flooding

Having recently passed the two-year anniversary of Hurricane Katrina, now is a good time to look at what kinds of creative, sustainable solutions we've come up with for flood-prone areas.

Both EcoGeek and Inhabitat have recently featured an awesome development in the Netherlands (the 'Nawlins of Europe, so to speak) consisting of homes that stay firmly planted on the ground, yet float free during times of flooding. Their foundatins are made of hollow, water-tight concrete, and all plumbing and electrical services are flexible to allow for movement. This seems like a great solution for low-lying environments that may turn liquid with nary a moment's notice.

Of course, there's a long tradition in flood prone areas of building houses on stilts, too, like this home featured on HGTV's Extreme Homes.

Nowhere will you find more varied and creative approaches to disaster relief than at the Open Architecture Network, where you can see such whimsical wonders as the Dymaxion Tree Fort and pages of projects aimed at flood mitigation.