The heatwave across Europe over the last month, with temperatures reaching 40 C and more, had a big impact and seems consistent with what might expect from climate change. The record-breaking temperatures recorded over Europe would have been ‘virtually impossible’ 50 years ago, according to the World Weather Attribution service, with climate change being ‘unequivocally to blame’.
It certainly is worrying, with the excess death statistics across Europe rising- including over 1000 in initial reports from France and up to 900 reported in Spain, all this being coupled with huge economic disruption costs. It’s still continuing as I write. And we are likely to see more regularly repeated extreme heatwave episodes like in the years ahead, with even higher peak temperatures – and with the impacts of rising heat in some parts of the word already being much more severe than in Europe. In India especially.
In addition, there are the other impacts of global climate change- all which are likely to get worse. Depending on global location, we can also expect more droughts, sea level rises, floods, storms, and wild fires, all with associated health and safety issues, on, eventually, almost a biblical scale- if nothing is done. Despite Trump’s denials, even in America - which has not escaped the recent heat wave either.
What can be done? We have to stop burning fossil fuels and accelerate renewable uptake. However, even if we all go full out with renewables we still will have to face the impact of emissions already made from the remaining fossil fuel power plants. So, adaptation to climate change is important, even if it’s not a solution. For example, air conditioners use power, so since, in the UK and elsewhere, some of that is still produced using fossil fuels, they just add to the problem. But we can start to make changes, for example in building design. For simple starters, how about adding sun shade shutters to UK windows, as is common on the continent?
Prof Susan Roaf claims that ‘most of the growth in air-conditioning emissions is generated by large glass buildings that are proliferating in cities around the world’, and she looks to better approaches avoiding mechanical cooling and high-rise buildings. We also need to think about heat island effects and urban design generally. There are some good examples of building design suited to high temperatures in the architectural legacy of the Middle East and Asia.
Sadly, the recent UK heat wave produced some throw-back rhetoric. Although few were actually saying ban air conditioning, there may be a need for some planning reform, but Conservative Party Energy shadow Claire Coutinho was quoted by the Telegraph as saying that ‘blocking air con because it uses too much energy' is an anti-growth mindset that must be rejected. Cheap, abundant energy is the foundation of prosperity.’ She is a great one for nuclear, but not only is that far from cheap, it can also be problematic during heat waves, as France has found.
Renewables by contrast are getting very cheap, and PV solar is very well matched in availability terms of running day time air conditioning units, although solar cell efficiency is reduced at high temperatures. Floating solar arrays on reservoirs and lakes are better in that regards, with the water providing cooling - and they can also help reduce water evaporation. Globally, PV solar is doing very well at present, roaring ahead in Asia, and renewables generally look quite well placed to expand rapidly in most places including Europe, as long that is support is not diverted into arguably less credible and more costly options like nuclear and carbon capture. If that can be avoided, as I noted in earlier posts, then renewables, led by wind and solar, and backed up by energy storage and demand management, look like the best way ahead to cut emissions fast and at reasonable cost.
Although there are debates about this and which options to choose, the global consensus on the need for action on climate is clear. But it is not complete. For example US, Russia, Iran and Saudi Arabia have opposed the recent UN backing for new climate action measures. Moreover, while some say we are not doing enough and moving much too slowly, perversely we can also expect more climate change denial, like this from the USA, in response to a Vatican newspaper claim. That response was relayed by a facebook climate debate site, which does at least carry some counter views. But the endless climate contrarian debate, and the struggle to find sensible answers, goes on. Google Gemini offered this insight on climate change denial. It’s going to be with us for a while it seems…as Rome, and the rest of us, burn!
However, as episodes like the recent heatwave continue in the West and also crucially in China, maybe ideas will gradually change. Certainly this one got plenty of media attention, although, as Carbon Brief noted in its excellent overview, there were arguably too many pictures of happy kids playing on beaches and not enough coverage of the science and politics of climate change. It reported that a group of climate scientists wrote to senior media editors urging them to ‘use their power to inform public audiences of the scientific links between extreme weather, climate change and net-zero’. But then the media has been also pushing ads for mini air conditioning units, as well as talking up small balcony solar units. Maybe the world will change in odd ways…but then again see this GB News interview. There is a way to go still…
*As I noted in a previous post, I am still continuing with this weekly post, despite the closure of the long running 10k word Renew bimonthly newsletter. In parallel, I will still be producing a 5-6k words bimonthly Renew on Line. But the July- Aug edition of the full Renew, issue 282 (just now out), will be its last. Thanks are due to Tam Dougan who used to help sort it. Now free of that chore, she says she might soon have a look in her Thoughts from Elsewhere blog at buildings and heat issues- one of her fortes.
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