Wisconsin Initiative on Climate Change Impacts | 2021 Assessment Report
BUILT ENVIRONMENT CHAPTER Climate resiliency means changing our approach to building infrastructure
Flooding is putting infrastructure investments at risk. Drain tile exposed by flood waters. Photo credit: City of Madison Engineering
INTRODUCTION Investments in infrastructure have long-lasting impacts. Flooding, high water levels, changing freeze/thaw patterns and other climate impacts are putting those infrastructure investments at risk. As communities build back from disasters and plan for the future, they need better access to data, modeling, and designs to protect their economies and residents. Re-examining how we fund and construct our infrastructure are important to our overall efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
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WICCI Report 2021
The topics covered in this chapter include issues, impacts and solutions in the areas of infrastructure and coastal resilience. These topic areas are covered in more depth on WICCI Working Group webpages with links provided at the end of each topic section. Here is a brief highlight of the issues covered in this chapter.
Infrastructure Greenhouse gases released during the production of our most common construction materials, concrete and steel, represent about 20 percent of greenhouse gas emissions globally. Updated climate projections need to drive design decisions
