Climate Change...facts:
- The top 10 warmest years recorded globally have all occurred
during the last 12 years.
- The planet has warmed 0.74°C since the beginning of the 20th
century, and this trend is set to continue with predicted rises of between
1.8°C and 4°C by 2100.
...& health:
- An increase in heat related deaths predicted to reach 20,000 a
year in the UK
by 2050 due to more severe heatwaves.
- A Foresight report predicted that by 2080 over 3 million people
could be at risk from flooding resulting in increased injures and
infectious.
- cases of skin
cancer and cataracts are likely to increase by 5,000 and 2,000 per year
respectively by 2050
- cases of food poisoning could increase by 10,000 per year. With
the cost of treatment and to the economy estimated to be around £79 to
£220 per case, the additional cost to the economy could reach up to £2
million annually.
- a population
under climatic stress is more likely to be prone to mental health problems
– with anxiety
and depression linked to physical and economic insecurity
- Respiratory disease, insect-borne disease and food poisoning
are also expected to increase.
...& the built environment
- In addition to rising fuel prices, which may render selected
buildings uneconomic to operate in the future, a number of buildings are
at risk of being uninhabitable in summer if the climate develops as
predicted under a high global emission scenario.
- Individual areas may experience significant impacts and
potential disruption to delivery of services arising from predicted
climate change impacts on infrastructure.
- There is likely to be an increase in the urban heat island,
particularly in summer months.
