Nearly 13 deaths on average per day. Since 1980, extreme weather and climate phenomena have cost some 195,000 lives in Europe, according to the European Environment Agency (EEA), which calls on Wednesday to initiate new measures.
These events also “caused economic losses estimated at 560 billion euros in the EU between 1980 and 2021, of which only 170 billion euros (30%) were insured”, notes the European agency, which puts online a new portal bringing together the most recent data. In February 2022, the death toll stood at 510 billion euros and 142,000 dead, for the period 1980-2020.
Particularly costly floods
In terms of victims, a change in the methodology used in France and Germany is at the origin of the large variation, specifies the AEE. In the new inventory, heat waves account for 81% of the death toll and 15% of financial damage. With much lower human losses (2% of the total), floods are the costliest disasters, accounting for 56% of the bill.
Marked by repeated heat waves, the not yet counted summer of 2022 saw a higher than usual number of deaths across Europe. There were 53,000 (16%) more deaths in July 2022 than the monthly averages for 2016-2019, not all of which were directly attributed to heat, the EEA said. Spain recorded more than 4,600 extreme heat-related deaths between June and August.
Climate models predict longer, more intense and more frequent extreme heat waves, which must force Europe to act to protect its aging population. “Most national adaptation policies (…) recognize the effects of heat on the cardiovascular and respiratory systems, but less than half cover the direct effects of heat such as dehydration or heatstroke,” notes l ‘institute.
Alarming prospects for agriculture
On soils, human-induced climate change has increased the likelihood of drought five to six times in 2022, in which forest fires have affected more than double the area compared to recent years. Droughts could prove extremely costly. Their cost could increase from nine billion euros per year currently to 25 billion at the end of the century if the warming is 1.5°C, but it could climb to 31 billion for 2°C and 45 billion for 3°C , according to the scientific scenarios.
For agriculture, the consequences could be “devastating”. “Farmers can limit the negative effects (…) by adapting crop varieties, changing sowing dates and modifying irrigation methods,” says the AEE. Because, “if we do not adapt more, yields and agricultural incomes should decrease in the future”.