As we move swiftly into the future, there are few places on the planet safe from flooding.

Flooding has dominated international news in recent years.

Simply put, floods occur when water overflows land that is normally dry and are becoming very common across the world, leading to millions of dollars in damages to a particular area.

A myriad of circumstance can lead to floods, like the torrential storm felt in Kamloops in July and being repaired as we speak, while costing millions of dollars. Floods are going to occur whether we like it or not; Mother Nature will always have its way of creeping into existence and dampening our lives.

The overall riding factor is climate change, which needs to seriously be accounted for in constructing buildings.

There are methods to mitigate the damages floods can have on our livelihoods. For example, as cited in the recent Business In Vancouver Green Space Magazine, there are anti-flooding measures that can be taken. The piece covered a development on the banks of the Bow River in Calgary, the same river that drowned much of Calgary during the 2013 flood, and its ability to withstand the onslaught of water the river churned toward it.

The development was spared devastation because it took into account how climate change is affecting the planet and the need for a durable structure is needed now more than ever. We all remember the flooded parking lots, expensive cars floating to the ceiling as water charged in covered on TV. Fortunately, this wasn’t the case at this development, nestled gently against the flow of the river. The development built for floods, expecting to withstand a water level rise with above grade fortification walls.

Photo courtesy: wikipedia - Calgary flood of 2013.

The foundation of the building was waterproofed with an Integral Crystalline Waterproofing system that made the concrete the barrier against water instead of relying on an external membrane that is prone to damage. With this in place, residents were seemingly side-stepped from the dangers of the flood with regard to their home, their safety planned for.

Kryton’s Krystol Internal Membrane (KIM) is more than suitable in this capacity, as it not only makes the concrete the waterproofing barrier, but also is the one and only Integral Crystalline Waterproofing admixture to be labeled a PRAH (Permeability Resistant Admixture under Hydrostatic conditions) by the American Concrete Institute, meaning that KIM is the only waterproofing admixture able to withstand hydrostatic water pressure.

With climate change a reality, evidenced by floods continuing world-wide, it is more important now than ever before to plan for the worst scenarios when constructing a building, including the use of the best Integral Crystalline Waterproofing system available to help mitigate the risk floods, ensure durability and meet sustainability standards.