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For EU Member States, information is based on their official adaptation reporting: 2023 and 2021 adaptation reporting under the Regulation on the Governance of the Energy Union and Climate Action (see EU Adaptation Reporting, Climate-ADAPT Country Profiles). Note: The relevant information has been copied from the EU official reporting on adaptation (submitted until 15 November 2023), without further elaborating the contents of the text. Some information, valid at the time of reporting, may no longer be valid today. Any necessary additions to the text are clearly highlighted. In addition, information collated in the EEA’s analysis of Climate change and health: the national policy review in Europe (2021). Note: Some information, valid at the time of publication, may no longer be valid today. Any necessary additions to the text are clearly highlighted. 

Information from Governance Regulation reporting on adaptation (2023, 2021)

The health sector is addressed in the Latvian National Plan for Adaptation to Climate Change until 2030 (NAP, 2019). One of the NAP’s five strategic goals to address climate change risks is: Human life, health and wellbeing are protected from the adverse effects of climate change. This goal includes measures like improvement of early warning system (especially on weather extremes), access to free drinking water in public places, awareness rising among educational and social care institutions, development of recommendations for social care institutions and social workers on health prevention measures during heat waves, etc.

Health is one of the sectors included in the system for monitoring adaptation to climate change on a national scale designed by the Latvian Environment, Geology and Meteorology Centre. Such a monitoring system is essential for further development of national political strategies, since it consists of data and indicators that measure vulnerability of different economic sectors due to climate change.

Ministry of Environmental Protection and Regional Development, in cooperation with BaltConsults, Estonian. Latvian & Lithuanian Environment, Process Analysis and Research Centre, LVMI Silava and the Green Liberty Society have developed studies on risk and vulnerability assessment and identification of adaptation measures in six areas including health and wellbeing.

National policies on climate change adaptation and national health strategies were analysed to identify the coverage of climate-related impacts on health (physical, mental, and social) and the types of interventions addressing them. The report provides a European overview, while the geographical coverage of various aspects of national policies across Europe can be visualized using the map viewer. The results for Latvia are summarised here.

Aspects covered in the reviewed policy document:

Information from EU official reporting on adaptation. GovReg reporting (2021), MMR reporting (2019)

One of the sectors addressed in the National Adaptation Plan  (NAP, 2019) is health and welfare. The Ministry of Health is among the ministries responsible for implementation of the NAP.

The overall climate change adaptation priority of Latvia is to reduce the vulnerability of people, economy, infrastructure, construction and environment to the impacts of climate change. To meet this aim, the NAP has more than 80 concrete adaptation measures and 5 Strategic goals to address climate change risks. Disaster risk management and civil protection is one of the five strategic goals of NAP: 'Human life, health and well-being, regardless of gender, age and social background, are protected from the adverse effects of climate change'. To achieve the goal there are planned measures to address both – human health and well-being, and civil protection, such as improvement of early warning system (especially on weather extremes), access to free drinking water in public places, awareness rising among educational and social care institutions, development of recommendations for social care institutions and social workers on health prevention measures during heat waves etc.

Assessments on primary and secondary impacts of climate change, risks and vulnerability have been carried out, which also included cost-benefit analysis for adaptation measures, indicators and draft for the monitoring system. The analysed sectors also covered health and welfare.

Resources in the Observatory catalogue on Latvia

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