Exposure to heat and air pollution in Europe – cardiopulmonary impacts and benefits of mitigation and adaptation (EXHAUSTION)

During periods of extreme heat and decreasing rain fall, the risk of wildland fires increases, which can cause intense air pollution, markedly in the form of particulate matter. Especially in Southern Europe, one fears an increased risk of wildfires. High levels of ozone have been observed during recent heat waves events, and it is estimated that climate change may increase summer ozone levels, which also constitutes a major health risk. Air pollution is today the environmental challenge associated with the highest mortality in Europe.

Reducing the rate of increasing cases of heart and lung diseases, or even avoiding them altogether with preventative measures, will substantially impact society by saving healthcare costs and improve quality-of-life through reduce suffering for many people.

The EXHAUSTION project aims at identifying adaptation strategies that will help avoid premature death and disease among vulnerable groups: older people, infants, the chronically ill, and disadvantaged people. 

Based on the most updated and advanced climate modelling efforts, the EU-funded EXHAUSTION project develops exposure projections. It draws on a time-series database in a multi-country observational study and rich cohort data bases to investigate the relation between heat, air pollution and cardiopulmonary disease (CPD). The project identifies how a range of vulnerability factors may affect the probabilities for CPD arising from extreme heat and wildfires and develop advanced adaptation strategies.

The project's results are available in the resource and in the report pages.

ECCA 2021 - Climate Adaptation solutions video - EXHAUSTION