Once again, an event beyond our immediate control has turned the world we live in upside down. Wildfires here in Oregon have wreaked havoc. They have forced tens of thousands to flee their homes; hundreds of thousands of others are ready to evacuate from zones under imminent threat. Dozens of people are currently missing with fears their numbers may add to a growing death tally. More than a million acres across the state have burned, consuming entire small communities. Here in Lane County, the Holiday Farm Fire has devasted the scenic McKenzie River Valley, wholly destroying the town of Blue River and blackening extensive forest lands. Numerous friends and acquaintances of mine have been directly impacted; in at least one instance, this has included losing a home. Across the state, the property loss has been staggering.
Thus far, my wife and I are fortunate not to be among those who are truly suffering. While we are safe, Eugene has been cloaked within an apocalyptic orange haze for days now. The air quality is so poor and unhealthy it rated as the worst in the entire world on Friday. Ash has been falling like snow, coating our cars, yard, and house. Everything smells like a campfire. We are staying inside as much as possible.
Oregon’s governor Kate Brown characterized the fire emergency a consequence of wind dynamics and unstable air conditions creating unpredictable firestorm behaviors. “This will not be a onetime event,” she said. “Unfortunately, it is the bellwether of the future. We are feeling the acute impacts of climate change.“ And as California governor Gavin Newsom recently said, the fires throughout the western states are evidence that “climate change is an existential threat,” leaving no doubt it is here and happening faster than most people anticipated.
Politicians may increasingly be sounding the alarm, but the truth is leading climatologists have been predicting for decades what we’re clearly seeing evidence of now. As I wrote twelve long years ago, we are now well past the tipping point whereby large-scale climate change due to anthropogenic pollutants is inevitable. Oregonians are witnessing firsthand just one result of its exponential acceleration and the resultant destabilization of our ecosystems.
The rise in global temperatures is not linear but rather has been progressing in a non-linear, chaotic fashion. Positive feedback loops—such as the shrinking of polar ice caps resulting in lowered surface albedo, and in turn more absorbed heat promoting further melting—move the Earth’s climate system further away from equilibrium. As Wikipedia states, “the effects of a perturbation on a system include an increase in the magnitude of the perturbation,” meaning positive feedback amplifies the effect by influencing the process which gave rise to it. Global warming begets further global warming.
The catastrophic wildfires are just one harbinger. Many of the root causes of climate change also increase the risk of pandemics, so it’s conceivable scientists may ultimately attribute rising global temperatures with some role in the advent of COVID-19. Deforestation and loss of habitat have forced species to encounter other animals they normally would not, resulting in an unprecedented spread of pathogens. Certainly, people exposed to more air pollution and smoke fare worse with respiratory infections than those who breathe cleaner air. Studies in China indicate poor air quality may increase transmission of infections that cause influenza-like illnesses.
We’re seeing other predicted effects of climate occur in real time: rising sea levels, changing precipitation patterns, greater ocean acidity, increasing drought and heat waves, and stronger, more intense weather events. Here in the Pacific Northwest, we have the increased risk of wildfires, parasite infestations, and tree diseases resulting in widespread tree die-off. The impacts on society include the threat to resources upon which local economies depend, loss of food security, and exacerbation of social inequities. The poorest among us will suffer the most.
The past week’s wildfire devastation will leave a lasting mark upon all of us, particularly those displaced and traumatized. Will they/we rebuild? Many will, yes. Unfortunately, we’re transitioning to a new normal—a new reality wherein catastrophic wildfires will occur with escalating frequency. Naturally, our response will be to reconstruct impacted communities in as fire-resistant a manner as possible. I expect future editions of our building codes will increasingly mandate best practices associated with design for wildfire-resistance. It will be important to view the challenges of designing from as broad and encompassing a perspective as possible. Certainly, the debate about how best to manage forest lands so they are more fire resilient will grow in the aftermath of this year’s deadly conflagrations.
From my perspective as an architect, the challenge moving forward is the burgeoning set of issues I must address on every comprehensive building project my firm and I undertake. During my 40-year career, I have witnessed recognition and then codification of matters related to energy conservation and sustainability, removal of barriers to accessibility, seismic resilience, and equity in the architecture profession. This year has brought social justice, designing for a world ravaged by a pandemic, and now wildfire resilience to the forefront. Every one of these concerns is important and essential to consider. Unfortunately, it too often takes tragic events to spur us to action.
Architects must keep this growing list of issues in mind while also endeavoring to design beautiful, practical, and life-affirming places. The purpose of architecture is to empower people and provide them with a reflection of who they are as a culture. Architecture is future-building. It would be a shame if we succumbed to viewing the future and our work exclusively through a dystopian lens.
This has been a year for the ages, on many fronts. If we have an ounce of humility, humankind will finally resolve to face reality. Climate change is indeed an existential threat. Oregon is burning.
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