The Role of Technology in Affecting Vulnerability to Heat Disasters in a Warming World
Abstract
Extreme heat is currently among the most significant weather-related health threats faced by urban residents. This threat will continue to grow due to a combination of urbanization, global warming, and increasing reliance on air conditioning. Given that individuals in cities spend more than 85% of their time in indoor environments, it is not surprising that indoor heat exposure in the US is implicated in nearly half of all cases of heat-related deaths. This is despite the fact that nationwide, nearly 90% of all homes are equipped with air conditioning (AC); in the south, residential AC market penetration exceeds 95%. While access to air conditioning is increasing rapidly worldwide, the net effect on heat-related morbidity and mortality is mixed. Specifically, the growing reliance on air conditioning has resulted in residents that are less acclimated to heat, and buildings that are less resilient to extreme heat when air conditioning is not functioning or not present. For some of the most at-risk populations (elderly and poor), even when AC is present, it is often times not functioning properly or not operational due to economic constraints. The risks are considerable if loss of AC coincides with a hot weather episode (henceforth, a heat disaster). We have used whole building simulations of residential buildings in various climates to explore the effects of AC outages on US residential buildings. We found that 1 in 6 Americans live in cities that are highly vulnerable to heat disasters, and evolving building codes and practices are increasing the vulnerability. Climate change and urban growth in cities worldwide will exacerbate the risks. While energy efficiency is a longstanding focus of building construction standards and codes, it is crucial to also consider building thermal resiliency, so that risks of large-scale heat disasters can be reduced.
- Publication:
-
AGU Fall Meeting Abstracts
- Pub Date:
- December 2019
- Bibcode:
- 2019AGUFMGH33A..02S
- Keywords:
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- 0240 Public health;
- GEOHEALTH;
- 1630 Impacts of global change;
- GLOBAL CHANGE;
- 4313 Extreme events;
- NATURAL HAZARDS;
- 4330 Vulnerability;
- NATURAL HAZARDS