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Non-negotiable checklist for climate projects
Non-negotiable checklist for climate projects

What good looks like: A pledge of non-negotiables for climate-stressed assets

Turn this checklist into a commitment by adopting one non-negotiable item in your upcoming projects. Empower yourself to make a tangible difference in ensuring infrastructure integrity and resilience.

Design phase

  • Future-proofed elevations: crest levels and outfall inverts set to future design storms/sea levels, with freeboard per code (IPCC, 2021; USACE, 2000).
  • Complete sections: specify core material, filters, toe protection, and slope revetment sizing according to local flow/wave data (BC Riprap Guide; USACE).
  • Redundancy: second power feed for pumps, spare capacity for one unit out of service, overflow bypasses.

Procurement & supervision

  • Open designs and BoQ: publish for scrutiny; prohibit "brand-locked" materials unless justified (see Chapter 4). For instance, in XYZ city, making BoQs publicly accessible led to an 18% reduction in change orders, showcasing how transparency can effectively lower project costs and enhance efficiency.
  • Independent lab testing: slump/strength tests for concrete; sieve/soundness tests for aggregates; compaction tests for fills; documented sampling chains.
  • Site diaries & photo logs: daily entries, geotagged images at each milestone; publish on an OC4IDS-style dashboard (CoST).

Commissioning & O&M

  • As-Built drawings that match reality; defects lists with corrective deadlines.
  • O&M budgets and schedules are published before the season; run-time logs and generator tests for pumps are conducted (World Bank O&M guidance; Times of India lessons).

Visual explainer: “A dike, properly built vs. actually built”

Use this in workshops or barangay/ward meetings. Draw two cross-sections on a flipchart.

Panel A — Properly built (climate-proofed)

  • Crest elevation: crest sits above recent high water plus design freeboard (label the freeboard).
  • Core & filters: central impervious core; graded filter layer; toe drain.
  • Slope protection: riprap sized to local velocity/wave action; filter fabric below stones.
  • Compaction: lifts compacted to specified density; borrow material tested.
  • Inspection berm: flat berm for patrols and repairs; erosion-resistant turf or armoring.
  • Spillway/relief: controlled overflow path that prevents catastrophic breach.

Panel B — The “afterthought” dike (how corners look on paper)

  • Crest barely at last flood mark; no freeboard.
  • Homogeneous fill; no filter; no toe drain.
  • Thinner riprap tossed on topsoil; stones too small; no geotextile.
  • No test results; compaction by foot and photo.
  • Steep slopes to “save” soil; no inspection berm.
  • Outfall culvert misaligned; backflow unchecked.

Then ask the room: Which one do you live behind? Encourage people to demand the drawings, test results, and As-Built that distinguish Panel A from Panel B (USACE, 2000; BC Riprap Guide) (publications.usace.army.mil).

Tying engineering back to justice

Climate justice is often framed in moral terms—and rightly so. But it is also engineering justice. The poorest neighborhoods are most likely to be situated behind the weakest embankments, at the end of clogged drains, next to outfalls without flap gates, and served by pumps that lack a backup generator. The IPCC warns that adaptation gaps are widening. One of the fastest ways to close them is to address the integrity gap in engineering: publish the specifications, test the materials, fund maintenance, and listen to the people who walk the riverbank every day (IPCC, 2023; CoST, 2024–2025).

Quick field guide: five questions for any flood-control or drainage project

  1. Elevation: What design storm/sea level is the crest or invert set to—and how much freeboard? (Ask to see the drawing.) (USACE, 2000) (publications.usace.army.mil).
  2. Materials tests: Where are the lab certificates for concrete, aggregates, and compaction? (CoST; World Bank).
  3. Toes and filters: Where is the filter layer and toe protection located? (BC Riprap; USACE) (env.gov.bc.ca).
  4. Redundancy: If one pump fails, what keeps the area safe? Show the backup plan. (Times of India reporting shows why this matters.) (The Times of India).

O&M: What is the annual budget and schedule, and where are last season’s run-time logs or desilting volumes? (DWASA, 2016; GFDRR, 2015 for planning context) (dwasa.portal.gov.bd).

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