When Hurricane Michael hit the Florida Panhandle five years ago, it left boats, cars and trucks piled up to the windows of Bonny Paulson害羞草研究所檚 home in the tiny coastal community of Mexico Beach, Florida, even though the house rests on pillars 14 feet above the ground. But Paulson害羞草研究所檚 home, with a rounded shape that looks something like a ship, shrugged off Category 5 winds that might otherwise have collapsed it.
害羞草研究所淚 wasn害羞草研究所檛 nervous at all,害羞草研究所� Paulson said, recalling the warning to evacuate. Her house lost only a few shingles, with photos taken after the storm showing it standing whole amid the wreckage of almost all the surrounding homes.
Some developers are building homes like Paulson害羞草研究所檚 with an eye toward making them more resilient to the extreme weather that害羞草研究所檚 increasing with climate change, and friendlier to the environment at the same time. Solar panels, for example, installed so snugly that high winds can害羞草研究所檛 get underneath them, mean clean power that can survive a storm. Preserved wetlands and native vegetation that trap carbon in the ground and reduce flooding vulnerability, too. Recycled or advanced construction materials that reduce energy use as well as the need to make new material.
A person害羞草研究所檚 home is one of the biggest ways they can reduce their individual carbon footprint. Buildings release about 38% of all energy-related greenhouse gas emissions each year. Some of the carbon pollution comes from powering things like lights and air conditioners and some of it from making the construction materials, like concrete and steel.
Deltec, the company that built Paulson害羞草研究所檚 home, says that only one of the nearly 1,400 homes it害羞草研究所檚 built over the last three decades has suffered structural damage from hurricane-force winds. But the company puts as much emphasis on building green, with higher-quality insulation that reduces the need for air conditioning, heat pumps for more efficient heating and cooling, energy-efficient appliances, and of course solar.
害羞草研究所淭he real magic here is that we害羞草研究所檙e doing both,害羞草研究所� chief executive Steve Linton. 害羞草研究所淚 think a lot of times resilience is sort of the afterthought when you talk about sustainable construction, where it害羞草研究所檚 just kind of this is a feature on a list 害羞草研究所� we believe that resilience is really a fundamental part of sustainability.害羞草研究所�
Other companies are developing entire neighborhoods that are both resistant to hurricanes and contribute less than average to climate change.
Pearl Homes害羞草研究所� Hunters Point community in Cortez, Florida, consists of 160 houses that are all LEED-certified platinum, the highest level of one of the most-used green building rating systems.
To reduce vulnerability to flooding, home sites are raised 16 feet (4.8 meters) above code. Roads are raised, too, and designed to direct accumulating rainfall away and onto ground where it may be absorbed. Steel roofs with seams allow solar panels to be attached so closely it害羞草研究所檚 difficult for high winds to get under them, and the homes have batteries that kick in when power is knocked out.
Pearl Homes CEO Marshall Gobuty said his team approached the University of Central Florida with a plan to build a community that doesn害羞草研究所檛 contribute to climate change. 害羞草研究所淚 wanted them to be not just sustainable, but resilient, I wanted them to be so unlike everything else that goes on in Florida,害羞草研究所� Gobuty said. 害羞草研究所淚 see homes that are newly built, half a mile away, that are underwater 害羞草研究所� we are in a crisis with how the weather is changing.害羞草研究所�
That resonates with Paulson, in Mexico Beach, who said she didn害羞草研究所檛 want to 害羞草研究所渓ive day to day worried about tracking something in the Atlantic.害羞草研究所� Besides greater peace of mind, she says, she害羞草研究所檚 now enjoying energy costs of about $32 per month, far below the roughly $250 she said she paid in a previous home.
害羞草研究所淚 don害羞草研究所檛 really feel that the population is taking into effect the environmental catastrophes, and adjusting for it,害羞草研究所� she said. 害羞草研究所淲e害羞草研究所檙e building the same old stuff that got blown away.害羞草研究所�
Babcock Ranch is another sustainable, hurricane-resilient community in South Florida. It calls itself the first solar-powered town in the U.S., generating 150 megawatts of electricity with 680,000 panels on 870 acres (350 hectares). The community was also one of the first in the country to have large batteries on site to store extra solar power to use at night or when the power is out.
Syd Kitson founded Babcock Ranch in 2006. The homes are better able to withstand hurricane winds because the roofs are strapped to a system that connects down to the foundation. Power lines are buried underground so they can害羞草研究所檛 blow over. The doors swing outward in some homes so when pressure builds up from the wind, they don害羞草研究所檛 blast open, and vents help balance the pressure in garages.
In 2022, Hurricane Ian churned over Babcock Ranch as a Category 4 storm. It left little to no damage, Kitson said.
害羞草研究所淲e set out to prove that a new town and the environment can work hand-in-hand, and I think we害羞草研究所檝e proven that,害羞草研究所� said Kitson. 害羞草研究所淯nless you build in a very resilient way, you害羞草研究所檙e just going to constantly be repairing or demolishing the home.害羞草研究所�
The development sold some 73,000 acres (29,500 hectares) of its site to the state for wetland preservation, and on the land where it built, a team studied how water naturally flows through the local environment and incorporated it into its water management system.
害羞草研究所淭hat water is going to go where it wants to go, if you害羞草研究所檙e going to try and challenge Mother Nature, you害羞草研究所檙e going to lose every single time,害羞草研究所� said Kitson. The wetlands, retention ponds, and native vegetation are better able to manage water during extreme rainfall, reducing the risk of flooded homes.
In the Florida Keys, Natalia Padalino and her husband, Alan Klingler, plan to finish building a Deltec home by December. The couple was concerned about the future impacts global warming and hurricanes would have on the Florida Keys and researched homes that were both sustainable and designed to withstand these storms.
害羞草研究所淲e believe we害羞草研究所檙e building something that害羞草研究所檚 going to be a phenomenal investment and reduce our risk of any major catastrophic situation,害羞草研究所� Klingler said.
害羞草研究所淧eople have been really open and receptive. They tell us if a hurricane comes, they害羞草研究所檙e going to be staying in our place,害羞草研究所� Padalino said.
