Now that the White House is firmly pointing at human-made climate change, we’re starting to face the reality that we’re totally screwed, coastal cities and other water-bound places in particular. The federal government is planning to allocate billions to save New York from the rising sea levels and disastrous new hurricanes, but how? The Verge has published some interesting renderings of urban storm and coast defense from Rebuild By Design, a competition sponsored by the US Department of Housing and Urban Development.
Imagine the edges of Manhattan buffered by “defensive structures like raised parks” and “elevated areas.” Check out the new greenery of the raised sidewalks planned for the Lower East Side, with “up to 9 foot splash allowance!”
Other plans include breakwaters made from Econcrete placed around Staten Island to stabilize the ocean (which would also serve as habitats for marine life) and flaps that will flip into position at the approaching storm (which would also serve as possible art installations).
“I think you’re going to see over four or five years a hugely different physical reality in this city,” says New York Mayor Bill de Blasio of the projects’ necessity, some of which will be developed in the new couple of years.
(Images: Rebuild By Design via The Verge)
