TEMPORARY HOUSING FOR FLOOD PRONE AREAS: CASE STUDY OF TACLOBAN

Abstract

Natural disasters are occurring at an increasing rate in the world today and each disaster brings massive destruction to physical, social and economic infrastructures. While temporary housing is a critical component aiding disaster recovery, complicated circumstances in disaster-stricken areas make the planning, implementation and design of temporary housing problematic. There is a call for temporary housing to be sustainable as well as liveable. Temporary housing is used for a few years at the maximum but can cost as much as a permanent house. However, it is also important to not compromise the quality of temporary housing as despite its temporary nature, it is also a transitional home for residents to slowly regain normalcy and re-establish daily routines. Comfort and sustainability hence become two important topics when it comes to the question of temporary housing. Through a field study conducted in the Philippines, comfort and sustainability of three temporary housing types will be assessed quantitatively in this paper. Temperature and relative humidity data, in combination of user satisfaction survey, are also employed to investigate the comfort levels of the chosen subjects. Environmental impact of the temporary housing will be determined via a Streamlined Life Cycle Assessment (SLCA). It is discovered that single detached temporary housing constructed using breathable materials sourced locally are best suited for the hot and humid climate of the Philippines. However, through the survey, we also learnt that the usage of these light materials is not popular with the locals. The locals’ preference to sturdier materials is also noted in literature review.