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Visual Climate Adaptation Platform for Cyclone Risk Assessment

Solution Overview

CSIRO Australia conducted a demonstration study of the Visual Climate Adaptation Platform (VCAP) in Da Nang, a GIS-based platform enabling users to assess impact, costs and benefits of adaptation options for housing or infrastructure subjected to natural hazards.[4] The platform was developed based on CSIRO's MetroEngines visual climate adaptation decision-making support platform, with Da Nang serving as a demonstration study of the Geographic Information Systems mapping tools.[1] This approach focused on assessing potential impacts and damage costs on residential housing subjected to tropical cyclones in two pilot study areas.[2]

Technical Components

The city of Da Nang provided historical damage data, which was used with spatial information such as topography, terrain and shielding from the built environment to establish vulnerability models as well as hazard extent and intensity showing which parts of the city would be weakest in a future cyclone event.[1] The researchers established a vulnerability curve showing what percentage of buildings are likely to be damaged according to predicted wind speeds in Da Nang.[1] The study used Da Nang Department of Construction's geographical information system database as the source for mapping the city and study wards.[6] As a result of the demonstration study, levels of impact on houses, spatial damage hot spots, and estimated damage costs due to typhoons of any intensity in the study areas were identified.[3] A GIS database and a web-portal were developed as part of the VCAP Demonstration Study for Da Nang, ready for further studies.[3]

Implementation Details

The pilot study was undertaken in collaboration with the Da Nang Climate Change Coordination Office from March to June 2016, assessing the potential impact and damage costs from tropical cyclones to residential housing in two wards of Da Nang, namely Tho Quang and Hoa Hai.[3][4] Dr Chi-Hsiang Wang worked with colleagues Dr Minh Nguyen and Mr Yong-Bing Khoo on assessing the predicted cost of cyclones in the Vietnamese city of Da Nang, one of the cities selected for the 100 Resilient Cities Rockefeller Foundation-funded project.[1] The VCAP study for Tho Quang ward covered approximately 8,000 houses with a population of 17,000 across an area of 46.5 km2.[3] Da Nang is now planning to scale up the pilot study to investigate the vulnerability of housing stock to tropical storms in all 56 wards.[4] Additional funding is needed to support the collection of historical damage data and development of a cadastral GIS for the whole city.[4] Following data collection and analysis, technical expertise will be needed to expand the functionality of this tool to encompass future projections by digitizing future development plans of Da Nang and modelling future climate change scenarios.[4]

Benefits and Impacts

This study provided valuable insights into damage hotspots that need prioritized investment for adaptation.[4] The study demonstrated the feasibility and benefits of the VCAP in helping city planners and authorities develop an integrated resilience strategy for natural disaster risk management and climate adaptation.[2] The VCAP Demonstration Study established a close working relationship between CSIRO and Da Nang CRO teams, received enthusiastic interest from relevant city agencies, and supported two out of four Focus Areas of the City Resilience Strategy.[3] The Climate Change Coordination Office would like to extend this work to simulate project risk and damage costs to future housing stock under 2050 climate change scenarios.[4]

Climate Adaptation Relevance

Da Nang is vulnerable to extreme weather events, particularly tropical cyclones, flash floods, and inundation, which are likely to become more frequent and severe in the context of a changing climate.[4] Typhoons have the greatest impact on housing compared to other sectors making housing one of the most vulnerable sectors to climate extremes in Da Nang.[7] Housing damage in Da Nang is caused not only by climate hazards, but also by inappropriate housing solutions and poor construction techniques.[7]

Sources