Heat, cold, and floods: exploring farmers’ motivations to adapt to extreme weather events in the Terai region of Nepal

The most severe impacts of climate on human society and infrastructure as well as on ecosystems and wildlife arise from the occurrence of extreme weather events such as heat waves, cold spells, floods, droughts and storms. Recent years have seen a number of weather events cause large losses of life as well as a tremendous increase in economic losses. According to the IPCC (2007), an extreme weather event is an event that is rare at a particular place and time of year. Definitions of rare vary, but an extreme weather event would normally be as rare as or rarer than the 10th or 90th percentile of the observed probability density function. Changes in frequency or/and intensity of extreme events can affect not only human health, directly through heat and cold waves and indirectly by floods or pollution episodes, but also for example, on crops or even insurance calculations. Climate extremes associated with temperature (heatwaves) and precipitation (heavy rain, snow events, droughts) can also affect energy consumption, human comfort and tourism and are responsible for a disproportionately large part of climate-related damages (Easterling et al., 2000; Meehl et al., 2000). Extreme weather events recorded in recent years, and associated losses of both, lives and economics goods, has captured the interest of the general public, governments, stakeholders and media. The scientific community has responded to this inquiry and has raised interest in studying with more attention to detail. Our understanding of the mean behavior of climate and its normal variability has been improving significantly during the last decades. In comparison, climatic extreme events have been hard to study and even harder to predict because they are, by definition, rare and obey different statistical laws than averages. In particular, extreme value analysis usually requires estimation of the probability of events that are more extreme than any that have already been observed, and they are linked to small probabilities. Climate extremes can be placed into two broad groups: (i) those based on simple climate statistics, which include extremes such as a very low or very high daily temperature, or heavy daily or monthly rainfall amounts, that occur every year; and (ii) more complex event-driven extremes, examples of which include drought, floods, or hurricanes, which do not necessarily occur every year at a given location. Katz & Brown (1992) first suggested that the sensitivity of extremes to changes in mean climate may be greater than one would assume from simply shifting the location of the climatological distributions. Since then, observations of historical changes as well as future

Assessment and planning for emerging impacts of climate change on species

Extreme weather events in europe and their health consequences - A systematic review.

The increasing intensity and frequency of extreme weather events resulting from climate change have led to grid outages and other negative consequences. To ensure the resilience of buildings which serve as primary shelters for occupants, resilient strategies are being developed to improve their ability to withstand these extreme events (e.g., building upgrades and renewable energy generators and storage). However, a crucial step towards creating a resilient built environment is accurately estimating building performance during such conditions using historical extreme climate change-induced weather events. To conduct Building Performance Simulation (BPS) in extreme conditions, such as weather events induced by climate change, it is essential to utilize Actual Meteorological Year (AMY) weather files instead of Typical Meteorological Year (TMY) files. AMY files capture the precise climatic conditions during extreme weather events, enabling accurate simulation of such scenarios. These weather files provide valuable data that can be used to assess the vulnerabilities and resilience of buildings to extreme weather events. By analyzing past events and their impacts using BPS tools, we can gain insights into the specific weaknesses and areas that require improvement. This approach applies to both existing buildings needing climate change-resilient retrofits and new building designs that must be compatible with future climatic conditions. Moreover, the intensification and frequency increase of these extreme weather events makes developing adaptation and resilient-building measures imperative. This involves understanding the potential losses that households may experience due to the intensification of extreme events and developing farsighted coping strategies and climate-proof resilient-building initiatives. However, addressing the knowledge gap caused by the absence of an AMY weather file dataset of extreme events is essential. This will allow for accurate BPS during past extreme climate change-induced weather events. To fill this gap, this article introduces a comprehensive .epw format weather file dataset focusing on historical extreme weather events in Canada. This collection encompasses a diverse array of past extreme climate change occurrences in various locations, with potential for future expansion to include additional locations and countries. This dataset enables energy simulations for different types of buildings and considers a diverse range of historical weather conditions, allowing for better estimation of thermal performance.

Climate change is a worldwide issue which has a dramatic influence on temperature, precipitation, glaciers, and water bodies. The climate of the Earth is getting warmer significantly. This, in turn, increases such extreme weather events as heat and cold waves. To understand these two extreme weather events, the data on the mean daily minimum and maximum temperatures were collected from 39 meteorological stations over the period 1966–2018. These stations were selected because of their long-term data records, the lack of statistical deficiencies, and their proper spatial distribution throughout the country. The aim of this study was to investigate the frequency and spatio-temporal changes of heat and cold waves. After forming the time series for heat and cold waves by employing the Baldi approach, and using the non-parametric Mann-Kendall test and Sen’s slope estimator, their spatio-temporal variations were investigated. The results showed that the mean daily minimum and maximum temperatures were higher in the recent years and decades. Compared to the data recorded in the 1970s, the maximum temperature increased by about 1.5°C, and the minimum temperature rose by about 1.9°C in the recent years (2011–2018). As a result, the frequencies of heat waves (cold waves) have increased (decreased). In this regard, about 85% of the selected stations showed increases (decreases) in the frequencies of heat waves (cold waves). The station in Yazd exhibited the largest trend in increasing (decreasing) frequencies in heat waves (cold waves) at the 99% significance level.

In the last decade, the WHO European Region has been struck by various extreme weather events. The dramatic political, social, environmental and health consequences have stimulated debate on whether appropriate action can prevent the health effects of such extreme weather events. Based on our knowledge of climate change, more extreme weather and climate events will occur in the coming years, and they are likely to be more severe. International collaboration is needed to evaluate and target actions better. Many lessons have been learned from early warning and information systems. In preparation for the Fourth Ministerial Conference on Environment and Health in Budapest in 2004, the WHO European Centre for Environment and Health of the WHO Regional Office for Europe and the European Environment Agency (EEA) organized a meeting entitled “Extreme weather events and public health responses” in Bratislava, Slovakia, on 9–10 February 2004 to exchange information regarding the 2002 floodings and the 2003 heat waves as well as to develop recommendations on public health and environmental responses to climate extremes. This paper reviews the contributions from the Bratislava meeting and summarizes the policy recommendations that were developed in a working document for the Fourth Ministerial Conference. Climate variability and extremes are discussed, as are country case studies and experience with floods, heat and cold waves in various European countries; some of the lessons learned are summarized in response to extreme events.

A crucial step in developing a strategy against natural hazards is the analysis of weather extremes in the past. Due to the multiplication of their impacts when occurring in a larger area, we strongly recommend not evaluating the extremes only at individual sites but assessing regional extreme weather events. The presented Czech Extreme Weather Database (CZEXWED) comprises six types of extreme events, namely, heat waves, cold waves, air temperature drops, windstorms, heavy precipitation events, and heavy snowfalls. To date, it covers the period 1961–2020. To minimize methodological differences in the process of evaluating various types of extreme weather events including compound events, we employed the weather extremity index (WEI), a universal indicator based on the evaluation of return periods of relevant variables. Each event is characterized not only by the WEI value but also by its spatial extent and duration. Heat and cold waves in Czechia generally reach higher WEI values than other types of extreme weather because they usually affect larger areas. The number and extremity of heat waves are increasing significantly, while the opposite may be true for cold waves and windstorms. Air temperature drops defined by declines in daily maximum air temperature are frequent in the warm half-year, but three of four top events occurred in January. Windstorms and heavy precipitation events prevailed in the cold and warm half-years, respectively, but weaker events of these types also occurred during the opposite season. A comparison of CZEXWED with event lists from the wider Central European region shows that Czech and Central European extreme events correspond well with each other.

This study examined the trend in extreme weather event related mortality reported in India during 2001–14 and explored the regional, age and sex differentials in such fatalities. We used age and sex-segregated data on the number of accidental deaths by natural causes released by Government of India under the National Data Sharing and Accessibility Policy. Various extreme weather events were grouped into five broad categories: cold wave, extreme precipitation, heat wave, lightning, and tropical cyclone. During 2001–14, 25% of all accidental deaths due to natural causes happened as a result of extreme weather events. Deaths due to extreme precipitation and tropical cyclones declined over time, whereas increasing trend was observed for lightning, and extreme temperature conditions. Most of the extreme weather event induced deaths were due to lightning, followed by extreme precipitation and temperature extremes. The burden of death was highest in the central part of India. States of Andhra Pradesh, Bihar, Uttar Pradesh, Maharashtra and West Bengal were affected the most by extreme weather events. More males and older population died than their counterparts. Findings suggest that people are adaptive to some extreme weather events such as cold wave and cyclones; whereas adaptation and coping with the heat wave and extreme precipitation seems to be less. Building awareness on the adaptive mechanisms to different extremes and a community-centered alert system can help in reducing fatalities due to extreme weather events.

Radley Horton,1,a Daniel Bader,1,a Yochanan Kushnir,2 Christopher Little,3 Reginald Blake,4 and Cynthia Rosenzweig5 1Columbia University Center for Climate Systems Research, New York, NY. 2Ocean and Climate Physics Department, Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory, Columbia University, Palisades, NY. 3Atmospheric and Environmental Research, Lexington, MA. 4Physics Department, New York City College of Technology, CUNY, Brooklyn, NY. 5Climate Impacts Group, NASA Goddard Institute for Space Studies; Center for Climate Systems Research, Columbia University Earth Institute, New York, NY

It is a perilous time to be a farmer. Across the world, 2015 broke records for unseasonal, unprecedented, and unexpected weather. The combination of El Nino and climate change produced conditions with devastating effects for the agriculture sector around the globe. This article examines the impacts of unseasonal weather on farmers around the world, in losses to yield quality and quantity but also in economic, physical and psychological effects for farmers coping with the “new normal” in weather. It considers regional differences in farmers’ susceptibility to unseasonal weather, and presents the implications of the lack of resiliency of the major crop producers for the future of food security, and by extension, political stability. Finally, it looks at how the international community is addressing this situation, concluding with practical and achievable means for farmers and cooperatives to start to build resiliency to climate change today.

Given the increasing health risks associated with climate change, particular attention is focused on the elderly as a vulnerable group. This study aimed to analyze how these climate extremes impact the health and hospitalization rates of these patients. In this ecological time series study, daily Meteorological and environmental pollutants data for Dezful and hospitalization records for cardiovascular diseases based on International Classification of Diseases, 10th codes were collected from 2013 to 2019. Definitions for heat waves and cold waves were established Based on previous studies in this field. The study utilized a combination of Distributed Lag Nonlinear Models and Quasi Poisson analysis to investigate the association between each definition of cold and heat waves and hospitalization. The results indicate that heat waves are associated with an increased risk of hospital admissions due to cardiovascular disease in individuals over 75 years of age. Additionally, cold waves significantly increase the risk of hospitalization due to cardiovascular disease in individuals aged 65 to 74 years. Specifically, in the section on added effects, the results show that Cold Wave impacts the risk of hospitalization in patients aged 56 to 74 years (added effects: lags of 0, 0–2, 0–6, and 0–13). This study highlights the significant impact of heat and cold waves on the risk of hospitalization for cardiovascular diseases in Dezful. Older adults, especially those over 65, are particularly vulnerable to these climate-related health risks. As climate change progresses, it is essential to implement public health strategies that protect at-risk populations during extreme weather events.

Ecophysiological constraints of Aster tripolium under extreme thermal events impacts: Merging biophysical, biochemical and genetic insights

ABSTRACTThe past two decades of the 20th century and the first of the 21st century have been characterized by global temperature rise and increased frequency of weather‐induced extreme events such as floods, droughts, heavy rainfall, and heat waves. We investigated the heat and the cold waves in the Carpathian Region, an area whose rich biosphere is endangered by extreme events. We used the daily minimum (TN) and maximum (TX) temperature data collected in the framework of the CARPATCLIM project. Such high‐resolution (0.1° × 0.1°) gridded data range from January 1961 to December 2010. In this study, a heat wave occurs when temperature is above the 90th percentile for at least five consecutive days and a cold wave occurs when temperature is below the 10th percentile for at least five consecutive days. The percentiles have been computed over the baseline period 1971–2000. We distinguish between night‐time and daytime events and we discuss heat (and cold) waves considering at least five consecutive night and days with temperature above (below) the selected percentile. For each heat or cold wave event, we assigned duration, severity, and intensity. For these parameters and for frequency, we performed linear trend analysis for the period 1961–2010. The trends have been computed on an annual and seasonal basis and tested for statistical significance. Different spatial patterns of heat and cold waves characterize the Carpathian Region: heat wave events show general increase in all the parameters considered, while cold wave events show a decrease in all the variables West to the Carpathians and an increase North–East to the Carpathians. We also compiled a list of the most relevant heat waves that hit the Carpathian Region from 1961 to 2010: out of seven events, four occurred from 2000 to 2010. Instead, the 1960s and the 1980s have been the decades most hit by severe cold waves.

Climate change represents the greatest threat to human health, with both direct and indirect effects.  The direct increase of deaths, due to extreme weather and climate events, the emergence and spread of infectious diseases related to changing temperature, habitat and precipitation patterns, and eventually climate shocks and growing stress and anxiety that are affecting mental health. Moreover, extreme weather events cause issues on our health systems and infrastructures, reducing capacity to provide health coverage.   An increasing awareness on adverse effects of climate change is leading to an update of the EU policy framework through the introduction of  the EU Green Deal, a ‘package’ of directive, policies and strategies to ensure planning, monitoring and reporting of progress towards responsive climate adaptation and climate neutrality; however, a clear demonstration of the health-relevant outcomes of climate policies and actions is still missing, and current policies do not properly consider human health protection.   The study is developed within the Horizon Europe-funded project TRIGGER, aimed at deepening the understanding of the linkage between climate change and health and advancing society uptake at policy level.  Starting from mapping and screening the existing climate-related policies and measures at European level, this study assesses the integration of health in such documents. Specifically, through a keyword-based content analysis, it evaluates the integration of health-relevant considerations in 11 European plans and strategies, referring to climate mitigation and adaptation, environmental sustainability and biodiversity conservation. To establish to what extent they consider the direct and indirect impacts of climate change on human health, a qualitative assessment of health integration is performed, exploring also, when available, cost-benefits estimation to possible health impacts and health-related indicators developed.   The results show that extreme events, such as heat waves and droughts, heavy precipitation and flooding, are the climate-related hazards mostly mentioned in relation to health, even though the policy integration remains limited. Indeed, just few policies contain references to physical health impacts determined by climate change, such as infectious and vector borne diseases, injuries from extreme weather events and cardiovascular and respiratory diseases, while social and mental health effects are even less considered.    

Extreme weather events such as persistent high temperatures, heavy rains or sudden cold waves in Shanxi Province in China have brought great losses and disasters to people’s production and life. It is of great practical significance to study the temporal and spatial distribution characteristics of extreme weather events and the circulation background field. We selected daily high temperature data (≥35°C), daily minimum temperature data and daily precipitation data (≥50 mm) from 109 meteorological stations in Shanxi Province, China from 1981 to 2010, then set the period in which the temperature is ≥35°C for more than 3 days as a high temperature extreme weather event, define the station in which 24 hour cumulative precipitation is ≥50 mm precipitation on a certain day (20 - 20 hours, Beijing time) as a rainstorm weather, and determine the cold air activity with daily minimum temperature dropped by more than 8°C for 24 hours, or decreased by 10°C for 48 h, and a daily minimum temperature of ≤4°C as a cold weather process. We statistically analyze the temporal and spatial characteristics and trends of high temperature, heavy rain and cold weather and the circulation background field. We count the number of extreme weather events such as persistent high temperatures, heavy rains and cold weather frosts in Shanxi, and analyze the temporal and spatial distribution characteristics, trends and general circulation background of extreme weather events. We analyze and find out the common features of the large-scale circulation background field in various extreme weather events. Through the study of the temporal and spatial distribution characteristics of extreme weather events in Shanxi, including persistent high temperature, heavy rain or sudden cold wave frost weather, we summarize the large-scale circulation characteristics of such extreme weather events. It will provide some reference for future related weather forecasting.