R&D: Tangentyere & CSIRO are monitoring the thermal performance Alice Springs town camp houses
This study supports a broader climate adaptation and heat mitigation project in Alice Springs undertaken by CSIRO in partnership with Tangentyere Council (TCAC).
The partnership and project was initiated in response to concerns raised by Tangentyere Council Board Directors and Town Camp members about energy insecurity and the health impacts of climate change and current housing suitability.
Image: Index of Relative Socioeconomic Disadvantage (ISRD), ABS (2018) by SA1 of Alice Springs (Figure 3 in the report)
This project sought to provide evidence of the feasibility of measuring internal climatic conditions of Town Camp residences and compare with outdoor weather conditions and international thermal comfort standards. This data would then provide supportive evidence for Tangentyere Council to advocate for suitable housing stock for Town Camp residents.
This study was designed as a Two Phase project. Phase one is completed and this report explores the design, implementation and results of Phase One only.
Findings from Phase One highlights the inadequacy of the housing stock within the trial to passively regulate temperature and humidity. Recommendations emphasize the need for substantial investment in housing to address inequities and improve outcomes for residents. These findings will inform Phase Two, which is now underway.
Phase One Overview
Phase One was designed as a feasibility trial to inform the design and implementation of Phase Two.
Phase one focused on providing evidence of the feasibility of measuring internal climatic conditions in households to enable comparison with outdoor weather conditions and international thermal comfort standards. In 2021, temperature and humidity sensors were installed in 20 houses, collecting data over 14 months (May 2021-June 2022).
Findings included:
- Average internal house temperature conditions were more likely to reflect outdoor temperature conditions, or warmer (0.58°C to 8.54°C)
- The houses were rarely within the WHO internationally recognised comfort range of 18-24°C.
- Examination of extremely hot periods found that when outdoor temperatures were above the comfort range, most houses also experienced temperatures that exceeded the comfort range 100% of the time.
- Internal relative humidity was rarely inside the comfort range of 40% to 70%, where conditions were more likely to be below the comfort range.
- Mechanical cooling and heating contributed to the mitigation of heat and cold but contributed to energy insecurity. Unless active heating and cooling practices were being implemented, indoor temperature and relative humidity closely reflected outdoor weather conditions.
These findings highlighted the the inadequacy of the housing stock within the trial and validated the original concerns raised by Tangentyere Council Directors and members.
Phase two Overview
The learnings gained from Phase One have been integrated into the design of Phase Two which will see the deployment of fit-for-purpose sensors deployed into more Alice Springs Town Camp housing stock. Phase two is now underway.
The report outlines an extensive list of additional recommendations to be adopted for Phase Two.
Access the research here – ‘Tangentyere Residential Thermal Comfort Project. Phase 1: 2021-22 Report’
2011 Temperature Improvement Project – Healthabitat, Tangentyere and Virgin
This is far from the first time Alice Springs town camp housing has been invested in.
In March 2009 temperature and power monitoring equipment was installed in four houses across three different Alice Spring Town Camps. The four selected houses provided a cross section of differing house types, household sizes and levels of previous solar upgrade work.
This project carries on from previous Temperature Improvement Projects undertaken by the FHBH Research & Development Project, in which the thermal environment of habitable rooms were monitored, evaluated, and a strategy for thermal improvement through architectural modifications was proposed, built and evaluated.
Temperature data collected from the 4 houses assisted in the design and quantitative evaluation of mechanical‐based thermal improvements proposed for them and a number of other Town Camp residences. The following report documents works relating to thermal upgrades and the analysis of data before & after modifications were made to houses.
Access the R&D project report here, and you can read more here on the Healthabitat website.
We congratulate such hard-hitting, ground-up research which is prioritising the collection of quantitative evidence-based data to inform change. We are looking forward to what the findings inform, although disappointed by what the data from Phase one reveals about town camp housing in Alice Springs.
