Assessing Adaptive Capacity and Climate Change Adaptation Measures for the Building Sector in Bangkok Metropolitan Region

Abstract

The built environment is likely to be affected by climate change. Building sector represents a significant amount of opportunity for climate change adaptation. The objectives of this paper are to examine the adaptive capacity of cities in Bangkok Metropolitan Region (BMR) and to propose potential climate change adaptation measures for the building sector. BMR is the most important socio-economic center of Thailand, as well as rapid development in the Asia-Pacific. This study contributes to the body of knowledge by assessing adaptive capacity of each city in BMR and analyzing adaptation measures to the projected climate change impacts in the region. The findings indicate that Bangkok has the highest adaptive capacity and followed by Nonthaburi, Pathum Thani, Samut Prakarn, Nakhon Pathom, and Samut Sakhon, respectively. The potential adaptation measures include engineering and non-engineering solutions. This study argues that BMR needs to better integrate strategies for adaptation to climate change along with the mitigation side, revision of building code, and increasing socio-economic parameters under the adaptive capacity framework. In addition, the integration of traditional knowledge and modern scientific methods would offer cost optimum solutions for adaptation to climate change in the building sector. Findings from this study can also provide useful information to policy-makers that implement climate policies and also relevance to other cities having similar impacts of climate change.