Bad houses are making Asia's heat stress worse - ABC Asia
www.abc.net.au
Homes could be refuges from the impacts of climate change, rather than silent contributors to the climate emergency. But that will mean changing the way we build them.

It is a typical summer’s afternoon in Gujarat, India. Women and children are listless as they swelter in their homes in the 34-degree Celsius heat.

It’s even hotter outside. Families that have moved into affordable housing units built in the last few years are finding their comfort and health have not been sufficiently considered in the design and construction of the new dwellings.

There are similar issues in Indonesia — where one study showed most household energy use was dedicated to trying unsuccessfully to stay cool — and Australia, where tenants in rental properties were regularly experiencing indoor temperatures above 30C in summer.

We are experiencing a heat pandemic, and it’s exacerbated by lousy buildings.

  • Cousin Mose@lemmy.hogru.ch
    2·
    16 days ago

    I suppose. But with no insulation the A/C has to work nonstop to keep the temperature at say, 78°F. You can start it off when it’s cool in the morning but by the time the real heat comes around the A/C is choking, unable to make any progress at actually cooling the space.

    I’ve never understood this—why in an area with constant power outages and energy usage problems would this be the norm? It’s the same thing with dishwashers—we’re all still washing dishes by hand and wasting crazy amounts of water.

    (Sorry, I could rant about this all day. Tired of living in the “tech” state where emergency vehicles can’t even change the traffic lights for themselves.)