Materials and Climate Change: A Set of Indices as the Benchmark for Climate Vulnerability and Risk Assessment for Tangible Cultural Heritage in Europe

Abstract

Among the issues most related to climate change, the built environment is also subjected to short- and long-term risks. Referring to tangible cultural heritage, materials and buildings are subjected to different types of damage that require adaptive risk prevention and containment strategies, currently missing from conventional risk assessments. Thus, there is an increasingly urgent need for scientific and technical knowledge, tools, and solutions aimed at solving critical issues in cultural heritage due to climate change. In this context, the aim of this study is to study the mechanisms of impacts brought about by climate change and the formulation of a possible set of indices as benchmarks to measure climate change’s effect on cultural heritage buildings. The study is structured on a methodology that identifies three sections: the first and second parts systematize and critically interpret data on impact mechanisms and indices for climate vulnerability and risk assessment; the third part, data processing, reports the perspective findings. The main intermediate indices, contributing to a comprehensive damage index, were identified, and a procedural protocol was developed. Finally, through the correlation of indices, a potential case study could be analyzed, and benchmarks made effective. The study reports partial results of one of the “Ecosystems of Innovation” pilot projects funded by the National Recovery and Resilience Plan. The study is still a work in progress and needs advancement and deepening to verify case study indices.