Abstract
Global warming with increasing weather extremes, like heat events, is enhancing impacts to public health. This essay focuses on unusual extreme summer heat extremes occurring in Germany at higher frequency, longer duration, and with new temperature records. Large areas of the country are affected, particularly urban settlements, where about 77% of the population lives, which are exposed to multiple inner-city threats, such as urban heat islands. Because harm to public health is directly released by high ambient air temperatures, local and national studies on heat-related morbidity and mortality indicate that vulnerable groups such as the elderly population are predominantly threatened with heat-related health problems. After the severe mortality impacts of the extreme summer heat 2003 in Europe, in 2008, Germany took up the National Adaptation Strategy on Climate Change to tackle and manage the impacts of weather extremes, for example to protect people’s health against heat. Public health systems and services need to be better prepared to improve resilience to the effects of extreme heat events, e.g., by implementing heat health action plans. Both climate protection as well as adaptation are necessary in order to be able to respond as adequate as possible to the challenges posed by climate change.
Highlights
Emerging literature suggests that global warming causes increasing weather extremes resulting in enhanced health risks for the current and future global population [1]
Concerns of increasing weather extremes induced by climate change are highlighted e.g., by the business-as-usual emission scenario, which projected for Germany an increase of the average temperature up to 1.3 ◦ C by 2050 and 3.7 ◦ C by 2100 compared to the period 1971–2000 [12]
The essay provides discussion on the public health implications of intensifying heat events, on actions initiated by the government to support science investigations as well as administrative instruments, and on short- and long-term measures, such as heat health warning system and heat health action plan, needed to mitigate adverse heat health impacts and to improve public health protection
Summary
Emerging literature suggests that global warming causes increasing weather extremes resulting in enhanced health risks for the current and future global population [1]. Climate change affects the environment and public health by direct impacts of weather extremes, such as heat, droughts, fires, and floods, as well as indirect effects like vector- and waterborne diseases even inducing changes in allergens, biodiversity, and ecosystems [2,3]. Concerns of increasing weather extremes induced by climate change are highlighted e.g., by the business-as-usual emission scenario, which projected for Germany an increase of the average temperature up to 1.3 ◦ C by 2050 and 3.7 ◦ C by 2100 compared to the period 1971–2000 [12]. This essay examines the trends of the increase of recent heat extremes in the 21st century and heat-related health impact studies in Germany. The essay provides discussion on the public health implications of intensifying heat events, on actions initiated by the government to support science investigations as well as administrative instruments, and on short- and long-term measures, such as heat health warning system and heat health action plan, needed to mitigate adverse heat health impacts and to improve public health protection
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