“There’s no bad weather, only poor design”
D. Wheeler, 2016
With the increasingly tumultuous conditions and declining predictability of our current climate systems, we’re now seeing extreme weather events occurring more frequently than in recent history. Our once-in-100-year events are now turning into once every couple of decades—or less—with no sign of their pace alleviating. Due to the expansive nature of Earth’s cycles compared with the relatively brief length of a human lifetime, and even less our awareness, it seems like planning for these types of incidents is perpetually left to the next generation: “We’ll be long gone before it affects us!”
Our collective lack of foresight, disregard of the past beyond a few decades, and stubborn mindset of “that’s the way we’ve always done it” feel like nails in a coffin struck hard by the hammer of our precarious complacency and refusal to adapt in the face of reality.
Whether or not the climate is changing because of us or a natural cyclic phenomenon beyond our human timescales, there is change happening. The magnitude of this change, in conjunction with our increasing population growth, means more and more of us will be exposed to extreme weather events in both scale and frequency. Unless we change the way we look at civil and environmental design, water and energy infrastructure, and utilising what we already have, future damage projections and loss of life will follow the same trend as our population—exponential.
The intention is all well and good, but what on earth does this look like in the physical realm? What can we actually do to ameliorate the inevitable effects of extreme weather conditions on our human lifestyles? Like everything else in permaculture, the solution is in the problem.
Observation-led design
Prevalent disasters will vary between geographical locations on the planet. However, one thing will always aid in preparing for any of them: observation. This is much the same as doing an initial design for a property, where you spend time on the site working out data such as sun aspect, prevailing wind direction, soil type and pH, animal movement and species lists.
- If fire is your biggest risk, observe fuel load, fire-resistant plant species, escape routes and contingencies.
- If you’re on the coastline, consider storm surges, high winds, land reclamation and tsunamis.
- If drought is your concern, look at water retention in the soil, passive rain collection, hardy species, swales, mulch and erosion prevention.
All of these events and more can be safeguarded against with insightful, innovative and intrinsic design. This way, no matter what nature throws at us, we can be highly prepared by utilising nature itself as an ally. In the end, there is no “bad” weather when our designs are well thought out and robust.
A practical example: preparing for a cyclone
In March 2025, I was preparing for Tropical Cyclone Alfred in the Lockyer Valley, Queensland, Australia. Having observed the climate and land in south-east Queensland my entire life definitely gave me an advantage, as I had been expecting a “big one”—a flood—for months.
Animal behaviour over the two weeks leading up to the event had altered, especially among ants and kookaburras. This always leads me to believe in the presence of an imminent event—in this case, rain.
The land was dry and expanded after several weeks of summer sun and temperatures in the mid-30s, so a large deluge would “hit the ground running”, so to speak, and not spend very long absorbing into the soil.
As of the morning before, there was the potential for rainfall of 500–1000 mm over the coming week. This was greater than the total annual rainfall this region receives on average. That is why I always factor in extreme values when doing designs: find out your total annual average and plan for that to fall in a 24–48-hour period. Can your system handle that? Can you capture all the runoff? Or, at the very least, slow it down and store it somewhere?
Fortunately, a lot of the physical preparation for an event like this is already part of my end-of-summer routine: line-trim grass and spread the cuts like mulch; collect dead branches; chop firewood; clean up debris; and burn off cut or pruned branches and weeds.
Other non-garden tasks included relocating a 1000 L water tank in Zone 1 directly under a leaky gutter corner. This not only catches escaping water, but also gives me a backup source in case the power goes out and the pump cannot send water from the main tanks to the house.
I released the water from a 1000 L IBC tank that captures the garage water, as it had been sitting for a while and I wanted an empty tank for this event. The released water spread down the backyard, making it slightly less dry and ideally helping it absorb more water over the coming days.
Next, I did a property walk to ensure there were no potential “kites” or things that could be picked up by strong winds. Doing this regularly is always a good idea to keep a property clean and free of foreign objects that may not even be yours.
Inside the house, I spent the weekend washing all the laundry, including linen, as this might not get a chance to happen again for a while. I charged batteries for tools and lights; emptied rubbish bins; audited food and made an items list; planned meals around perishables and a possible fridge or power outage; prepared a bag of ice and an esky; filled the car with fuel and checked that it was mechanically sound; and packed a grab bag. Getting the kids to help you plan is a good way to build their awareness and involve them, too.
After a large rain event
I was in that particular dwelling for six years and observed every weather event and its impact on the property. A recurring problem was the garage flooding from water flowing off the driveway. The topsoil had disappeared long before I moved in, leaving claypan and rocks. This meant any water that fell would not absorb and would flow off as if the ground were concrete, especially during heavy falls.
After several events, the erosion channels that formed showed me where to redirect the water most effectively and then dig. The flooding garage issue was solved by implementing just one seven-metre-long straight trench in the right place.
Always accept nature’s feedback and:
- Design well
- Plan to flourish
- Stay safe
Daniel Wheeler
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