Heat stress and equity
Boston - Netherlands June 23, 2016
Eddy Moors, Cor Jacobs, Judith Klostermann, Tanya Singh Professor Water and Climate, VU University Amsterdam Head Climate Change and Adaptive Land and Water Management, Alterra-Wageningen UR
Equity and climate adaptation
IPCC 2014*:
! Households with low socioeconomic status are most vulnerable to climate hazards
! Cities often feature zones of concentrated disadvantage ● Lack of institutional capacities for
health care, education, employment
● Poor quality housing
● Social isolation
2 *: http://www.ipcc.ch/pdf/assessment-report/ar5/wg2/WGIIAR5-Chap11_FINAL.pdf
Thermal comfort: more than just temperature
3
" Temperature
" Humidity
" Windspeed
" Radiation
Environmental factors: plus :
" Acclimatization, adaptation
" Physiological factors (activity, condition, age,…)
" Psychological factors (I like green, blue… )
" Socio-cultural factors (e.g., behaviour)
Photograph: The Guardian
Thermal comfort is a “human scale” issue (Example: local effects of shading in Arnhem, NL)
Shade: Tair 28.9°C, PET 27°C Sun: Tair 29.4°C, PET 43°C
Heat in Bergpolder-Zuid (Climate Proof Cities: Rotterdam, the Netherlands)
! Considered disadvantaged and in need of socio-economic and physical improvement
! Public outdoor spaces perceived as unpleasant and uncomfortable
! Old, densely populated, vulnerable to heat
5
Heat in Bergpolder Zuid (Climate Proof Cities: Rotterdam, the Netherlands)
! Vulnerability assessment ● Heat ● Social index ● Energy label ● Elderly
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! Sketch workshop ● Interactive ● Virtually all stakeholders
represented, including residents
Heat in poor neighbourhoods in South Asia
! Aimed at thermal comfort (not just the ‘Heat Island’)
! Find affordable alternatives to air conditioning
! Bottom-up: involve people ● Understand living conditions
● Heat perception
● Indoor measurements
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From neighbourhood... (Delhi, 18 May 2016, evening transect)
Posh R1 SR R2 R3 R4
Temperature (ºC) or Heat Index
º
C o
r In
dex
valu
e
42.5
40.0
37.5
35.0
32.5
HI Category 32-40 Extreme caution
41-54 Danger
Delhi:
Mean diurnal varia,on of the indoor temperature in 41 houses, 15-‐17 April 2016
Indoor temperature
0 5 10 15 20
Time of day
Tem
pera
ture
(°C
)
2
5 3
0 3
5 4
0 4
5
15-16 April 2016
...to dwelling