-resolution/109.
13. “Powerful Summer Storm Sweeps across Parts of Southern Ontario.” Toronto. CTV News, August 3, 2015. https://toronto.ctvnews.ca/powerful-summer-storm-sweeps-across-parts-of-southernontario-1.2499054.
14. Richard Coutts. “The Thames Amphibious House - Construction21.” construction21.org. Accessed March 15, 2020. https://www.construction21.org/case-studies/h/the-thames-amphibioushouse.html.
15. Rosenthal, Uriel and Paul t’ Hart. Flood Response and Crisis Management in Western Europe: a Comparative Analysis. Berlin: Springer, 1998.
16. Simon, Matt R., Gregory P. Zogg, and Steven E. Travis. “Impacts of Sea-Level Rise on Sediment Microbial Community Structure and Function in Two New England Salt Marshes, USA.” Journal of Soils and Sediments 17, no. 12 (December 2017): 2847–55. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11368-017-1710-8
17 Uetake, Tomo. “10 Killed as Torrential Rain Causes Flooding and Mudslides in Japan.” The Independent. Independent Digital News and Media, October 26, 2019.
https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/asia/japan-floods-rain-death-toll-mudslides-chibafukushima-a9172626.html
18. Wainwright, Oliver. “'Like a Shimmering Sea Creature': Britain's First Amphibious Homes.” The Guardian. Guardian News and Media, February 2, 2016.
https://www.theguardian.com/artanddesign/2016/feb/02/baca-architects-pioneers-of-amphibioushousebuilding-flood-defences