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Climate newsletter |
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Spotlight on 'health in a changing climate' |
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On 01 June, the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) announced the evolution of the Heat Health Alert Service in England. These alerts focus specifically on the health impacts that high temperatures could have on the health of vulnerable members of society and are issued in collaboration with the Met Office. These health-focused alerts work alongside the Met Office’s National Severe Weather Warning Service, which considers all impacts that severe weather could have on the UK.
Dr Agostinho Sousa, Head of Extreme Events and Health Protection at UKHSA, said: “Last year saw record high temperatures across England and evidence shows that heatwaves are likely to occur more often, be more intense and last longer in the years and decades ahead. It is important we are able to quantify the likely impacts of these heatwaves before they arrive to prevent illness and reduce the number of deaths.”
Will Lang, Head of Situational Awareness at the Met Office, said: “The effects of human-induced climate change are already being felt on UK summers with an increase in the frequency, duration, and intensity of extreme heat events over recent decades and temperatures in excess of 40°C recorded for the first time last summer.”
Keeping cool is particularly problematic when the heat is ‘humid’. This is when the air contains lots of water vapour. High humidity makes it very hard for sweat to evaporate from our bodies which means that we cannot cool down. For people working outside or in overheating buildings, especially where the work is physically demanding, humid heat is a big problem. The world is getting warmer, and many places are also seeing increases in water vapour and the resulting humidity.
The distinction between humid heat and dry heat is a relatively new area of research. This blog post from earlier this year shares some of the work being done by the Weather and Climate Science for Services Partnership (WCSSP) programme, supported by the UK Government’s Newton Fund.
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 On 24 May, we hosted a webinar on the co-benefits of climate change action. Alongside the University of Leeds, Ricardo Energy & Environment/the UK Department for Energy Security and Net Zero, and Belfast City Council, we discussed the co-benefits of climate action including those on health and wellbeing. In addition to science and policy perspectives, we also heard about how co-benefits are already being realised in some communities.
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With the hayfever season in full swing, we take a look back at a recent blog post which explores research into the effect of a changing climate on pollen in the UK.
Clean air is essential for our health, and the co-benefits of clean air measures are also good for our wellbeing as well as being good for the planet. The World Health Organization and the UK Government recognise air pollution as the largest environmental health risk we face today, leading to around 36,000 deaths per year in the UK.
The Clean Air programme is jointly delivered by the Natural Environment Research Council (NERC) and the Met Office, aiming to proactively tackle the air quality challenges facing us all today.
Clean Air Day, the UK’s largest campaign on air pollution, promotes a positive shift in public knowledge and action. The day is an opportunity to learn more about air pollution, share information, and make our air cleaner and healthier for everyone.
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On 08 June, the US National Ocean and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) declared that El Niño conditions are present. There has been increasing confidence that levels of warming in the Pacific Ocean would lead to this announcement.
"It's ramping up now, there have been signs in our predictions for several months, but it's really looking like it will peak at the end of this year in terms of its intensity," said Adam Scaife, head of long-range predictions at the Met Office.
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On 01 June, we announced a joint Met Office and Natural Environment Research Council (NERC) research programme which aims to improve forecasting of extreme weather, helping the UK better manage weather related risk.
Stephen Belcher, Chief of Science and Technology at the Met Office said: “As our climate changes and we see more frequent spells of severe weather, it is crucial that we constantly evolve and innovate to provide the most accurate forecasts and climate projections possible. Providing better forecasts that help the UK to build in resilience to our evolving climate is a priority for the Met Office. The science of representing turbulence in our weather and climate models is a fundamental and exciting challenge, it is fantastic to form a partnership with NERC to make progress in this area.”
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The earth has warmed by approximately 1.1°C compared to pre-industrial times, and we are already seeing impacts from this in all parts of the world. Even if all emissions stopped today, we cannot avoid further impacts. For example, sea level rise takes many years to respond to increasing global temperatures and we will therefore see our seas rise for many years to come.
Adaptation is therefore critical for our resilience to climate change. In this webinar on Wednesday 19 July from 14:00-15:00 BST, we will explore the importance of taking an evidence-based approach to adaptation.
Further details will be available shortly, but you can already register.
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