of Heat-sensitive properties in London The report, commissioned by the Mayor of London to inform the city’s plans for climate change, follows news earlier this month that 2023 was the hottest year on record.
According to the report, the areas of London with the highest heat risk to homes were Hackney, Tower Hamlets, Islington and Camden.
The study was published alongside an interim report by the independent London Climate Resilience Review on the types of buildings most affected.
It identifies “critical assets” such as schools, hospitals, care homes and residential buildings that will be most affected by a period of high temperatures in the capital, and aims to:[London boroughs can] Prioritize climate change intervention and adaptation.
Vulnerable areas are identified using UHeat, a digital tool developed by Arup. UHeat combines satellite imagery and open-source climate data to analyze urban heat island (UHI) hotspots across large areas of cities and identify specific buildings and materials contributing to them.
Arup said the London findings revealed “a direct correlation between higher heat risk and areas of greater socio-economic vulnerability”.
Mr Arup said that these inner-city boroughs identified above “tend to have a higher proportion of flats than outer London boroughs, which have a higher proportion of residential buildings, and are considered to be more vulnerable to overheating. “and vulnerable to intensifying disasters.” His UHI effect on central London.
The outer London boroughs, including Bromley, Havering and Hillingdon, had the lowest heat risk to homes.
Hospitals and schools in Hackney, Tower Hamlets and Islington are also among the areas most at risk from the impact of the UHI, particularly when combined with social vulnerability, with ‘risks increasing towards central and east London. ” Arup found.
The most vulnerable hospitals are concentrated in the Middle East, including Barts Health NHS Trust, Barking Havering and Redbridge University Hospitals NHS Trust, Homerton University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, Whittington Health NHS Foundation Trust and University College.・London Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust was included.
shirley rodriguez, dDeputy Mayor for Environment and Energy, Greater London Authority (GLA); He said it was “unacceptable” that people living in London’s most deprived areas were the most vulnerable to overheating.
He added: “We’ve known for some time that London is getting hotter and hotter, and we urgently need to future-proof the capital against the effects of climate change.”
“Mayors commissioned this report to prioritize the areas and public services most in need of adaptation in the face of extreme heat.”
Arup said the report “highlights the opportunity to overlay these heat impact datasets with other ongoing climate adaptation programs, such as flood and drought assessments.”
Damien MacLeod, director at Arup, said: “These findings will inform GLA work and wider policy-making so that meaningful interventions can be put in place to protect Londoners in buildings most at risk of overheating. “It is extremely important to provide this.”
“At the same time, London needs a holistic approach to reducing the impact of climate change’s various impacts.”
Last September, AJ aired a three-part miniseries. Coping with heatis exploring design solutions for the heating climate after scientists predicted temperatures could rise by 30% on “uncomfortably hot” days in the UK.
‘This research can inform broader policy development and action planning. ”
Q&A with Arup Associate Dimple Rana, Key Report Contributor and Project Manager
How was the heat vulnerability of different parts of London assessed?
We combined heat hazard exposure and heat vulnerability to determine the risk of heat impacts for different types of real estate, including schools, hospitals, nursing homes, and residential areas.
To obtain vulnerabilities, we combined datasets related to both thermal and socio-economic vulnerabilities of properties. This approach ensured that we captured areas where people may be concentrated on heat-sensitive land. The most vulnerable groups include the elderly, the young, or those with no income.
If we had data about the property, we used the factors that make a building more susceptible to overheating. For example, schools considered overcrowding and proximity to green and blue spaces. For heat exposure, we used Arup’s UHeat tool to get what kind of heat intensity is experienced across London.
What is causing London’s particularly heat-sensitive urban ‘hotspots’?
The purpose of this study was to provide an overview of the vulnerability to overheating across all building stocks in a specific setting. Hotspots on the map were found in areas that scored high in terms of vulnerability for characteristic factors such as operable windows, glazing ratio, fabric (airtightness and insulation), and location.
We found that properties closer to central London had higher property vulnerabilities, as well as higher socio-economic vulnerabilities and higher heat damage as a result of increased urban heat intensity.
What steps need to be taken to combat urban heat vulnerability in London’s ‘hotspots’?
Insights from this research can inform broader policy development and action planning from a wide range of stakeholders, including schools, private care home operators, social housing and health providers, and private homeowners. Masu. Promoting a whole systems approach will enable a holistic and effective response to the complex problem of thermal vulnerability in urban environments.
Our recommendations include both immediate and long-term actions, including:
- Stakeholder engagement
- Public awareness campaign
- Comprehensive investigation and monitoring
- Developing and implementing adaptive solutions
- Overlay maps with other climate hazards
- Considering future trends
- Develop the dataset further
- Extensions to other property types and settings