Extreme low air temperature and reduced moisture jointly inhibit respiration in alpine grassland on the Qinghai-Tibetan Plateau

Alpine grassland is the main vegetation on the Qinghai-Tibetan Plateau (QTP) and exhibits high sensitivity to extreme weather events. With global warming, extreme weather events are projected to become more frequent on the QTP. However, the impact of these extreme weather events on the carbon cycle of alpine grassland remains unclear. The long-term in-situ carbon fluxes data was collected from 2013 to 2022 at an alpine grassland site to examine the impact of extreme low air temperature (ELT) and reduced moisture (including air and soil) on carbon fluxes during the growing season. Our findings indicated that a significant increase in net ecosystem production (NEP) after 2019, with the average NEP increasing from 278.91 ± 43.27 g C m-2 year-1 during 2013-2018 to 415.45 ± 45.29 g C m-2 year-1 during 2019-2022. The ecosystem carbon use efficiency (CUE) increased from 0.38 ± 0.06 during 2013-2018 to 0.62 ± 0.11 during 2019-2022. By combining concurrently measured environmental factors and remote sensing data, we identified the factors responsible for the abrupt change in the NEP after 2019. This phenomenon was caused by an abrupt decrease in ecosystem respiration (Reco) after 2019, which resulted from the inhibition imposed by ELT and reduced moisture. In contrast, gross primary production (GPP) remained stable from 2013 to 2022, which was confirmed by the remotely sensed vegetation index. This study highlights that combined extreme weather events associated with climate change can significantly impact the NEP of alpine grassland, potentially affecting different carbon fluxes at different rates. These findings provide new insights into the mechanisms governing the carbon cycle of alpine grassland.

[Heat and heavy rain prevention measures in daycare centres and care facilities: an evaluation of risk perception, communication and information materials]

BACKGROUND AND AIM

Heat and heavy rain can have negative health impacts for people in Germany. Vulnerable groups in particular, such as children and the elderly, are at increased risk and require special precautions. This paper examines how employers of the municipal administration and facilitating organisations perceive the risk of heat and heavy rain for daycare centres and care facilities, and to what extent an exchange takes place between the municipal level and the facilities. In addition, specially developed information materials with recommendations for action for adapting to heat and heavy rain that are aimed at such facilities were evaluated.

METHODS

In the summer of 2021, we conducted a quantitative survey. A total of 333 respondents from municipal administrations, facilitating organisations and institutions participated. Descriptive analyses and ANOVAs were conducted.

RESULTS

Risk perception and adaptation knowledge concerning heat was perceived higher than concerning heavy rain. The intention to support institutions in finding measures for adaptation was also higher with regard to heat. The majority of interviewees from municipal administrations and institutions communicated with institutions through various channels on different topics including the natural hazards mentioned. The information material was evaluated positively.

DISCUSSION

This article shows that facilities are seen as very affected by heat waves. Awareness towards heavy rainfall needs to be raised. The feedback on the information material clearly shows a high need in this area.

Assessment of sanitation infrastructure resilience to extreme rainfall and flooding: Evidence from an informal settlement in Kenya

Sanitation infrastructure can fail during heavy rainfall and flooding, allowing the release of fecal waste - and the pathogens it carries - into spaces where people live, work, and play. However, there is a scarcity of reliable frameworks that can effectively assess the resilience of such infrastructure to extreme rainfall and flooding events. The purpose of this study was to develop and apply a novel framework for assessing and ranking the resilience of sanitation infrastructure in informal settlements. A framework for assessing sanitation infrastructure resilience was developed consisting of 19 indicators that were categorized into three domains: physical infrastructure design (8 indicators), operations and management (5 indicators), and environmental factors (6 indicators). The framework was applied to data from 200 shared sanitation facilities in Kibera, Kenya, collected through transect walks, field observations, surveys, and sanitary risk inspections. Results indicate that sanitation infrastructure type impacts resilience. Toilet facilities connected to a piped sewer (r = 1.345, 95% CI: 1.19-1.50) and toilets connected to a septic system (r = 1.014, 95% CI: 0.78-1.25) demonstrated higher levels of resilience compared to latrines (r = 0.663, 95% CI: 0.36-0.97) and hanging toilets (r = 0.014, 95% CI: 0.30-0.33) on a scale ranging from 0 to 4. The key determinants of sanitation infrastructure resilience were physical design, functionality, operational and maintenance routines, and environmental factors. This evidence provides valuable insights for developing standards and guidelines for the design and safe siting of new sanitation infrastructure and encourages investment in sewer and septic systems as superior options for resilient sanitation infrastructure. Additionally, our findings underscore the importance for implementers and communities to prioritize repairing damaged infrastructure, sealing potential discharge points into open drains, and emptying filled containment systems before the onset of the rainy season.

Identifying impacts & adaptation strategies for tropical fruit farms affected by extreme weather events in sub-tropical Australia: Stakeholders' insights

Extreme weather events (EWEs) have significant effects on the productivity, profitability and sustainability of agricultural enterprises and supply chains. Australia is acknowledged as a highly susceptible developed country in relation to experiencing impacts from global climate change. Particularly, the Central Queensland (CQ) region has experienced several recent severe weather events which has made stakeholders worried about the financial resilience and sustainability of their businesses along with the farmers. Although various Australian research has explored the biophysical effects of extreme weather on pome and citrus fruits, very little is known about the business impacts of EWEs on tropical fruits, and how the perceptions of stakeholders can play significant roles in constructing and implementing policies relevant to the tropical fruit farming sector. To fill this gap, this study explored stakeholder insights relating to the impacts of EWEs and relevant adaptation strategies used in tropical fruit farming businesses in sub-tropical Australia. A qualitative research approach was undertaken, involving in-depth interviews with key stakeholders from the tropical fruit farming supply chain, with data being analysed by thematic content analysis. Stakeholders indicated that in the previous five years, EWEs had impacted tropical fruit farming businesses and their related support industries and organisations in multiple ways. This study revealed that farmers' lack of knowledge about available adaptation options, amongst other things, are obstacles preventing the industry from becoming more resilient. Several steps were identified to improve the speed and effectiveness of adaptation at the farm level, including further strategic planning and collaboration amongst state government, local government, farmers and associated industry parties; as well as the importance of farmers being self-prepared for future EWEs. To achieve the latter, stakeholders noted that farmers required industry-level support, including training, tools, and technologies. These findings will be of interest for fruit farming industry stakeholders, policy makers and relevant researchers, particularly for the many tropical coastal communities across the world, now finding themselves being impacted by EWEs.

Impact of extreme weather events on mental health in South and Southeast Asia: A two decades of systematic review of observational studies

Extreme weather events in South and Southeast Asia exert profound psychosocial impacts, amplifying the prevalence of mental illness. Despite their substantial consequences, there is a dearth of research and representation in the current literature. We conducted a systematic review of observational studies published between January 1, 2000, and January 20, 2024, to examine the impact of extreme weather events on the mental health of the South and Southeast Asian population. Quality assessment of the included studies was conducted using the Newcastle-Ottawa Scale (NOS) quality appraisal checklist. The search retrieved 70 studies that met the inclusion criteria and were included in our review. Most were from India (n = 22), and most used a cross-sectional study design (n = 55). Poor mental health outcomes were associated with six types of extreme weather events: floods, storm surges, typhoons, cyclones, extreme heat, and riverbank erosion. Most studies (n = 41) reported short-term outcome measurements. Findings included outcomes with predictable symptomatology, including post-traumatic stress disorder, depression, anxiety, general psychological distress, emotional distress and suicide. Limited studies on long-term effects showed higher mental disorders after floods and typhoons, while cyclone-exposed individuals had more short-term distress. Notably, the review identified over 50 risk factors influencing mental health outcomes, categorized into six classes: demographic, economic, health, disaster exposure, psychological, and community factors. However, the quantitative evidence linking extreme weather events to mental health was limited due to a lack of longitudinal data, lack of control groups, and the absence of objective exposure measurements. The review found some compelling evidence linking extreme weather events to adverse mental health in the South and Southeast Asia region. Future research should focus on longitudinal study design to identify the specific stressors and climatic factors influencing the relationship between climate extremes and mental health in this region.

Mortality burden attributable to exceptional PM2.5 air pollution events in Australian cities: A health impact assessment

Background

People living in Australian cities face increased mortality risks from exposure to extreme air pollution events due to bushfires and dust storms. However, the burden of mortality attributable to exceptional PM2.5 levels has not been well characterised. We assessed the burden of mortality due to PM2.5 pollution events in Australian capital cities between 2001 and 2020.

Methods

For this health impact assessment, we obtained data on daily counts of deaths for all non-accidental causes and ages from the Australian National Vital Statistics Register. Daily concentrations of PM2.5 were estimated at a 5 km grid cell, using a Random Forest statistical model of data from air pollution monitoring sites combined with a range of satellite and land use-related data. We calculated the exceptional PM2.5 levels for each extreme pollution exposure day using the deviation from a seasonal and trend loess decomposition model. The burden of mortality was examined using a relative risk concentration-response function suggested in the literature.

Findings

Over the 20-year study period, we estimated 1454 (95 % CI 987, 1920) deaths in the major Australian cities attributable to exceptional PM2.5 exposure levels. The mortality burden due to PM2.5 exposure on extreme pollution days was considerable. Variations were observed across Australia. Despite relatively low daily PM2.5 levels compared to global averages, all Australian cities have extreme pollution exposure days, with PM2.5 concentrations exceeding the World Health Organisation Air Quality Guideline standard for 24-h exposure. Our analysis results indicate that nearly one-third of deaths from extreme air pollution exposure can be prevented with a 5 % reduction in PM2.5 levels on days with exceptional pollution.

Interpretation

Exposure to exceptional PM2.5 events was associated with an increased mortality burden in Australia's cities. Policies and coordinated action are needed to manage the health risks of extreme air pollution events due to bushfires and dust storms under climate change.

Impacts of a severe storm on carbon accumulation in coarse woody debris within a secondary Atlantic Forest fragment in Brazil

The alarming increase in extreme weather events, such as severe storms with torrential rain and strong winds, is a direct result of climate change. These events have led to discernible shifts in forest structure and the carbon cycle, primarily driven by a surge in tree mortality. However, the impacts caused by these severe storms on the production and carbon increment from coarse woody debris (CWD) are still poorly understood, especially in the Brazilian Atlantic Forest. Thus, the goal proposed by the study was to quantify the CWD volume, necromass, and carbon stock before and after the occurrence of a severe storm and to determine the importance of spatial, structural, and qualitative variables of trees in the CWD carbon increment. The increase in carbon by the storm was 2.01 MgC ha-1, with a higher concentration in the CWD less decomposed and smaller diameter class. The forest fragment plots showed distinct increments (0.05-0.35 MgC), being influenced by spatial (elevation, declivity, and slope angle) structural (basal area) and qualitative factors (trunk quality and tree health), intrinsic to the forest. Thus, it is concluded that severe storms cause a large increase in carbon in CWD, making it essential to understand the susceptibility of forests to the action of intense rains and strong winds to model and monitor the future impacts of these extreme weather events on Atlantic Forest and other tropical forests in the world.

Impacts of climate change on the fate of contaminants through extreme weather events

The direct impacts of climate change involve a multitude of phenomena, including rising sea levels, intensified severe weather events such as droughts and flooding, increased temperatures leading to wildfires, and unpredictable fluctuations in rainfall. This comprehensive review intends to examine firstly the probable consequences of climate change on extreme weather events such as drought, flood and wildfire. This review subsequently examines the release and transformation of contaminants in terrestrial, aquatic, and atmospheric environments in response to extreme weather events driven by climate change. While drought and flood influence the dynamics of inorganic and organic contaminants in terrestrial and aquatic environments, thereby influencing their mobility and transport, wildfire results in the release and spread of organic contaminants in the atmosphere. There is a nascent awareness of climate change's influence of climate change-induced extreme weather events on the dynamics of environmental contaminants in the scientific community and decision-making processes. The remediation industry, in particular, lags behind in adopting adaptive measures for managing contaminated environments affected by climate change-induced extreme weather events. However, recognizing the need for assessment measures represents a pivotal first step towards fostering more adaptive practices in the management of contaminated environments. We highlight the urgency of collaboration between environmental chemists and climate change experts, emphasizing the importance of jointly assessing the fate of contaminants and rigorous action to augment risk assessment and remediation strategies to safeguard the health of our environment.

Building loss assessment using deep learning algorithm from typhoon Rusa

Climate crises such as extreme weather events, natural disasters and climate change caused by climate transformations are causing much damage worldwide enough to be called a climate catastrophe. The private sector and the government across industries are making every effort to prevent and limit the increasing damage, but the results have yet to meet market demand. Therefore, this study proposes a method that uses a deep learning algorithm to predict the damage caused by typhoons. Model development is based on a Deep Neural Network (DNN) algorithm, and learning data is obtained by fine-tuning the network structure and hyperparameters; the amount of damage caused by Typhoon Rusa was known as training data. The constructed DNN model underwent evaluation and validation by computation of mean absolute error (MAE) and root mean square error (RMSE). Furthermore, a comparative analysis was conducted to confirm the applicability of the proposed framework against a traditional multi-regression model to ensure the model's accuracy and resilience. Finally, this study offers a novel approach to predicting typhoon damage using advanced deep-learning techniques. Subsequently, government disaster management officials, facility managers, and insurance companies can utilize this method to accurately predict the extent of damage caused by typhoons. Preventive actions such as improved risk assessment, expanded insurance companies, and enhanced disaster responses plans can be implemented using these outcomes. Ultimately, the proposed model will help to reduce typhoon damage and strengthen general resilience to climate crises.

A Germany-wide survey of caregiving professionals on climate change and mental health of children and adolescents - factors influencing their relevance rating of extreme weather event associated mental health impairments

INTRODUCTION

Climate change presents a significant risk for the mental and physical health of young people. In order to identify and properly care for potential mental health impairments from extreme weather events, the relevance of these impairments must be assessed as high by the professional groups providing care for children and adolescents. This raises the question of which factors influence the individual relevance assessment of caretaking professionals?

METHODS

Data was collected creating and conducting a Germany-wide online questionnaire via LimeSurvey. The questionnaire was addressed to professionals providing care for children and adolescents, in this case medical and therapeutic personnel as well as school and pedagogical personnel. Professional associations, chief physicians and school principals were contacted as multipliers and asked to forward the questionnaire to their members and staff. The data was analyzed using the R statistical software, and multiple linear regressions were performed to test the hypotheses.

RESULTS

Overall, 648 questionnaires were taken into analysis. Approximately 70% of the participants considered climate change-induced impacts on the mental health of children and adolescents due to extreme weather events as relevant. Experiencing heat, storm, heavy precipitation, flood/flooding, and/or avalanches/mudflows made a modest yet significant contribution to explaining higher relevance assessments. In contrast, there was no evidence to suggest that an urban working environment increases the relevance assessment.

CONCLUSION

The described influence of experiencing extreme weather events should not be regarded as the sole factor leading to higher relevance ratings. A more comprehensive understanding of the factors influencing relevance assessments is necessary to address key aspects of risk communication and increase risk awareness.

Rainwater extracting characteristics and its potential impact on DBPs generation: A case study

Frequent extreme precipitation events due to global warming can lead to large amounts of pollutants entering source water bodies via surface runoff and wet deposition, thus posing a threat to water supply security. In order to better understand the source characteristics and leaching mechanisms of rainwater dissolved organic matter (DOM), as well as its disinfection by-products formation potential (DBPsFP) during disinfection processes, rainwater samples were collected and extracting experiments were conducted. Three components were identified in rainwater through Parallel factor (PARAFAC) analysis, which were microbial humic-like component C1 (63.1 %), protein (tryptophan-like) component C2 (28.9 %), marine or terrestrial humic-like component C3 (8.1 %). The average molecular weight of rainwater fractions was ordered: hydrophobic neutral (HON) < hydrophobic bases (HOB) < hydrophobic acidic (HOA) < hydrophilic (HIS). The HOA and HON fractions of rainwater were the dominant precursors of trihalomethanes (THMs), while the rainwater HON fraction and hydrophilic fraction were the main precursor of haloacetic acids (HAAs) and trihloroacetonitrile (TCAN), respectively. Subsoil extracts had a higher concentration of dissolved organic carbon (DOC) and total dissolved nitrogen (TDN) than topsoil extracts. Partial least squares path modeling (PLS-PM) demonstrated that the extraction temperature was the dominant factor affecting the abundance of DOM in the topsoil extracts (R2 = 0.28), while the extraction time accounted more for the abundance of fluorescence substance and physicochemical indices in the subsoil extracts (R2 = 0.23 and 0.32, respectively). These results provide key information for controlling the impacts of global warming, in particular the risk of water sources being heavily contaminated by request rainfalls.

Adaptation of agriculture to extreme weather events: evidence from apple farmers' organic fertilizer use in China

Overcoming the challenge of more frequent and extreme weather events holds importance in agricultural production. We take spring frost disasters as a representative extreme weather event to identify how perennial economic crop farmers adjust the quantity of organic fertilizer used in response to extreme weather events and their adjustment mechanism. In this study, we establish a conceptual framework for the adaptation mechanism of apple growers under extreme weather events. This article draws and verifies five hypotheses through on-site investigations of apple growers in Shaanxi Province, China. Empirical evidence shows that farmers increase the quantity of commercial organic fertilizer materials in the year and in the following year when spring frost occurs, indicating that their adaptative behavior can be subdivided into repair and prevention. Mechanism analysis shows that liquidity constraints impact farmers' adaptive behavior. Liquidity constraints limit the ability of farmers to increase the quantity of commercial organic fertilizer materials to adapt to a spring frost disaster. Furthermore, for farmers not constrained by liquidity constraints, household resource endowment conditions still affect their adaptive behavior. Significantly, the household labor force size mainly influences farmers to increase commercial organic fertilizer to adapt to a spring frost disaster. Our findings highlight the differences between the adaptive behavior mechanism of perennial crop farmers and food crop farmers. Moreover, we reconfirm the stimulating effect of organic fertilizer on crop production.

Dataset on mesoplastics and microplastics abundances and characteristics from sandy beaches before and after typhoon events in northern Taiwan

A comprehensive dataset is presented, which describes the abundance, shapes, and colors of meso- and microplastic particles collected from two sandy beaches situated on the north coast of Taiwan. The sampling of beach sand was conducted repetitively at fixed locations over a time period of 20 months, commencing from April 2018 to November 2019, with the aim of monitoring the variations in distribution and composition of plastic particles. A total of three adjacent transects perpendicular to the waterline were sampled, with bulk sand samples collected from 50 × 50 cm quadrats. The samples were subjected to drying, weighing, and sieving to obtain mesoplastic fractions (5-25 mm) and microplastic fractions (1-5 mm). Visual identification was employed to extract mesoplastic particles, while density separation using a saturated NaCl solution was utilized to extract microplastic particles. The particles were counted visually under a stereo microscope, and subsequently classified based on their shape and color. Any unknown particles were subjected to FTIR spectroscopy. Particle count data are presented as particles per unit area (0.25 m2) but can be converted to particles per kg d.w. by employing the weight of dry sand, as provided in the tables. The dataset encompasses a time series and delineates the changes in particle distribution and composition following extreme weather events. It can be utilized for further research by reanalyzing the data from different perspectives or by incorporating other factors.

Assessment of storm impact on coral reef structural complexity

Extreme weather events are increasing in frequency and magnitude. Consequently, it is important to understand their effects and remediation. Resilience reflects the ability of an ecosystem to absorb change, which is important for understanding ecological dynamics and trajectories. To describe the impact of a powerful storm on coral reef structural complexity, we used novel computational tools and detailed 3D reconstructions captured at three time points over three years. Our data-set Reefs4D of 21 co-registered image-based models enabled us to calculate the differences at seven sites over time and is released with the paper. We employed six geometrical metrics, two of which are new algorithms for calculating fractal dimension of reefs in full 3D. We conducted a multivariate analysis to reveal which sites were affected the most and their relative recovery. We also explored the changes in fractal dimension per size category using our cube-counting algorithm. Three metrics showed a significant difference between time points, i.e., decline and subsequent recovery in structural complexity. The multivariate analysis and the results per size category showed a similar trend. Coral reef resilience has been the subject of seminal studies in ecology. We add important information to the discussion by focusing on 3D structure through image-based modeling. The full picture shows resilience in structural complexity, suggesting that the reef has not gone through a catastrophic phase shift. Our novel analysis framework is widely transferable and useful for research, monitoring, and management.

Are the consequences of lithium in marine clams enhanced by climate change?

Coastal areas, such as estuaries and coastal lagoons, are among the most endangered aquatic ecosystems due to the intense anthropogenic activities occurring in their vicinity. These areas are highly threatened by climate change-related factors as well as pollution, especially due to their limited water exchange. Ocean warming and extreme weather events, such as marine heatwaves and rainy periods, are some of the consequences of climate change, inducing alterations in the abiotic parameters of seawater, namely temperature and salinity, which may affect the organisms as well as the behaviour of some pollutants present in water. Lithium (Li) is an element widely used in several industries, especially in the production of batteries for electronic gadgets and electric vehicles. The demand for its exploitation has been growing drastically and is predicted a large increase in the coming years. Inefficient recycling, treatment and disposal results in the release of Li into the aquatic systems, the consequences of which are poorly understood, especially in the context of climate change. Considering that a limited number of studies exist about the impacts of Li on marine species, the present study aimed to assess the effects of temperature rise and salinity changes on the impacts of Li in clams (Venerupis corrugata) collected from the Ria de Aveiro (coastal lagoon, Portugal). Clams were exposed for 14 days to 0 μg/L of Li and 200 μg/L of Li, both conditions under different climate scenarios: 3 different salinities (20, 30 and 40) at 17 °C (control temperature); and 2 different temperatures (17 and 21 °C) at salinity 30 (control salinity). Bioconcentration capacity and biochemical alterations regarding metabolism and oxidative stress were investigated. Salinity variations had a higher impact on biochemical responses than temperature increase, even when combined with Li. The combination of Li with low salinity (20) was the most stressful treatment, provoking increased metabolism and activation of detoxification defences, suggesting possible imbalances in coastal ecosystems in response to Li pollution under extreme weather events. These findings may ultimately contribute to implement environmentally protective actions to mitigate Li contamination and preserve marine life.

Extreme weather events and HIV: development of a conceptual framework through qualitative interviews with people with HIV impacted by the California wildfires and their clinicians

BACKGROUND

People with HIV (PWH) are disproportionately vulnerable to the impacts of wildfires, given the need for frequent access to healthcare systems, higher burden of comorbidities, higher food insecurity, mental and behavioral health challenges, and challenges of living with HIV in a rural area. In this study, we aim to better understand the pathways through which wildfires impact health outcomes among PWH.

METHODS

From October 2021 through February 2022, we conducted individual semi-structured qualitative interviews with PWH impacted by the Northern California wildfires and clinicians of PWH who were impacted by wildfires. The study aims were to explore the influence of wildfires on the health of PWH and to discuss measures at the individual, clinic, and system levels that helped to mitigate these impacts.

RESULTS

We interviewed 15 PWH and 7 clinicians. While some PWH felt that surviving the HIV epidemic added to their resilience against wildfires, many felt that the wildfires compounded the HIV-related traumas that they have experienced. Participants outlined five main routes by which wildfires negatively impacted their health: (1) access to healthcare (medications, clinics, clinic staff), (2) mental health (trauma; anxiety, depression, or stress; sleep disturbances; coping strategies), (3) physical health (cardiopulmonary, other co-morbidities), (4) social/economic impacts (housing, finances, community), and (5) nutrition and exercise. The recommendations for future wildfire preparedness were at the (1) individual-level (what to have during evacuation), (2) pharmacy-level (procedural, staffing), and (3) clinic- or county-level (funds and vouchers; case management; mental health services; emergency response planning; other services such as telehealth, home visits, home laboratory testing).

CONCLUSIONS

Based on our data and prior research, we devised a conceptual framework that acknowledges the impact of wildfires at the community-, household-, and individual-level with implications for physical and mental health outcomes among PWH. These findings and framework can help in developing future interventions, programs, and policies to mitigate the cumulative impacts of extreme weather events on the health of PWH, particularly among individuals living in rural areas. Further studies are needed to examine health system strengthening strategies, innovative methods to improve access to healthcare, and community resilience through disaster preparedness.

TRIAL REGISTRATION

N/A.

'I don't really associate climate change with actual people's health': a qualitative study in England of perceptions of climate change and its impacts on health

OBJECTIVES

The health impacts of climate change are increasing, but qualitative evidence on people's perceptions is limited. This qualitative study investigated people's perceptions of climate change and its impacts on health.

STUDY DESIGN

This was an online study using semistructured interviews.

METHODS

A total of 41 semistructured interviews were conducted in 2021 with members of the public aged ≥15 years living in England, recruited via community-based groups. Data were analysed using reflexive thematic analysis.

RESULTS

Participants were concerned about climate change, which was often perceived as extreme weather events happening elsewhere. Changes in the UK's seasons and weather patterns were noted, but participants were uncertain whether these changes resulted from climate change. Participants often struggled to identify health impacts of climate change; where health impacts were described, they tended to be linked to extreme weather events outside the United Kingdom and their associated threats to life. The mental health impacts of such events were also noted.

CONCLUSIONS

The study found that most participants did not perceive climate change to be affecting people's health in England. This raises questions about whether framing climate change as a health issue, an approach advocated for countries less exposed to the direct effects of climate change, will increase its salience for the British public.

Integrated causal-predictive machine learning models for tropical cyclone epidemiology

Strategic preparedness reduces the adverse health impacts of hurricanes and tropical storms, referred to collectively as tropical cyclones (TCs), but its protective impact could be enhanced by a more comprehensive and rigorous characterization of TC epidemiology. To generate the insights and tools necessary for high-precision TC preparedness, we introduce a machine learning approach that standardizes estimation of historic TC health impacts, discovers common patterns and sources of heterogeneity in those health impacts, and enables identification of communities at highest health risk for future TCs. The model integrates (i) a causal inference component to quantify the immediate health impacts of recent historic TCs at high spatial resolution and (ii) a predictive component that captures how TC meteorological features and socioeconomic/demographic characteristics of impacted communities are associated with health impacts. We apply it to a rich data platform containing detailed historic TC exposure information and records of all-cause mortality and cardiovascular- and respiratory-related hospitalization among Medicare recipients. We report a high degree of heterogeneity in the acute health impacts of historic TCs, both within and across TCs, and, on average, substantial TC-attributable increases in respiratory hospitalizations. TC-sustained windspeeds are found to be the primary driver of mortality and respiratory risks.

The impact of extreme weather events on mental health in Africa: A scoping review of the evidence

INTRODUCTION

The psychosocial impacts of extreme weather events are contributing to the burden of mental illness, exacerbated by pre-existing vulnerabilities. Despite an emerging global interest in this association, Africa remains poorly represented in the literature.

METHODS

A scoping review of peer-reviewed studies was conducted to determine the adverse mental health outcomes associated with extreme weather events in Africa (2008-2021). The review was conducted in line with the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic reviews and Meta-Analyses extension for Scoping Reviews (PRISMA-ScR).

RESULTS

A total of 12,204 peer-reviewed articles were identified of which 12 were retained for analysis. These studies were all conducted in 8 countries in Sub-Saharan Africa. Adverse mental health outcomes were identified resulting from flood (n = 4), drought (n = 4), extreme heat (n = 1), bushfire (n = 1), and multiple events (n = 2). Findings included pathological outcomes with predictable symptomatology including mood disorders; trauma- and stressor-related disorders; and suicide. Additionally, conditions indicating psychological distress which were below the pathological threshold including emotion regulation difficulties, disturbed sleep, alcohol use, stress, and anxiety. The quantitative evidence for the association between extreme weather events and mental health was limited primarily by a lack of longitudinal data, exposure gradient, and comparison to an unaffected group, as well as a failure to provide an objective exposure measure. The qualitative evidence for this association was complimentary but without sufficient clinical measurement these outcomes cannot be verified as psychological morbidities. In addition, this review provided insight into the mental health of vulnerable communities affected by extreme weather events including those living in poverty, farmers, pastoralists, women, and children.

CONCLUSION

This review provided some preliminary evidence for the association between extreme weather events and adverse mental health outcomes for populations in Africa. The review also provides insight to vulnerable populations affected by extreme weather events. Future research with stronger designs and methodologies are recommended.

Overstating the effects of anthropogenic climate change? A critical assessment of attribution methods in climate science

Climate scientists have proposed two methods to link extreme weather events and anthropogenic climate forcing: the probabilistic and the storyline approach. Proponents of the first approach have raised the criticism that the storyline approach could be overstating the role of anthropogenic climate change. This issue has important implications because, in certain contexts, decision-makers might seek to avoid information that overstates the effects of anthropogenic climate change. In this paper, we explore two research questions. First, whether and to what extent the storyline approach overstates the effects of anthropogenic climate change. Second, whether the objections offered against the storyline approach constitute good reasons to prefer the probabilistic approach. Concerning the first question, we show that the storyline approach does not necessarily overstate the effects of climate change, and particularly not for the reasons offered by proponents of the probabilistic approach. Concerning the second question, we show, independently, that the probabilistic approach faces the same or very similar objections to those raised against the storyline approach due to the lack of robustness of climate models and the way events are commonly defined when applying the probabilistic approach. These results suggest that these objections might not constitute good reasons to prefer the probabilistic approach over the storyline approach.

[Climate change and (surgical) health in context]

BACKGROUND

The impacts of the climate crisis will result in a health crisis in addition to loss of habitats and increasing supply uncertainty. In this context, the health sector and especially surgery are relevant emitters of greenhouse gases, thus contributing to the magnitude of the climate crisis. Many reviews regarding the impacts on human health are available; however, a view from the surgical perspective has so far been underrepresented.

MATERIAL AND METHODS

This narrative review summarizes the relevance of climate-related changes for the surgical disciplines based on a literature search.

RESULTS

Immediate impacts are expected by the increasing number of extreme weather events, e.g., floods, droughts and wildfires. In these settings, surgery is a part of the disaster medicine chain but simultaneously the functionality of surgical departments can be impaired or even break down when they are themselves affected by extreme weather events. Heat waves cause an increase in surgical site infections, which may lead to postponement of elective surgery for patients at high risk. Collateral impacts are mirrored by an increase in the incidence of lung and skin cancers, which often need surgical treatment within a multidisciplinary setting. Additionally, there are indirect impacts that are of a very different nature, e.g., inadequate diet which leads to further deterioration of the greenhouse gas footprint of the health sector due to the necessity of bariatric surgical capacities.

CONCLUSION

The climate crisis represents a major challenge in surgery and all other medical disciplines. At the same time is it indispensable that the health sector and therefore surgery, take steps towards a zero emission pathway.

Vulnerability and recovery: Long-term mental and physical health trajectories following climate-related disasters

Extreme weather and climate-related disaster events are associated with a range of adverse health outcomes. People are not equally vulnerable to the adversity, experiencing varied patterns of long-term health trajectories in recovery depending on their vulnerabilities, capacities, and resiliencies. This study aims to identify latent mental and physical health trajectories and their associations with person- and place-based pre-disaster predictors. Using an Australian, population-based, longitudinal dataset spanning 2009-19, group-based multi-trajectory modelling was applied to identify the distinct mental, social, emotional, and physical health trajectories of people who had experienced damage to their home following a climate-related disaster event. Multinomial logistic regression was used to assess a series of social vulnerability predictors (demographic, socioeconomic, housing, health, neighbourhood, and geographical) of health patterns. We identified three distinct health trajectories. Most individuals experienced small or minimal health impacts at the time of the disaster year followed by a fast recovery. However, one-fifth of the exposed population were severely affected during and post disaster. This cohort had the worst mental and physical health prior to the disaster and experienced the largest decreases in mental and physical health and the lowest recoveries. Pre-existing mental and physical conditions were the most substantial risk factors, increasing the probability of experiencing high impact and slow recovery by 61% for mental health and 51% for physical health. In addition, vulnerability in the form of housing affordability stress, lower household income, and lack of community attachment, participation and safety were also significant independent risk factors for ongoing post-disaster health problems. Critically, people's mental and physical health recovery is dependent on pre-disaster vulnerabilities in health, resource access, and capacities. These findings could assist policymakers and health practitioners to more effectively target people most at risk and design prevention and response strategies to prevent the exacerbation of poor health and wellbeing.

A systematic review of natural language processing applications for hydrometeorological hazards assessment

Natural language processing (NLP) is a promising tool for collecting data that are usually hard to obtain during extreme weather, like community response and infrastructure performance. Patterns and trends in abundant data sources such as weather reports, news articles, and social media may provide insights into potential impacts and early warnings of impending disasters. This paper reviews the peer-reviewed studies (journals and conference proceedings) that used NLP to assess extreme weather events, focusing on heavy rainfall events. The methodology searches four databases (ScienceDirect, Web of Science, Scopus, and IEEE Xplore) for articles published in English before June 2022. The preferred reporting items for systematic reviews and meta-analysis reviews and meta-analysis guidelines were followed to select and refine the search. The method led to the identification of thirty-five studies. In this study, hurricanes, typhoons, and flooding were considered. NLP models were implemented in information extraction, topic modeling, clustering, and classification. The findings show that NLP remains underutilized in studying extreme weather events. The review demonstrated that NLP could potentially improve the usefulness of social media platforms, newspapers, and other data sources that could improve weather event assessment. In addition, NLP could generate new information that should complement data from ground-based sensors, reducing monitoring costs. Key outcomes of NLP use include improved accuracy, increased public safety, improved data collection, and enhanced decision-making are identified in the study. On the other hand, researchers must overcome data inadequacy, inaccessibility, nonrepresentative and immature NLP approaches, and computing skill requirements to use NLP properly.

Responses of digestive metabolism to marine heatwaves in pearl oysters

Marine heatwaves (MHWs) have increased in intensity and frequency in global oceans, causing deleterious effects on many marine organisms and ecosystems they support. Bivalves are among the most vulnerable taxonomic groups to intensifying MHWs, yet little is known about the underlying mechanisms. Here, we investigated the impact of MHWs on the digestive metabolism of pearl oysters (Pinctada maxima). Two moderate and severe scenarios of MHWs were performed by increasing seawater temperature respectively from 24 °C to 28 °C and 32 °C for 3 days. When subjected to MHWs and with increasing intensity, pearl oysters significantly enhanced their digestive enzymatic activities, such as lipase and amylase. LC-MS-based metabolomics revealed negative responses in the lipid metabolism (e.g., steroid biosynthesis, glycerophospholipid metabolism, and sphingolipid metabolism), the amino acid metabolism (e.g., glutamate, histidine, arginine, and proline), and the B-vitamins metabolism. These findings indicate that the digestive metabolism of marine bivalves can likely succumb to intensifying MHWs events.

Health gender gap in Uganda: do weather effects and water play a role?

BACKGROUND

Vulnerabilities of men and women to adverse health effects due to weather variability and climate change are not equal. Uganda was among the countries in the world most affected by extreme weather events during the last decade. However, there is still limited gendered empirical evidence on the links between weather variability and health and the possible pathways through which these health effects occur. Therefore, this study analyses the effect of weather variability on illness, and the extent to which water collection 'time burden' mediates the relationship between weather anomalies and illness among men and women of working age in Uganda. The study also quantifies the health inequalities to be eliminated if resources are equalized.

METHODS

Socioeconomic, health and time use data were obtained from the World Bank Living Standards Measurement Studies - Integrated Surveys on Agriculture (LSMS -ISA), combined with high resolution remotely-sensed weather data. Two-parts and non-linear decomposition regression analysis were used on the national representative pooled dataset from the four household survey waves collected between 2009 to 2014, comprising a total of 22,469 men and women aged between 15 and 64 years.

RESULTS

Empirical results show that low rainfall below the long-term mean increased the likelihood of illness by at least 8 and 6 percentage points for women and men, respectively. The indirect effect of low rainfall on illness through water access pathway was estimated at 0.16 percentage points in women. Decomposition results reveal that health inequalities among women and men would have been narrowed by 27-61%, if endowments were equalized.

CONCLUSIONS

Strategies that promote women empowerment (such as education, labor force participation, access to financial services and clean water), health adaptation and time poverty reduction strategies (such as rain water harvesting and improved access to quality health care) would reduce gender-based health inequalities in Uganda despite changing climatic conditions.

Cascading disasters and mental health inequities: Winter Storm Uri, COVID-19 and post-traumatic stress in Texas

Previous research on health effects of extreme weather has emphasized heat events even though cold-attributable mortality exceeds heat-attributable mortality worldwide. Little is known about the mental health effects of cold weather events, which often cascade to produce secondary impacts like power outages, leaving a knowledge gap in context of a changing climate. We address that gap by taking a novel "cascading disaster health inequities" approach to examine winter storm-associated post-traumatic stress (PTS) using survey data (n = 790) collected in eight Texas metro areas following Winter Storm Uri in 2021, which occurred against the backdrop of COVID-19. The incidence of storm-related PTS was 18%. Being Black (odds ratio [OR]: 6.6), Hispanic (OR: 3.5), or of another non-White race (OR: 4.2) was associated with greater odds of PTS compared to being White, which indicates substantial racial/ethnic inequities in mental health impacts (all p < 0.05). Having a disability also increased odds of PTS (OR: 4.4) (p < 0.05). Having piped water outages (OR: 1.9) and being highly impacted by COVID-19 (OR: 3.3) increased odds of PTS (both p < 0.05). When modelling how COVID-19 and outages cascaded, we compared householders to those with no outages and low COVID-19 impacts. PTS was more likely (p < 0.05) if householders had a water or power outage and high COVID-19 impacts (OR: 4.4) and if they had water and power outages and high COVID-19 impacts (OR: 7.7). Findings provide novel evidence of racial/ethnic inequities and cascading effects with regard to extreme cold events amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

Extreme weather events and farmer adaptation in Zeeland, the Netherlands: A European climate change case study from the Rhine delta

Global climate change is manifest by local-scale changes in precipitation and temperature patterns, including the frequency of extreme weather events (EWEs). EWEs are associated with a myriad range of adverse environmental and societal consequences, including negative impacts to agriculture and food production. This study focuses on EWEs and their effect on adaptation strategies by potato and onion farmers in Zeeland, a Dutch coastal province in the Rhine delta that can serve as a model for other intensive agricultural landscapes in industrialized nations impacted by extreme weather events. The research approach combines quantitative trend analysis of long-term climatic data (temperature, precipitation) with a formal survey of Zeelandic farmers to statistically test four specific hypotheses regarding the frequency of EWEs in the Netherlands and farmer awareness and adaptation. Trend analyses reveal a strong (statistically significant) increase in extreme heat, a small increase in extreme rainfall and drought, and a strong decrease in frost occurrence. Survey results indicate Zeelandic farmers perceive high risk and awareness of changes to the frequency of EWEs. Many farmers have experienced financial losses from EWEs, particularly between 2017 and 2020. For extreme heat, droughts, and frost, the proportion of farmers that incurred financial damages annually is statistically correlated to the actual occurrence of EWEs. Farmers who incurred more financial losses between 2000 and 2020 due to heat and lack of frost had a higher risk perception of these extremes. Further, almost all farmers have already implemented one or more adaptation strategies. A third of surveyed farmers reduced or stopped with potato and onion cultivation in response to climate change and EWEs. Awareness, exposure to, and risk perception of EWEs contribute to adaptation support by farmers. The high perceived risk of climate change and EWEs among respondents and the high incidence of financial losses from extremes in the past two decades highlights the importance of adaptation in the agricultural sector, including in temperate regions where growing seasons are expanding. Study results support the current 'Rural Development Program' and future 'National Strategic Plan' policies in the Netherlands, both part of the European Union's Common Agricultural Policy (CAP), that provides accessibility to adaptation measures for farmers to avoid financial loss.

[Adaptation to extreme weather event is key to protection of human health]

Extreme weather events (EWE) are the most direct and visible example of how climate change threatens human health. Notwithstanding the diversity of EWEs, they all have recurrent impacts on mortality, morbidity and mental health. These impacts largely depend on exposure conditions, on the response measures implemented, and on socio-economic determinants. Forest fires and heat waves are the EWEs in all likelihood presenting the highest risks for respiratory health, and they are likely to rapidly evolve over the coming years. Since 2004, more than 10,000 excess deaths have been recorded during heat waves in France, 76 % of them after 2015. Pronounced synergies between extreme heat and air pollution are now documented in the literature. In addition to appropriate behaviours and medical care during EWEs, adaptation must now focus on long-term interventions, the objectives being to reduce exposure, to improve the quality of our environment and to reinforce social ties.

Degraded mangroves as sources of trace elements to aquatic environments

Mangrove forests have been reported as sinks for metals because of the immobilization of these elements in their soils. However, climate change may alter the functioning of these ecosystems. We aimed to assess the geochemical dynamics of Mn, Cu, and Zn in the soils of a mangrove forest dead by an extreme weather event in southeastern Brazil. Soil samples were collected from dead and live mangroves adjacent to each other. The physicochemical parameters (total organic carbon, redox potential, and pH), total metal content, particle size, and metal partitioning were determined. Distinct changes in the soil geochemical environment (establishment of suboxic conditions) and a considerable loss of fine particles was caused by the death of the mangroves. Our results also showed a loss of up to 93 % of metals from soil. This study highlights the paradoxical role of mangroves as potential metal sources in the face of climate change.

Will extreme weather events influence the toxic impacts of caffeine in coastal systems? Comparison between two widely used bioindicator species

In the recent years, marine heatwaves (MHWs) have caused devastating impacts on marine life. The understanding of the combined effects of these extreme events and anthropogenic pollution is a vital challenge. In particular, the combined effect of MHWs on the toxicity of pharmaceuticals to aquatic life remains unclear. To contribute to these issues, the main goal of the present investigation was to evaluate how MHWs may increase caffeine (CAF) toxicity on the clam Ruditapes philippinarum and the mussel Mytilus galloprovincialis. Bioaccumulation levels and changes on oxidative stress, metabolic capacity and neurotoxic status related biomarkers were investigated. The obtained results revealed the absence of CAF accumulation in both species. However, the used contaminant generated in both bivalve species alteration on neurotransmission, detoxification mechanisms induction as well as cellular damage. The increase of antioxidant defence mechanisms was complemented by an increase of metabolic activity and decrease of energy reserves. The obtained results seemed magnified under a simulated MHWs, suggesting to a climate-induced toxicant sensitivities' response. On this perspective, understanding of how toxicological mechanisms interact with climate-induced stressors will provide a solid platform to improve effect assessments for both humans and wildlife.

Heat and drought impact on carbon exchange in an age-sequence of temperate pine forests

BACKGROUND

Most North American temperate forests are plantation or regrowth forests, which are actively managed. These forests are in different stages of their growth cycles and their ability to sequester atmospheric carbon is affected by extreme weather events. In this study, the impact of heat and drought events on carbon sequestration in an age-sequence (80, 45, and 17 years as of 2019) of eastern white pine (Pinus strobus L.) forests in southern Ontario, Canada was examined using eddy covariance flux measurements from 2003 to 2019.

RESULTS

Over the 17-year study period, the mean annual values of net ecosystem productivity (NEP) were 180 ± 96, 538 ± 177 and 64 ± 165 g C m^-2 yr^-1 in the 80-, 45- and 17-year-old stands, respectively, with the highest annual carbon sequestration rate observed in the 45-year-old stand. We found that air temperature (Ta) was the dominant control on NEP in all three different-aged stands and drought, which was a limiting factor for both gross ecosystem productivity (GEP) and ecosystems respiration (RE), had a smaller impact on NEP. However, the simultaneous occurrence of heat and drought events during the early growing seasons or over the consecutive years had a significant negative impact on annual NEP in all three forests. We observed a similar trend of NEP decline in all three stands over three consecutive years that experienced extreme weather events, with 2016 being a hot and dry, 2017 being a dry, and 2018 being a hot year. The youngest stand became a net source of carbon for all three of these years and the oldest stand became a small source of carbon for the first time in 2018 since observations started in 2003. However, in 2019, all three stands reverted to annual net carbon sinks.

CONCLUSIONS

Our study results indicate that the timing, frequency and concurrent or consecutive occurrence of extreme weather events may have significant implications for carbon sequestration in temperate conifer forests in Eastern North America. This study is one of few globally available to provide long-term observational data on carbon exchanges in different-aged temperate plantation forests. It highlights interannual variability in carbon fluxes and enhances our understanding of the responses of these forest ecosystems to extreme weather events. Study results will help in developing climate resilient and sustainable forestry practices to offset atmospheric greenhouse gas emissions and improving simulation of carbon exchange processes in terrestrial ecosystem models.

Remobilization of pollutants during extreme flood events poses severe risks to human and environmental health

While it is well recognized that the frequency and intensity of flood events are increasing worldwide, the environmental, economic, and societal consequences of remobilization and distribution of pollutants during flood events are not widely recognized. Loss of life, damage to infrastructure, and monetary cleanup costs associated with floods are important direct effects. However, there is a lack of attention towards the indirect effects of pollutants that are remobilized and redistributed during such catastrophic flood events, particularly considering the known toxic effects of substances present in flood-prone areas. The global examination of floods caused by a range of extreme events (e.g., heavy rainfall, tsunamis, extra- and tropical storms) and subsequent distribution of sediment-bound pollutants are needed to improve interdisciplinary investigations. Such examinations will aid in the remediation and management action plans necessary to tackle issues of environmental pollution from flooding. River basin-wide and coastal lowland action plans need to balance the opposing goals of flood retention, catchment conservation, and economical use of water.

Climatic regulation of leaf and cambial phenology in Quercus pubescens: Their interlinkage and impact on xylem and phloem conduits

Increased frequency and severity of stressful events affects the growth patterns and functioning of trees which adjust their phenology to given conditions. Here, we analysed environmental effects (temperature, precipitation, VPD and SWC) on the timing of leaf phenology, seasonal stem radial growth patterns, and xylem and phloem anatomy of Quercus pubescens in the sub-Mediterranean in the period 2014-2019, when various adverse weather events occurred, i.e. spring drought in 2015, summer fire in 2016 and summer drought in 2017. Results showed that the timings of leaf and cambium phenology do not occur simultaneously in Q. pubescens, reflecting different environmental and internal constraints. Although year-to-year variability in the timings of leaf and cambial phenology exists, their chronological sequence is fairly fixed. Different effects of weather conditions on different stages of leaf development in spring were observed. Common climatic drivers (i.e., negative effect of hot and dry summers and a positive effect of increasing moisture availability in winter and summer) were found to affect the widths of xylem and phloem increments with more pronounced effect on late formed parts. A legacy effect of the timing of leaf and cambial phenology of the previous growing season on the timing of phenology of the following spring was confirmed. Rarely available phloem data permitted a comprehensive insight into the interlinkage of the timing of cambium and leaf phenology and adjustment strategies of vascular tissues in Mediterranean pubescent oak to various environmental constraints, including frequent extreme events (drought, fire). Our results suggest that predicted changes in autumn/winter and spring climatic conditions for this area could affect the timings of leaf and stem cambial phenology of Q. pubescens in the coming years, which would affect stem xylem and phloem structure and hydraulic properties, and ultimately its performance.

The Gerontological Case Against Fossil Fuels

Climate change is a threat to persons of all ages, but the older population is especially susceptible to the harms of extreme heat, growing air toxics, increasingly prevalent extreme weather events, and related environmental hazards. These changes reflect our continuing dependence on fossil fuels. The effects range from increased risk of chronic conditions to disruption of essential medical and social supports. We need the expertise of gerontologists to craft practical and evidence-based mitigation and adaptation interventions for climate change if we are to meet the needs of aging populations. We cannot wait for others to raise their voices. Gerontologists must address the challenge of climate change and support energy policies that terminate the fossil fuel supply chain.

The use of non-target high-resolution mass spectrometry screening to detect the presence of antibiotic residues in urban streams of Greensboro North Carolina

Antibiotic pollution in aquatic systems is a concern for human and environmental health. The concern is largely due to the global occurrence of antibiotic-resistant bacteria. From 2017 to 2018 in the NC Piedmont, 15 ion masses associated with antibiotics were detected in rural streams and groundwater. Four of these masses were confirmed to be antibiotics through target analysis (sulfamethoxazole, sulfamerazine, erythromycin, danofloxacin). Concentrations of antibiotics were as high as 1.8 μg/L. As a follow-up, antibiotic residues in urban streams sites in Greensboro, NC, USA, were investigated. Urban streams are heavily influenced by the dense populations surrounding them. In the fall, winter, and spring seasons, surface water was collected from eight sites along two urban streams. Sampling was conducted at streams sites above and below municipal hospitals and wastewater treatment facilities in the study area. At the conclusion of the survey, nine ion masses associated with antibiotics used in both human and veterinary medicine were detected from surface water collected. Three of the four antibiotics targeted in rural stream samples were detected and confirmed in urban stream samples (sulfamerazine, danofloxacin, and erythromycin). Detection frequencies of the three antibiotics ranged from 0 to 46%. Concentrations of each target antibiotic was as followed: SMX (0 to <10 ng/L), SMR (0 to <11 ng/L), DAN (0 to <20 ng/L), and ETM (0 to <15 ng/L). Each target antibiotic concentration was below our methods quantification limits. Our risk assessment analysis showed that the target antibiotics posed no risk to fish, daphnia, and green algae within this region of NC (RQ < 0.1). Compared to rural streams in this region of NC, antibiotic pollution is less prevalent in urban streams. The differences between urban and rural streams may be driven by the varying land use and suggest more research should be dedicated to monitoring these contaminants in rural areas of the United States.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION

The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s40201-021-00688-9.

Psychological impairment and extreme weather event (EWE) exposure, 1980-2020: A global pooled analysis integrating mental health and well-being metrics

Extreme Weather Events (EWEs) impose a substantial health and socio-economic burden on exposed populations. Projected impacts on public health, based on increasing EWE frequencies since the 1950s, alongside evidence of human-mediated climatic change represents a growing concern. To date, the impacts of EWEs on mental health remain ambiguous, largely due to the inherent complexities in linking extreme weather phenomena with psychological status. This exploratory investigation provides a new empirical and global perspective on the psychological toll of EWEs by exclusively focusing on psychological morbidity among individuals exposed to such events. Morbidity data collated from a range of existing psychological and well-being measures have been integrated to develop a single ("holistic") metric, namely, psychological impairment. Morbidity, and impairment, were subsequently pooled for key disorders-, specifically PTSD, anxiety and depression. A "composite" (any impairment) post-exposure pooled-prevalence rate of 23% was estimated, with values of 24% calculated for depression and ⁓17% for both PTSD and anxiety. Notably, calculated pooled odds ratios (pOR = 1.9) indicate a high likelihood of any negative psychological outcome (+90%) following EWE exposure. Pooled analyses of reported risk factors (p < 0.05) highlight the pronounced impacts of EWEs among individuals with higher levels of event exposure or experienced stressors (14.5%) and socio-demographic traits traditionally linked to vulnerable sub-populations, including female gender (10%), previous history (i.e., pre-event) of psychological impairment (5.5%), lower socio-economic status (5.5%), and a lower education level (5.2%). Inherent limitations associated with collating mental health data from populations exposed to EWEs, and key knowledge gaps in the field are highlighted. Study findings provide a robust evidence base for developing and implementing public health intervention strategies aimed at ameliorating the psychological impacts of extreme weather among exposed populations.

Private groundwater contamination and extreme weather events: The role of demographics, experience and cognitive factors on risk perceptions of Irish private well users

Extreme weather events (EWEs) may significantly increase pathogenic contamination of private (unregulated) groundwater supplies. However, due to the paucity of protective guidance, private well users may be ill-equipped to undertake adaptive actions. With rising instances of waterborne illness documented in groundwater-dependent, developed regions such as the Republic of Ireland, a better understanding of well user risk perceptions pertaining to EWEs is required to establish appropriate educational interventions. To this end, the current study employed an online and physical questionnaire to identify current risk perceptions and correspondent predictors among Irish private well users concerning extreme weather. Respondents were elicited via purposive sampling, with 515 private well users elucidating perceived supply contamination risk in the wake of five EWEs between the years 2013-2018 including drought and pluvial flooding. A novel scoring protocol was devised to quantify overall risk perception (i.e. perceived likelihood, severity and consequences) of extreme weather impacts. Overall risk perception of EWEs was found to demonstrate a significant relationship with gender (p = 0.017) and event experience (p < 0.001), with female respondents and those reporting prior event experience exhibiting higher median risk perception scores. Risk perception was additionally mediated by perceived self-efficacy in undertaking supply maintenance (p = 0.001), as well users citing confidence in ability scored significantly lower than those citing no confidence. Two-step cluster analysis identified three distinct respondent subsets based on risk perception of EWEs (high, moderate and low perception), with female respondents and those with a third-level education significantly more likely to fall within the high perception cluster. Study findings affirm that certain demographic, experiential and cognitive factors exert a significant influence on private well user risk perceptions of EWE impacts and highlight potential focal points for future educational interventions seeking to reduce the risk of human infection associated with groundwater and extreme weather.

A discrete choice experiment exploring farmer preferences for insurance against extreme weather events

Agriculture represents one of the most vulnerable sectors to extreme weather events that are projected to increase with climate change. Insurance has been advocated as a more efficient means to ensure financial security to farmers, than post-disaster aid for damages. A potential drawback of insurance however, is that unless carefully designed it could dis-incentivise farmers to engage in wider farm adaptation measures or lead to more risk-taking behaviour. This paper analyses the attractiveness of publicly-backed climate risk insurance offerings to farmers and explores their preferences for elements of insurance schemes that do not negatively affect incentives for wider farm adaptation. Specifically, a discrete choice experiment is used to reveal Irish farmers' preferences for multi-annual insurance contracts and weather-indexed versus traditional indemnity insurance and cost. Results indicate that a majority of farmers are willing to buy publicly-backed insurance for protection from extreme weather events. Younger farmers, farmers who currently have farm insurance, farmers from certain geographical locations and farmers who have been previously affected by extreme weather events are more likely to buy insurance. With respect to the design of insurance schemes, farmers prefer multi-annual coverage versus annual renewal. They also prefer indexed-insurance and have a strong preference for cheaper coverage. Despite the important role that insurance could play in protecting farms financially from damage caused by extreme weather events, few studies have examined preference for weather-indexed insurance within a European context. New evidence on farmer preferences and intended behaviours is therefore critical to inform policy in this area.

Instability of decoupling livestock greenhouse gas emissions from economic growth in livestock products in the Tibetan highland

Livestock production is the major livelihood for a growing local population on the Tibetan plateau. However, government policy is to reduce the number of livestock due to the large quantities of greenhouse gasses (GHG), in particular methane, produced by ruminants and the degradation of the grasslands. For this policy to be effective, with little effect on livelihoods, there should be a decoupling of GHG emissions from economic growth of livestock products. This study examined the synergetic effects of policies, extreme climate events and GHG emissions from livestock at the headwater region of the Yellow River since 1980. Optimization models of GHG emissions efficiency and drivers were developed and parameterized. Trade-offs between GHG emissions from livestock and economic growth from livestock, determined by the decoupling model, showed that from 1980 to 2015: 1) the GHG emissions decreased by 39%; (2) CH₄ emissions from livestock decreased by 33%, and yaks emitted the most (accounted for 99.6%) among livestock; (3) N₂O emissions decreased by 34%; (4) trade-offs between livestock GHG emissions and grassland uptake indicated that the grazing livestock system functioned as a net carbon sink; (5) the efficiency factor, especially technical efficiency, was the main driver of GHG emissions; and (6) GHG emissions from livestock were in a decoupling state from economic growth from livestock. However, decoupling has not been stable as inter-annual fluctuations have been large mainly due to extreme climatic events, such as snowstorm disasters, which indicates that the grazing system was still relatively fragile. The GHG emissions can be reduced further by mitigating CH₄ emissions, and enhancing CO₂ sequestration on grazed pastureland. The ongoing transformation of livestock industry development on the Tibetan plateau is associated with uncertainty under the background of global GHG mitigation.

Major climate change-induced risks to human health in South Africa

There are many climatic changes facing South Africa which already have, or are projected to have, a detrimental impact on human health. Here the risks to health due to several alterations in the climate of South Africa are considered in turn. These include an increase in ambient temperature, causing, for example, a significant rise in morbidity and mortality; heavy rainfall leading to changes in the prevalence and occurrence of vector-borne diseases; drought-associated malnutrition; and exposure to dust storms and air pollution leading to the potential exacerbation of respiratory diseases. Existing initiatives and strategies to prevent or reduce these adverse health impacts are outlined, together with suggestions of what might be required in the future to safeguard the health of the nation. Potential roles for the health and non-health sectors as well as preparedness and capacity development with respect to climate change and health adaptation are considered.

Climate change and epilepsy: Insights from clinical and basic science studies

Climate change is with us. As professionals who place value on evidence-based practice, climate change is something we cannot ignore. The current pandemic of the novel coronavirus, SARS-CoV-2, has demonstrated how global crises can arise suddenly and have a significant impact on public health. Global warming, a chronic process punctuated by acute episodes of extreme weather events, is an insidious global health crisis needing at least as much attention. Many neurological diseases are complex chronic conditions influenced at many levels by changes in the environment. This review aimed to collate and evaluate reports from clinical and basic science about the relationship between climate change and epilepsy. The keywords climate change, seasonal variation, temperature, humidity, thermoregulation, biorhythm, gene, circadian rhythm, heat, and weather were used to search the published evidence. A number of climatic variables are associated with increased seizure frequency in people with epilepsy. Climate change-induced increase in seizure precipitants such as fevers, stress, and sleep deprivation (e.g. as a result of more frequent extreme weather events) or vector-borne infections may trigger or exacerbate seizures, lead to deterioration of seizure control, and affect neurological, cerebrovascular, or cardiovascular comorbidities and risk of sudden unexpected death in epilepsy. Risks are likely to be modified by many factors, ranging from individual genetic variation and temperature-dependent channel function, to housing quality and global supply chains. According to the results of the limited number of experimental studies with animal models of seizures or epilepsy, different seizure types appear to have distinct susceptibility to seasonal influences. Increased body temperature, whether in the context of fever or not, has a critical role in seizure threshold and seizure-related brain damage. Links between climate change and epilepsy are likely to be multifactorial, complex, and often indirect, which makes predictions difficult. We need more data on possible climate-driven altered risks for seizures, epilepsy, and epileptogenesis, to identify underlying mechanisms at systems, cellular, and molecular levels for better understanding of the impact of climate change on epilepsy. Further focussed data would help us to develop evidence for mitigation methods to do more to protect people with epilepsy from the effects of climate change.

Impact of high precipitation and temperature events on the distribution of emerging contaminants in surface water in the Mid-Atlantic, United States

Extreme weather events induced by climate change have potential to impact water quality and have received increasing attention from surface water source management perspectives. However, it remains unclear how such phenomenon may influence concentration of emerging contaminants (ECs) in surface water that are vital source of irrigation. In the present study, we investigated the impact of high precipitation and ambient temperature on the distribution of ECs in surface water samples (N = 250) from Mid-Atlantic region, collected between 2016 and 2018. We analyzed the water samples using a liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS) based method. We then investigated how the detection frequencies and concentrations of ten emerging contaminants were influenced by high precipitation and temperature events in the previous day or 7 days prior to the sampling events using a generalized additive model (GAM). We observed that heavy rainfalls occurring within 24 h before sampling increased the concentration/likelihood of detection of the ECs in surface waters, likely due to surface runoffs, remobilization from soil/sediment and sewage overflows. The impact of high precipitation during previous seven days varied across chemicals. Likewise, the detection frequency and concentration of most analytes increased with increasing temperature, in previous day of sampling event, likely due to enhanced solubility in water. Long-term high temperature events appeared to decrease the detection of the most tested ECs probably due to enhanced degradation. However, the potential risk of unknown degradation products cannot be ignored. Our results indicate potential decline of water quality after extreme weather events which may have implications for water source management under changing climate.

Extreme weather events in europe and their health consequences - A systematic review

BACKGROUND

Due to climate change, the frequency, intensity and severity of extreme weather events, such as heat waves, cold waves, storms, heavy precipitation causing wildfires, floods, and droughts are increasing, which could adversely affect human health. The purpose of this systematic review is therefore to assess the current literature about the association between these extreme weather events and their impact on the health of the European population.

METHODS

Observational studies published from January 1, 2007 to May 17, 2020 on health effects of extreme weather events in Europe were searched systematically in Medline, Embase and Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials. The exposures of interest included extreme temperature, heat waves, cold waves, droughts, floods, storms and wildfires. The health impacts included total mortality, cardiovascular mortality and morbidity, respiratory mortality and morbidity, and mental health. We conducted the systematic review following PRISMA (Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Review and Meta-analysis). The quality of the included studies was assessed using the NICE quality appraisal checklist (National Institute for Health and Care Excellence).

RESULTS

The search yielded 1472 articles, of which 35 met the inclusion criteria and were included in our review. Studies regarding five extreme weather events (extreme heat events, extreme cold events, wildfires, floods, droughts) were found. A positive association between extreme heat/cold events and overall, cardiovascular and respiratory mortality was reported from most studies. Wildfires are likely to increase the overall and cardiovascular mortality. Floods might be associated with the deterioration of mental health instead of mortality. Depending on their length, droughts could have an influence on both respiratory and cardiovascular mortality. Contradictory evidence was found in heat-associated morbidity and wildfire-associated respiratory mortality. The associations are inconclusive due to the heterogeneous study designs, study quality, exposure and outcome assessment.

CONCLUSIONS

Evidence from most of the included studies showed that extreme heat and cold events, droughts, wildfires and floods in Europe have negative impacts on human health including mental health, although some of the associations are not conclusive. Additional high-quality studies are needed to confirm our results and further studies regarding the effects of other extreme weather events in Europe are to be expected.

Houston hurricane Harvey health (Houston-3H) study: assessment of allergic symptoms and stress after hurricane Harvey flooding

BACKGROUND

In August 2017, Hurricane Harvey caused unprecedented flooding across the greater Houston area. Given the potential for widespread flood-related exposures, including mold and sewage, and the emotional and mental toll caused by the flooding, we sought to evaluate the short- and long-term impact of flood-related exposures on the health of Houstonians. Our objectives were to assess the association of flood-related exposures with allergic symptoms and stress among Houston-area residents at two time points: within approximately 30 days (T1) and 12 months (T2) after Hurricane Harvey's landfall.

METHODS

The Houston Hurricane Harvey Health (Houston-3H) Study enrolled a total of 347 unique participants from four sites across Harris County at two times: within approximately 1-month of Harvey (T1, n = 206) and approximately 12-months after Harvey (T2, n = 266), including 125 individuals who participated at both time points. Using a self-administered questionnaire, participants reported details on demographics, flood-related exposures, and health outcomes, including allergic symptoms and stress.

RESULTS

The majority of participants reported hurricane-related flooding in their homes at T1 (79.1%) and T2 (87.2%) and experienced at least one allergic symptom after the hurricane (79.4% at T1 and 68.4% at T2). In general, flood-exposed individuals were at increased risk of upper respiratory tract allergic symptoms, reported at both the T1 and T2 time points, with exposures to dirty water and mold associated with increased risk of multiple allergic symptoms. The mean stress score of study participants at T1 was 8.0 ± 2.1 and at T2, 5.1 ± 3.2, on a 0-10 scale. Participants who experienced specific flood-related exposures reported higher stress scores when compared with their counterparts, especially 1 year after Harvey. Also, a supplementary paired-samples analysis showed that reports of wheezing, shortness of breath, and skin rash did not change between T1 and T2, though other conditions were less commonly reported at T2.

CONCLUSION

These initial Houston-3H findings demonstrate that flooding experiences that occurred as a consequence of Hurricane Harvey had lasting impacts on the health of Houstonians up to 1 year after the hurricane.

Quantifying climate-induced drought risk to livelihood and mitigation actions in Balochistan

Climate change-induced disasters show the highest risk for agriculture and livelihoods in rural areas of developing countries. Due to changing rainfall pattern, the arid and semiarid region of Pakistan faces frequent droughts. Farming communities affected by drought disasters are causing serious threats to livelihood, global food crises, environmental migration, and sustainable development. The existing study was designed to quantify two key components through (1) analysis of agrometeorological data (1981-2017) with exploratory data analysis and Mann-Kendall trend analysis; (2) extensive field survey (200 households). The multivariate probit model has been run to detect determinants of coping and adaptive strategies by farmers. Our results showed that the farmers supposed that temperature and rainfall were highly fluctuating in recent years equally. Farmers adopted different coping and adaptive measures that include crop diversification, input adjustment, water management, asset depletion, income diversification, and migration to sustain their livelihood during stress periods. The agrometeorological data analysis revealed that the agricultural vulnerability to drought risks increased significantly, and the survey results projected that 64.7% of the population is exposed to drought directly or indirectly. Sen's slope quantification resulted in (0.025 °C) rise in temperature, (- 2.936 mm) decline in rainfall year^-1. Modeling future scenarios resulted in an increase in temperature up to 0.7 °C, 1.2 °C, and a decrease in precipitation up to 161.48 mm, 103.5 mm in 2040 and 2060. The study evaluated a huge gap in the provision of drought risk resilience services, crop insurance, and climate-smart training practices to build capacities among farmers to cope with the impacts of extreme weather conditions. Our research might provide the groundwork to upgrade actions to drought prevention and early warning in water scarcity areas.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION

The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s11069-021-04913-4.

Climate Change and Extreme Weather Events in Australia: Impact on Allergic Diseases

Several climate change-related predictions and observations have been documented for the Australian continent. Extreme weather events such as cycles of severe drought and damaging flooding are occurring with greater frequency and have a severe impact on human health. Two specific aspects of climate change affecting allergic and other respiratory disorders are outlined: firstly, the consequences of extreme weather events and secondly, the change in distribution of airborne allergens that results from various climate change factors.

The effects of climate change on infectious diseases with cutaneous manifestations

Background

Anthropogenic climate change affects the burden of infectious diseases via several interconnected mechanisms. In recent years, there has been greater awareness of the ways in which climate-sensitive infectious diseases pose a growing threat to global public health.

Objective

This study aimed to categorize and describe the effects of climate change on infectious diseases with skin manifestations.

Methods

A scoping review of the MEDLINE and PubMed online databases for climate-sensitive infections was performed in February and March 2020. A representative selection of conditions with skin manifestations was included in this review.

Results

Several representative climate-sensitive infectious diseases were identified in each of the following categories: vector-borne infectious diseases, infectious diseases associated with extreme weather events, and infectious diseases linked to human migration.

Conclusion

Climate variables directly influence the survival and reproduction of infectious microorganisms, their vectors, and their animal reservoirs. Due to sustained warmer temperatures at higher latitudes, climate change has expanded the geographic range of certain pathogenic microbes. More frequent climate change-related extreme weather events create circumstances where existing infectious microorganisms flourish and novel infections emerge. Climate instability is linked to increased human migration, which disrupts health care infrastructure as well as the habitats of microbes, vectors, and animal reservoirs and leads to widespread poverty and overcrowding. Dermatologists should understand that climate change will affect the burden and geographic distribution of infectious diseases, many of which have cutaneous signs and might be encountered in their regular practice.

Impact of extreme weather conditions on healthcare provision in urban Ghana

Extreme weather events pose significant threats to urban health in low- and middle-income countries, particularly in sub-Saharan Africa where there are systemic health challenges. This paper investigates health system vulnerabilities associated with flooding and extreme heat, along with strategies for resilience building by service providers and community members, in Accra and Tamale, Ghana. We employed field observations, rainfall records, temperature measurements, and semi-structured interviews in health facilities within selected areas of both cities. Results indicate that poor building conditions, unstable power supply, poor sanitation and hygiene, and the built environment reduce access to healthcare for residents of poor urban areas. Health facilities are sited in low-lying areas with poor drainage systems and can be 6 °C warmer at night than reported by official records from nearby weather stations. This is due to a combination of greater thermal inertia of the buildings and the urban heat island effect. Flooding and extreme heat interact with socioeconomic conditions to impact physical infrastructure and disrupt community health as well as health facility operations. Community members and health facilities make infrastructural and operational adjustments to reduce extreme weather stress and improve healthcare provision to clients. These measures include: mobilisation of residents to clear rubbish and unclog drains; elevating equipment to protect it from floods; improving ventilation during extreme heat; and using alternative power sources for emergency surgery and storage during outages. Stakeholders recommend additional actions to manage flood and heat impacts on health in their cities, such as, improving the capacity of drainage systems to carry floodwaters, and routine temperature monitoring to better manage heat in health facilities. Finally, more timely and targeted information systems and emergency response plans are required to ensure preparedness for extreme weather events in urban areas.

Waterborne outbreaks: a public health concern for rural municipalities with unchlorinated drinking water distribution systems

OBJECTIVES

The objective of this study is to describe an important waterborne outbreak of gastrointestinal illness observed in a rural municipality of Quebec.

METHODS

A population-based retrospective cohort study was conducted to identify risk factors associated with acute gastroenteritis. Indirect surveillance data were used to estimate the extent and the resolution of the epidemic.

RESULTS

The cohort consisted of 140 randomly selected individuals of whom 22 met the illness case definition (15.7% attack rate). The epidemic curve was similar to the evolution of antidiarrheal products sold by the only pharmacy in town and calls made to the Health Info Line. Bivariate analysis led to identifying five risk factors of gastrointestinal illness: consumption of municipal water, contact with someone with acute gastroenteritis (within and outside of the household), contact with a child in daycare, and being less than 35 years of age. Drinking municipal water had the highest risk ratio (RR = 24.31; 95% CI = 1.50-393.4). Drinking water from a private artesian well was a protective factor (RR = 0.28; 95% CI = 0.09-0.90).

CONCLUSION

This study highlighted that managing the risks associated with the consumption of untreated drinking water remains an important public health challenge, particularly in small rural municipalities vulnerable to climate variability.

Assessing the potential effect of extreme weather on water quality and disinfection by-product formation using laboratory simulation

Increased frequency and severity of extreme weather events (i.e., floods and droughts) combined with higher temperatures can threaten surface water quality and downstream drinking water production. This study characterized the effects of extreme weather events on dissolved organic matter (DOM) washout from watershed soils and the corresponding contribution to disinfection by-product (DBP) precursors under simulated weather conditions. A laboratory simulation was performed to assess the effects of temperature, drought, rainfall intensity, sea level rise, and acid deposition on the amount of DOM released from soil samples. DBP formation potentials (DBPFPs) were obtained to assess the effect of extreme weather events on DBP formation and drinking water quality. The results demonstrated that the dissolved organic carbon (DOC) and carbonaceous DBP levels increased with increasing temperature in a dry (drought) scenario. Regardless of the watershed from which a soil sample was obtained and the incubation temperature during rewetting or chlorination processes, the DOC and carbonaceous DBP levels also increased with increasing temperature. Brominated DBP formation was increased when bromide was present during the rewetting of soil, indicating the effect of sea level rise. When bromide was present during the chlorination of water for DBPFP tests, only the level of brominated DBPs increased. Acid deposition had various effects under different weather conditions. The results of heavy rainfall simulations suggested that water quality deteriorates at the beginning of an extreme rainfall event. Abundant DOM was washed out of soil, leading to a peak in the DBPFP level. The level of DOM in seepage water was less than that of the surface runoff water during rainfall. The situation was more severe when the rainfall came after a long drought and the drought-rewetting cycle effect occurred.