Adaptive Capacity - Climate Change Adaptation and Development: Transforming Paradigms and Practices - page 69

agencies, local committees, and religious, professional and political groups) are
crucial for accessing financial and non-financial post-disaster assistance.
Another type of preparedness measure involves the use of construction
materials that recover readily (or can be recovered) after hazard impacts. Wooden
plank flooring is, for instance, less prone to water-clogging after heavy rainfall
(Jabeen et al. 2010).
strengths and limitations of city dwellers' coping practice
The analysis of coping strategies presented in 'Coping practices' above
shows a great richness and diversity in objectives and thematic foci. Further
analyses presented here, however, imply huge differences in effectiveness and
sustainability, including forward-looking and short-term solutions, and even
harmful ('maladaptive') measures.
Coping - in a context of climate change
What can be considered an 'effective' or an 'ineffective' coping practice was
found to vary considerably according to context. Some coping strategies that
might work well at an individual or household level prove counterproductive
in terms of the larger picture. They may increase the vulnerability of others and
negatively impact equity issues. For example, during hot summer periods, people
from the San Salvador case-study area hoard water taken from private or public
taps; and in the Rio case study people drench their rooftops with water to reduce
indoor temperature. Both practices inevitably result in growing pressure on
water supplies. Also in Rio, the high use of fans and air conditioners during hot
periods frequently causes sub-standard electrical connections to short-circuit,
resulting in power outages and fires which can spread quickly in the densely
built settlements. Air conditioning further increases energy consumption,
which exacerbates climate change. Another coping strategy that might work
at the individual level but is counterproductive in a larger perspective, are the
'flying toilets' used in informal settlements throughout the world, including
the Rio case-study area. If toilets are not available or cannot be flushed due to
water scarcity, people often relieve themselves into plastic bags which are simply
tossed out of the window - a great environmental and human health risk (UN
Water 2007). 10 Other examples from the San Salvador case-study area include
flood defence walls, landfills and land expansions out into rivers, which can
increase flood risk further downstream.
Coping strategies that might be effective in the short term but not in the long
term include borrowing from money-lenders at high interest rates; selling off
assets cheaply during the post-disaster period; spending money on temporary
arrangements (e.g. short-lived water barriers and channels); felling trees to use
as free firewood; or covering slopes with plastic sheets that not only pollute the
environment, but may blow into rivers and block them up.