Drivers of self-reported heat stress in the Australian labour force

Vulnerability of Australia to heatwaves: A systematic review on influencing factors, impacts, and mitigation options

BACKGROUND

Heatwaves have received major attention globally due to their detrimental effects on human health and the environment. The frequency, duration, and severity of heatwaves have increased recently due to changes in climatic conditions, anthropogenic forcing, and rapid urbanization. Australia is highly vulnerable to this hazard. Although there have been an increasing number of studies conducted in Australia related to the heatwave phenomena, a systematic review of heatwave vulnerability has rarely been reported in the literature.

OBJECTIVES

This study aims to provide a systematic and overarching review of the different components of heatwave vulnerability (e.g., exposure, sensitivity, and adaptive capacity) in Australia.

METHODS

A systematic review was conducted using the PRISMA protocol. Peer-reviewed English language articles published between January 2000 and December 2021 were selected using a combination of search keywords in Web of Science, Scopus, and PubMed. Articles were critically analyzed based on three specific heatwave vulnerability components: exposure, sensitivity, and adaptive capacity.

RESULTS AND DISCUSSION

A total of 107 articles meeting all search criteria were chosen. Although there has been an increasing trend of heat-related studies in Australia, most of these studies have concentrated on exposure and adaptive capacity components. Evidence suggests that the frequency, severity, and duration of heatwaves in Australian cities has been increasing, and that this is likely to continue under current climate change scenarios. This study noted that heatwave vulnerability is associated with geographical and climatic factors, space, time, socioeconomic and demographic factors, as well as the physiological condition of people. Various heat mitigation and adaptation measures implemented around the globe have proven to be efficient in reducing the impacts of heatwaves.

CONCLUSION

This study provides increased clarity regarding the various drivers of heatwave vulnerability in Australia. Such knowledge is crucial in informing extreme heat adaptation and mitigation planning.

The driving influences of human perception to extreme heat: A scoping review

Prior research demonstrates a link between heat risk perception and population response to a heat warning. Communicating a precise and understandable definition of "heat" or "heatwaves" can affect how a population perceives and responds to extreme heat. Still, little is known about how heat perception affects behavior changes to heat and heat communication across diverse populations. This scoping review aims to identify and describe the main themes and findings of recent heat perception research globally and map critical research gaps and priorities for future studies. Results revealed risk perception influences a person's exposure to and behavioral response to excessive heat. Risk perception varied geographically along the rural-urban continuum and was typically higher among vulnerable subgroups, including populations who were low-income, minority, and in poor health. A more integrated approach to refining risk communication strategies that result in a behavioral change and incorporates the individual, social, and cultural components of impactful group-based or community-wide interventions is needed. Research employing longitudinal or quasi-experimental designs and advanced statistical techniques are required to tease apart the independent and interacting factors that causally influence risk communication, heat perception, and adaptive behaviors. We advance a framework to conceptualize the structural, environmental, personal, and social drivers of population heat risk perception and how they interact to influence heat perception and adaptive behaviors. Our findings map future research priorities needed for heat perception and a framework to drive future research design.

Developing a new index for evaluating physiological safety in high temperature weather based on entropy-TOPSIS model - A case of sanitation worker

OBJECTIVES

Sanitation workers are at high-risk of suffering from heat-related illnesses in high temperature weather. However, some well-known heat stress indexes have limitations in practical application. This paper aims to establish a new index-comprehensive physiological index (CPI) for evaluating physiological safety.

METHODS

Firstly, the real-time weights of physiological parameters are obtained by entropy method. Secondly, the new index- CPI is established based on the distance between the measured values and the ideal solutions by the technique for order of preference by similarity to ideal solution (TOPSIS). Then the reasonability of CPI is verified. Finally, the safety range of the CPI is determined.

RESULTS

The mean skin temperature (MST), systolic blood pressure (SBP) and diastolic blood pressure (DBP) of the sanitation workers are greatly affected by the high temperature. The weight range of the MST, tympanic temperature, SBP, DBP and heart rate is 0.155-0.274, 0.146-0.200, 0.173-0.399, 0.150-0.298 and 0.146-0.200, respectively. And the weights of MST, SBP and DBP account for a relatively large proportion, ranging from 60.1% to 70.9%. The danger range of the CPI is (0, 0.6] while the safety range of the CPI is (0.6, 1.0].

CONCLUSIONS

The CPI can provide simple and easily-measured real-time monitoring of the physiological status. It has the potential to be a practical index for guaranteeing occupational health for sanitation workers in summer.

Using a Qualitative Phenomenological Approach to Inform the Etiology and Prevention of Occupational Heat-Related Injuries in Australia

Epidemiological evidence has shown an association between exposure to high temperatures and occupational injuries, an issue gaining importance with environmental change. The aim of this study was to better understand contributing risk factors and preventive actions based on personal experiences. Interviews were conducted with 21 workers from five Australian states using a critical phenomenological approach to capture the lived experiences of participants, whilst exploring contextual factors that surround these experiences. Two case studies are presented: a cerebrovascular injury and injuries among seasonal horticulture workers. Other accounts of heat-related injuries and heat stress are also presented. Risk factors were classified as individual, interpersonal and organizational. In terms of prevention, participants recommended greater awareness of heat risks and peer-support for co-workers. Adding value to current evidence, we have provided new insights into the etiology of the health consequences of workplace heat exposure with workers identifying a range of influencing factors, prevention measures and adaptation strategies. Underpinning the importance of these are future climate change scenarios, suggesting that extended hot seasons will lead to increasing numbers of workers at risk of heat-stress and associated occupational injuries.

Socio-Economic Impact of and Adaptation to Extreme Heat and Cold of Farmers in the Food Bowl of Nepal

Farmers worldwide have to deal with increasing climate variability and weather extremes. Most of the previous research has focused on impacts on agricultural production, but little is known about the related social and economic impacts on farmers. In this study, we investigated the social and economic impact of extreme weather events (EWE) on farmers in Nepal, and explored how they coped with and adapted to heat waves and cold spells between 2012 and 2017. To address these aims, we conducted a survey of 350 farms randomly selected from the Bardiya and Banke districts of the Terai lowlands of Nepal. They were specifically asked to rate the impacts of extreme temperatures, as well as their effect on labour productivity and collective farmer health, and the detailed preventative measures they had implemented. About 84% of the farmers self-reported moderate or severe heat stress during the last five years, and about 85%, moderate or severe cold stress. Likewise, the majority of respondents reported that both farmer health and labour productivity had been compromised by EWEs. Productivity loss had a strong association with the perceived levels of heat and cold stress, which, in turn, were more likely to be reported by farmers with previous EWE experience. Potentially due to the increased care required during EWEs, those farmers with livestock reported increased heat and cold stress, as, surprisingly, did those who had implemented adaptation measures. Farmers seemed to be less prepared for potential threats of cold spells than heat waves, and therefore less likely to adopt coping strategies, since these are a recent phenomenon. This study identified some limitations. The cross sectional and self-reported data, as a common source of information to estimate health impact, level of heat/cold stress and labour productivity loss. Community-based education/community engagement programs could be developed to facilitate proactive adaptation.

Perceptions of climate change and occupational heat stress risks and adaptation strategies of mining workers in Ghana

Heavy physical workload for long hours coupled with increasing workplace heat exposure due to rising temperatures stemming from climate change, especially where there are inadequate prevention and control policies, adversely affect workers' health and safety, productive capacity and social well-being. However, variations in workers' concerns and awareness of occupational heat stress and climate change risks impede the effectiveness of heat stress management. A mixed method approach was used to assess climate change perceptions and occupational heat stress risks and adaptation strategies of Ghanaian mining workers. Questionnaires and focus group discussions were used to collect data from 320 respondents. Quantitative and qualitative approaches were used for data analysis. Workers' climate change risk perception, as confirmed by trends in climate data, was reasonable, but concerns about climate change effects and workplace heat exposure risks varied significantly across types of mining activity (p < 0.001). Workers experienced heat-related morbidities, but the variation in heat-related morbidity experiences across the type of mining activity was not significant. However, the type of heat-related morbidities experienced by workers differed across the type of mining activity (p < 0.001). Workers' awareness of occupational heat stress prevention and control was adequate. The disparities in workers' awareness and use of the prevention and control measures significantly differed across the type of mining activity (p < 0.001). Occupational heat stress prevention activities should focus on workers, and a concerted effort must be made to promote workers' adaptive capacity and inform policy decisions.

Climate change and occupational heat stress risks and adaptation strategies of mining workers: Perspectives of supervisors and other stakeholders in Ghana

Increasing air temperatures as a result of climate change are worsening the impact of heat exposure on working populations, including mining workers, who are at risk of suffering heat-related illnesses, injury and death. However, inadequate awareness of climate change-related occupational heat stress risks and adaptation strategies have been shown to render occupational heat stress management ineffective. A concurrent mixed-methods approach was used to assess the perceptions of climate change and occupational heat stress risks and adaptation strategies of mining workers among supervisory personnel and other stakeholders in Ghana. Questionnaires and interviews were used to elicit data from 19 respondents. Data were processed and interpreted using descriptive statistics, chi-square and Fisher's exact tests, and thematic analysis. Supervisors' climate change risks perception was adequate, and their concern about workplace heat exposure risks was moderate. Mining workers' occupational heat stress risks experiences were linked to heat-related illness and minor injuries. Mining workers' adaptation strategies included water intake, use of cooling mechanisms, work-break practices, and clothing use. The related differences in job experience in the distribution of climate change risk perception and occupational heat stress risk experiences, and the difference in educational attainment in the distribution of adaptation strategies of occupational heat stress were significant (p < 0.05). Hence, an effective workplace heat management policy requires adequate understanding of occupational heat stress risks and adaptation policies and continued education and training for mining workers.

Projection of temperature-related mortality due to cardiovascular disease in beijing under different climate change, population, and adaptation scenarios

Human health faces unprecedented challenges caused by climate change. Thus, studies of the effect of temperature change on total mortality have been conducted in numerous countries. However, few of those studies focused on temperature-related mortality due to cardiovascular disease (CVD) or considered future population changes and adaptation to climate change. We present herein a projection of temperature-related mortality due to CVD under different climate change, population, and adaptation scenarios in Beijing, a megacity in China. To this end, 19 global circulation models (GCMs), 3 representative concentration pathways (RCPs), 3 socioeconomic pathways, together with generalized linear models and distributed lag non-linear models, were used to project future temperature-related CVD mortality during periods centered around the years 2050 and 2070. The number of temperature-related CVD deaths in Beijing is projected to increase by 3.5-10.2% under different RCP scenarios compared with that during the baseline period. Using the same GCM, the future daily maximum temperatures projected using the RCP2.6, RCP4.5, and RCP8.5 scenarios showed a gradually increasing trend. When population change is considered, the annual rate of increase in temperature-related CVD deaths was up to fivefold greater than that under no-population-change scenarios. The decrease in the number of cold-related deaths did not compensate for the increase in that of heat-related deaths, leading to a general increase in the number of temperature-related deaths due to CVD in Beijing. In addition, adaptation to climate change may enhance rather than ameliorate the effect of climate change, as the increase in cold-related CVD mortality greater than the decrease in heat-related CVD mortality in the adaptation scenarios will result in an increase in the total number of temperature-related CVD mortalities.