For the first time in the U.S., national construction standards will address the risk of tsunamis.
The American Society of Civil Engineers has developed a new edition of ASCE 7-16, the first to include a chapter on tsunami hazards, in addition to chapters on seismic, wind, and flood hazards. The tsunami standards are only for steel-reinforced concrete buildings in “inundation zones.” They will not apply to wood-frame structures.
The committee that developed the new standard began work in late 2010, a few months before the March 2011 earthquake and tsunami that devastated Japan.
“We weren’t reacting,” according to Dan Cox of Oregon State University, a professor of civil and construction engineering in the OSU College of Engineering, and one of about 20 engineers on the ASCE committee that developed them. “We were trying to do this in advance. After the 2011 event, interest accelerated regarding how to build things safely in a tsunami zone, and it was important that the subcommittee contained people familiar with how codes work and academic researchers who can bring in the latest advances.”
The tsunami standards will have the most impact on engineers designing and building structures less than about five stories in height. Above five stories, even-stronger building codes will take precedence over codes to protect smaller structures from tsunamis. The new standards can also be used on retrofit projects.
Related Stories
| Feb 17, 2014
Channeling weather forecasts to building systems can yield significant energy savings
Using weather forecasts to predict outdoor temperature changes can lead to significant energy savings, exceeding 10%, researchers say.
| Feb 17, 2014
Lawmakers may take away control of Florida hospital project from the VA
The project is $100 million over budget and has missed its scheduled completion date.
| Feb 17, 2014
Business, labor at odds over toughening of OSHA silica dust rule
OSHA says the rules will protect workers and prevent 700 fatalities annually. Others say the rules would hurt businesses and jobs.
| Feb 17, 2014
Tulsa, Okla., mulls code change to require storm shelters in new schools
State and city officials are pushing for increased bonding capacity to pay for the storm shelters.
| Feb 13, 2014
Appraisal Institute issues guidelines on evaluating green property
The Appraisal Institute and the Institute for Market Transformation have issued guidelines for training property appraisers to evaluate green buildings.
| Feb 7, 2014
New LEED Dynamic Plaque system will measure building performance
The U.S. Green Building Council recently unveiled the LEED Dynamic Plaque, which is a new system designed for benchmarking and comparing post-occupancy building performance on a global scale.
| Feb 7, 2014
Los Angeles officials struggle to deal with needed seismic retrofits
Sixteen years ago, the Los Angeles City Council decided against requiring retrofits of existing buildings because of the projected cost and the threat of losing 20,000 apartment buildings.
| Feb 7, 2014
Los Angeles officials struggle to deal with needed seismic retrofits
Sixteen years ago, the Los Angeles City Council decided against requiring retrofits of existing buildings because of the projected cost and the threat of losing 20,000 apartment buildings.
| Feb 7, 2014
EPA, Freddie Mac collaborate on energy- and water-efficient apartments
Freddie Mac will gather data on energy and water use from property owners, and encourage lenders to spend on energy-efficient investments for multifamily housing.
| Feb 7, 2014
ASHRAE releases new refrigerant standards
The 2013 editions of ASHRAE’s major refrigerants-related standards, incorporating 41 new addenda, have been published.
