Why Building Codes Should Incorporate Future Temperature Projections

01/26/23

“Why should building codes incorporate future temperature projections?”

Building codes often take into account local temperatures in their guidance. For example, California’s Title 24 building energy efficiency codes require residential units to have minimum ceiling and wall insulation values corresponding to their local climate zone. With the advent of climate change, the temperatures in such climate zones will shift, and the buildings built today must withstand this new paradigm. To illustrate, the Californian city of Fresno is projected to experience 10 times as many heat days per year between 2050 and 2099 than what it experienced from 1961 to 2005. Policymakers should start considering Why Building Codes Should Incorporate Future Temperature Projections to protect their citizens.

• Earth/Climate science
• Engineering
• Policy
• Urban Systems