Urban green spaces have vital role in cutting heat-related deaths, study finds

 

Abundant green space in urban areas is linked to lower rates of heat-related illness and deaths, as well as better mental health and wellbeing. Photograph: Peter Eastland/Alamy

 

Green spaces in cities play a vital role in reducing illness and deaths caused by climate breakdown, according to the most comprehensive study of its kind.

The findings of the review suggest that adding more parks, trees and greenery to urban areas could help countries tackle heat-related harms and improve public health.

The record for the world’s hottest day tumbled twice in one week earlier this year when the global average surface air temperature reached 17.15C (62.87F) breaking the record of 17.09C set days earlier.

The climate crisis is driving up global temperatures as greenhouse gas emissions released when humans burn fossil fuels warm the Earth’s atmosphere.

 

The overall beneficial effects of green spaces is well established, but until now their effects on heat-related health risks were poorly understood.

Now a review of the evidence led by the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine suggests that abundant green space in urban areas is linked to lower rates of heat-related illness and deaths, as well as better mental health and wellbeing.

“Urban green spaces play a vital role in mitigating heat-related health risks, offering a potential strategy for urban planning to address climate change and enhance public health,” the researchers wrote in the journal BMJ Open.

“A review of urban greenery and its effect on heat-related morbidity and mortality suggests that urban green spaces, such as parks and trees, can have a positive impact on reducing the negative health effects associated with high temperatures,” they added.

“Studies have found that areas with more green space have lower rates of heat-related morbidity and mortality compared with areas with less green space. Moreover, urban greenery can also have a positive impact on mental health and wellbeing, which can also contribute to reducing the negative health effects of high temperatures.”

In recognition of the harmful heat-related effects of climate breakdown, one of the UN’s sustainable development targets stipulates the provision of universal access to safe and accessible green and public spaces, especially for vulnerable groups, such as children, elderly people, and those living with long-term conditions, by 2030.

For the review, researchers looked at the effects of green zones on death and ill health in urban areas across the globe, drawing on relevant published research.

They included content published in English between January 2000 and December 2022, and reviewed 12 studies out of an initial haul of more than 3,000 from Hong Kong, Australia, Vietnam, the US, South Korea, Portugal and Japan.

 

These included epidemiological, modelling, and simulation studies, as well as experimental research and quantitative analyses.

The review showed that urban green spaces such as parks and trees could help offset the adverse health effects of high temperatures. Areas with more green space had lower rates of heat-related ill health and death than areas with less green space, particularly among vulnerable groups.

Access to green spaces is an example of health inequalities facing people worldwide.

A Guardian investigation revealed earlier this year that children at the top 250 private schools in England had more than 10 times as much green space as those who go to state schools.

Doctors also warned that a “truly alarming” lack of access to green space for some families was exacerbating the child obesity crisis.

 

South Korea’s MH Bio-Energy lost 'a lot of money' in 11 days of closure after factory waste was blamed for a large fish kill

AN official at MH Bio-Energy Group told the Post Sunday that the government had given permission to the South Korean company to reopen its bio-ethanol factory in Kandal province's Duong village after meeting necessary safety requirements, despite previous complaints over pollution that led to its closure at the end of August. Sar Peov, the head of the company's administration office, said the factory reopened Friday. "The ... Ministry of Industry and Ministry of Environment allowed us to reopen," he said, adding that the company had fitted new waste-storage facilities, as requested by the ministries, to deal with a "malfunctioning" waste-disposal system. Sat Samy, secretary of state at the Ministry of Industry, Mines and Energy, confirmed Sunday that the facility was allowed to reopen on Friday following the visit of a committee made up of both ministries. "Perhaps the factory fulfilled what the ministries required," he said. Sat Samy added that he had not seen the government's report following Friday's visit. The factory - which refines dried cassava to produce bio-ethanol - was closed by the government on August 31 after it was thought to be producing toxic waste following the discovery of tens of thousands of dead fish in nearby waterways. On Friday morning, the Post witnessed trucks loaded with fresh supplies of cassava queuing on National Highway 5 waiting to enter the factory. Following 11 days of closure, Sar Peov said the company had "lost a lot of money" but was unable to put an exact figure on the financial impact following the recent controversy. "However, we are not thinking much about the loss. It is good our company was allowed to reopen," he said, while moving to calm fears over the future safety of the plant. "Now we are operating as normal." Shortly after closure of the factory, cassava farmers and dealers called for it to reopen, saying they would lose hundreds of thousands of dollars, citing a lack of alternative buyers within the Kingdom. Cassava production has developed quickly in Cambodia on the back of expectations that the crop could be sold across the border in Thailand. However, this year Thai officials have routinely placed blockades on the Kingdom's cassava exports. Even when the border has opened to exports of the crop, farmers and dealers in Cambodia have complained that prices in Thailand are not high enough, often below the wholesale price. MH Bio-Energy Director Lee Dong Jun previously said that the company expected to export 20,000 tonnes of bio-ethanol during the remainder of 2009 to add to the same volume it had already sold to buyers in Europe during the first half of the year.

South Korea’s MH Bio-Energy lost 'a lot of money' in 11 days of closure after factory waste was blamed for a large fish kill

AN official at MH Bio-Energy Group told the Post Sunday that the government had given permission to the South Korean company to reopen its bio-ethanol factory in Kandal province's Duong village after meeting necessary safety requirements, despite previous complaints over pollution that led to its closure at the end of August. Sar Peov, the head of the company's administration office, said the factory reopened Friday. "The ... Ministry of Industry and Ministry of Environment allowed us to reopen," he said, adding that the company had fitted new waste-storage facilities, as requested by the ministries, to deal with a "malfunctioning" waste-disposal system. Sat Samy, secretary of state at the Ministry of Industry, Mines and Energy, confirmed Sunday that the facility was allowed to reopen on Friday following the visit of a committee made up of both ministries. "Perhaps the factory fulfilled what the ministries required," he said. Sat Samy added that he had not seen the government's report following Friday's visit. The factory - which refines dried cassava to produce bio-ethanol - was closed by the government on August 31 after it was thought to be producing toxic waste following the discovery of tens of thousands of dead fish in nearby waterways. On Friday morning, the Post witnessed trucks loaded with fresh supplies of cassava queuing on National Highway 5 waiting to enter the factory. Following 11 days of closure, Sar Peov said the company had "lost a lot of money" but was unable to put an exact figure on the financial impact following the recent controversy. "However, we are not thinking much about the loss. It is good our company was allowed to reopen," he said, while moving to calm fears over the future safety of the plant. "Now we are operating as normal." Shortly after closure of the factory, cassava farmers and dealers called for it to reopen, saying they would lose hundreds of thousands of dollars, citing a lack of alternative buyers within the Kingdom. Cassava production has developed quickly in Cambodia on the back of expectations that the crop could be sold across the border in Thailand. However, this year Thai officials have routinely placed blockades on the Kingdom's cassava exports. Even when the border has opened to exports of the crop, farmers and dealers in Cambodia have complained that prices in Thailand are not high enough, often below the wholesale price. MH Bio-Energy Director Lee Dong Jun previously said that the company expected to export 20,000 tonnes of bio-ethanol during the remainder of 2009 to add to the same volume it had already sold to buyers in Europe during the first half of the year.