“Using the underground can assist in reducing the carbon foot print and create flood protection”

  The effects of climate change are nowadays widely visible throughout the world: river floods and marine submersions notably, are increasing tenfold. Regarding these phenomena, quite dangerous for populations and buildings, what solutions could underground infrastructures provide?   Søren Degn Eskesen: Cities around the world are challenged by rapid urbanisation, climate change and the need to become more resilient. ITA believes that underground space in urban areas can be used for meeting many challenges cities face. If done in a planned manner, the development of underground space can contribute to sustainable development of urban areas including helping them adapt to climate change effects. The solution falls in two categories. Firstly using the underground can assist in reducing the carbon foot print that big cities today recreate. There are several options for this – by changing the transport into underground transport system using resilience energy such as metro system based on non-carbon energy and also by changing energy production into green energy such as hydro power of which the use of the underground is an integral part in providing tunnels for water transport and underground caverns for the power house.  Secondly solutions using the underground may be to create flood protection for the cities by providing tunnels for flood control either by diverting the flood water through tunnels instead of surface river which will be over flowing or by creating underground storage facilities for retention of the  water during a flood. Such solutions have been used in several cities amongst other Buenos Aires in Argentina.