AMPHIBIOUS-HOUSE PROMOTER IS ON A CRUSADE FOR NEW HOMES AND RETROFITS THAT GO WITH THE FLOW

摘要

Elizabeth c. English holds four advanced degrees-including a PhD-in architecture, urban planning and engineering. She has taught at 10 institutions of higher learning. But after more than six years, she still hasn't been able to get her solution for amphibious flood-resistant buildings off the ground-at least in the U.S. The barrier is that amphibious houses with buoyant, boat-like foundations sit on dry land most of the time. In a flood, they float, rising in place along stationary guide posts. In the U.S., houses that rise and fall with flooding are not eligible for inexpensive National Flood Insurance because they do not meet the requirements for permanent static elevation above the zone's base flood elevation.