A new Climate Analytics study, part of the ACCREU Project, reveals how extreme heat, especially when combined with drought, will deepen poverty and inequality. The study shows that in a 1.5°C world, the combined impact of heatwaves and drought could reduce household incomes in Europe by around 7.5% on average.
If climate change warms the world to 2.7°C,the path we are on based on current policies and actions, European household incomes could drop 27% from heatwaves and drought. This could mean 60 million people in Europe at risk of poverty in a 1.5°C world, rising to 127 million in a 2.7°C world, all from the impacts of heatwaves and droughts alone.
The combined impact of heatwaves and drought is much greater than the sum of the individual events. Looking at data from 2004-2022, the study found on average a heatwave in Europe will reduce household incomes by 0.7% and droughts by 1.8%. When they occur together– particularly in drought-stricken regions – the average income loss rises to nearly 3%.
Climate Analytics’ recent work shows that there is still a path to safe levels of warming by 2100. By acting now to limit global warming to well below 1.5°C, we can minimise the loss of income and reduce the risk of poverty from climate change-induced heatwaves and droughts on Europe’s most vulnerable people.
Climate Analytics press release: https://lnkd.in/gYZnvzDS
Compound dry-and-hot extremes exacerbate income inequality and poverty in Europe
by Schleypen, Jessie Ruth; Saeed, Fahad; Zimmer, Anne; Brück, Tilman