READING and Slough are among 30 areas in the UK most at risk to suffering from a heatwave, data reveals.
Birmingham was the local authority most at risk of being vulnerable to extreme temperatures, according to new research by Manchester University and environmnet campaigners Friends of the Earth (FoE).
The research identified high-risk neighbourhoods for heat and then assessed more than 40 factors that would make the communities there vulnerable.
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Reading and Slough both appeared in the top 30 list, as well as Bristol, Southampton, Peterborough and Luton.
Factors such as neighbourhoods with a high proportion of elderly people or toddlers are therefore more vulnerable, as well as neighbourhoods which are less green tend to be hotter, and have fewer green spaces in which to shelter.
The research also suggests that even if global warming is limited to 1.5°C, more than 3,000 of the most vulnerable neighbourhoods – totalling more than six million people – will be exposed to ‘very hot weather’ of 27.5°C for five or more days during the summer months.
Mike Childs, head of research at Friends of the Earth, said: “Extreme heatwaves and health alerts like we’re seeing this week, will become much more frequent and severe due to climate change. To prevent the most dangerous scenarios becoming a reality, all countries, including the UK, must make greater efforts to prevent runaway climate breakdown.
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“Suggestions by some politicians that the UK should dial back on climate goals are short-sighted and reckless. People on the frontlines of the climate crisis in the UK and overseas are already being hit by its impacts, despite being the least responsible. We need governments to double-down on cutting emissions and providing funding for climate adaptation programmes, such as planting street trees.”
Top 30 areas in England at highest risk
- Birmingham 210
- Newham 154
- Tower Hamlets 117
- Hackney 111
- Nottingham 101
- Southwark 91
- Leicester 85
- Enfield 81
- Ealing 79
- Haringey 79
- Waltham Forest 75
- Lambeth 72
- Brent 71
- Coventry 69
- Bristol, City of 68
- Peterborough 61
- Croydon 60
- Barking and Dagenham 59
- Lewisham 57
- Islington 47
- Southampton 46
- Luton 45
- Greenwich 44
- West Northamptonshire 44
- Hounslow 41
- Wandsworth 38
- Westminster 34
- Slough 32
- Reading 29
- Camden 28
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