Heat is also increasingly becoming a health risk in Bavaria. From the point of view of politics and science, so-called heat action plans, with which cities and municipalities can determine for themselves how their citizens can get through the hot days, could help against this. “They will not only save lives, but also improve the quality of life and reduce the burden of disease,” says environmental doctor Claudia Traidl-Hoffmann from the University of Augsburg of the German Press Agency. The problem: While the heat has long since arrived, there is no known municipality in Bavaria that has already implemented an action plan.
There are now several cities in Bavaria that have at least announced a heat action plan. Nuremberg, for example: “The aim of the heat action plan is, above all, to efficiently and helpfully communicate the health consequences of extreme heat and how to deal with the heat,” said a press release a few days ago. “In order to cope with the increasing heat, we have to rebuild our city in the next few years. It’s a mega project.” The plan is to be implemented from autumn, at least there is currently a map with drinking water fountains. The administration is also planning to publish a city map with cool places. For this purpose, citizens should be questioned.
Cities heat up more
In general, a heat action plan can contain a wide variety of measures. From information material for people to complex infrastructure measures such as unsealing roads and creating new green spaces. Numerous other cities are also working on a heat action plan, for example Regensburg and Würzburg are driving the issue forward, according to the Ministry of Health. In Munich, the city council must first decide that a plan will be developed. That could happen this year.
Cities are more affected by heat than smaller communities, says Traidl-Hoffmann from the University of Augsburg. On the one hand it is hotter, on the other hand the pollution is higher. But even in small villages, a mayor should actually know where pensioners live, for example in attic apartments – so that one can help in an emergency. It is not recorded centrally whether there is already a municipality with an active action plan. “According to information from the Ministry of Health, no municipality in Bavaria has yet completed a heat action plan,” reports Patrick Friedl, the Greens’ climate adaptation expert in the Bavarian state parliament. According to his own statements, he is referring to a survey by the Ministry of Health in Bavarian municipalities, which was presented at a committee meeting. Around 12.5 percent of the municipalities took part.
“There is a lack of attention,” says Traidl-Hoffmann when asked about the implementation of the plans in Bavaria. “Cities like Cologne and Worms, for example, have good information on their websites about the danger emanating from the heat.” Perhaps people in Bavaria don’t take it so seriously because there are good natural retreats. When asked by the dpa, a spokeswoman for the Ministry of Health said that the municipalities, cities and districts are already being supported when it comes to heat protection. For example, together with the State Office for Health and Food Safety (LGL), information is made available to the municipalities, for example via a toolbox that is freely accessible online. “We are also promoting the networking of the municipalities in Bavaria, for example by conducting heat workshops.”
There is a great need for action
Patrick Friedl from the Greens is not enough. Planting trees and unsealing areas are huge investments for municipalities. Because they fear it, many municipalities don’t even dare to come up with a heat action plan, says the member of parliament and comes to the conclusion: “Climate adaptation needs funding.” A study by the Robert Koch Institute (RKI) states: “Numerous studies not only show that high temperatures lead to an increased burden on the health system, but can also prove a systematic connection between heat events and increased mortality.” According to this, there were around 8,700 heat-related deaths in Germany in 2018, around 6,900 in 2019 and around 3,700 in 2020.
Again and again, emergency rooms report higher stress on hot days. Traidl-Hoffmann can confirm this for the Augsburg University Hospital: “After several days of hot weather, we see more older people with kidney diseases, cardiovascular diseases. Also often people with dementia who forget to drink anyway and are then even more dehydrated.” She is certain: “There is a very, very great need for action.”