Thanks to climate change, severe heat waves are becoming part of everyday life in Europe. How are other heat-stricken regions dealing with the risks?
Cooling water against the heat
Countries across Europe are suffering from sweltering heat – temperature records could fall this week.
In Spain, temperatures of over 40 °C have already been reached. Health authorities are warning of the health risks that such extreme heat poses. They urge people to stay in shaded or air-conditioned places and drink plenty of water. “[The heatwave] is affecting large parts of Europe and is only getting worse,” said Clare Nullis, spokeswoman for the World Meteorological Organization at a press conference in Geneva last Tuesday.
Such warnings will be heard more and more frequently as the effects of climate change continue to intensify and periods of extreme summer heat will also be part of everyday life in Europe. The continent's climate, which was mild in the past, is changing rapidly. This poses countless challenges for countries as they adjust to this new normal.
The thermometer hit Seville 47 degrees Celsius
These problems are not new to regions of the world that are used to periods of heat. Many of the solutions developed here to deal with the heat could also serve as a model for Europe.
How do we live and work?
For many people in Europe, high temperatures are still relatively new and they do not realize how dangerous they can be for their health. Health authorities such as the UK's National Health Service, the NHS, are urging people to change their habits, avoid the sun between 11am and 3pm and be familiar with the first signs of heatstroke.
In heat-stricken regions, up Around the world, even larger awareness campaigns and community-focused efforts are being used to encourage people to change their habits during dangerous heat waves, whether it's at work, socializing or playing sports.
Homeless people in New Delhi take shelter in the shade of a bridge
Ahmedabad in western India regularly suffers from extreme heat waves. Over the past decade, the city has developed a series of heat action plans that coordinate action at the state and local levels. If a heat warning is issued, warnings will be broadcast via television, radio and text messages, and a dedicated heat hotline will be posted in public places.
Community health groups have the task of caring for particularly vulnerable people. Employers are encouraged to provide shaded retreats and rest periods for their workers who often work outdoors. Temples, libraries and bus stops are being converted into cooling centers and water distribution points.
In Europe, employers will need to change their attitude towards working outdoors and in poorly ventilated spaces, experts say, even if it impacts productivity. Unions in Germany have already suggested giving workers the right to longer lunch breaks on particularly hot days, in a sheltered location to be provided by the employer.
Employers “must protect their employees and governments must ensure workers are protected…whether through siestas, flexible working hours, an earlier start to work or more frequent breaks,” said Sari Kovats, professor of public health at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, in an interview with Deutsche Welle.
Health-proofing healthcare systems
The summer months used to be relatively quiet for European healthcare systems, but now that extreme heat events are becoming more frequent, they have to adjust the systems to increasing patient numbers due to heat waves.
According to studies, visits to the emergency department increase by at least 10 percent during heat waves, and many of the visitors report symptoms such as dehydration, heat stroke and nausea. People over the age of 65 are particularly at risk, so large parts of Europe's aging population are particularly vulnerable.
According to a paper published by the European Commission last year, if current trends continue without further changes, the effects of extreme heat caused deaths in the EU will increase from around 2,700 annually to 30-50,000 in 2050.
Umbrellas are no longer just used when it rains in Europe
Since the deadly summer of 2003, EU countries have been better prepared for heat waves. That summer, with temperatures exceeding 40°C, hospitals in France were overwhelmed by the number of patients, especially elderly patients. Today, cities like Paris have extensive surveillance systems and dedicated heat action plans.
But Kovats is convinced that awareness of the dangers of heat events can be further improved. “There is not enough awareness among frontline workers, nurses and doctors,” she says. “And the public in general doesn't know enough, so people often don't see themselves as being at risk.”
The state of Odisha in eastern India has successfully reduced heat deaths since a deadly heat wave in 1998 that killed more than 2,000 people. When temperatures rise dangerously, text messages and billboards are used to spread public health alerts to reach those at risk, while hospitals set up temporary heat-related illness wards and increase staffing levels.
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Cool & ; Clever – cool down for the city
Because extreme heat can also lead to power grid failures, the healthcare infrastructure must be equipped with backup systems. In the US states of Alabama and California, power outages occurred during heat waves, causing extreme increases in indoor temperatures. A backup power supply is required for newer hospitals in the US to ensure continuous air conditioning.
Cooler, more sustainable cities
Vietnam's capital, Hanoi, has made cooling part of its 2030 urban development master plan. Existing green zones are thus protected from the rapid growth of the city, and the water and tree density in the center is to be increased sevenfold per person. This is expected to mean that temperatures in the city will be around the same as in 2011 in 2030, despite an expected increase in population of 2.5 million people.
Cities also need to lower indoor temperatures, particularly in homes and workplaces. Air conditioning is often used, but it is expensive and bad for the environment. The Mahila Housing Trust, which operates in 10 cities in India, works with women in low-income neighborhoods to find affordable solutions to overheated housing. Painting walls and roofs with reflective paint can reflect up to 80 percent of the sun's energy, and planting climbing plants, soil and plant pots on the roof and exterior walls can reduce indoor temperatures by up to 2.5°C.
Air conditioning is a must in buildings with glass facade
Yatin Pandya, architect from Ahmedabad, has turned to traditional architecture to find sustainable solutions to the heat. Buildings in cities like Bangalore that follow the Western architectural style are constructed with steel and glass facades and require continuous air conditioning. But in the centuries before air conditioning, Indian homes used awnings and bay windows to provide shade, and patios and shutters to circulate cool air.
“It's not about the You can turn back the clock, but the local architecture reveals a lot about how local people managed before there was electricity,” Pandya told DW. “These very simple, logical principles can easily be adapted today.”
Adapted from English by Phoenix Hanzo.