If global warming is not stopped, more than 16,000 hospitals around the world will be completely or partially destroyed by 2100. According to a published study, nine are in Portugal.
XDI, a company specialized in measuring climate risks, analyzed more than 200,000 hospital units and revealed that one in twelve hospital infrastructure will be destroyed due to extreme weather events linked to climate change.
If global warming is not stopped, 16,245 buildings will be affected by the end of the century.
In Portugal, 372 hospital units have been analyzed and according to the study, by the end of the century there will be nine infrastructures affected by meteorological phenomena such as floods or extreme winds.
“Our analysis shows that without a rapid phase-out of fossil fuels, global health risks will further increase as thousands of hospitals will be unable to provide services during crises,” warned Karl Mallon, Director of Science and Technology at XDI.
Portugal appears to be one of the least affected European countries, next to Iceland (also with nine buildings destroyed), and only slightly worse than Ireland and Norway (both with five hospitals affected) or Sweden (6).
All other European countries will be hit harder, especially Italy, with 137 infrastructures destroyed.
According to XDI, the areas most at risk of hospital collapse in a high-emissions scenario are Southeast Asia, where one in five hospitals will be affected.
The most affected areas are coastal areas and areas close to rivers.
“Currently, river and surface flooding dominate the risk of damage to hospitals. By the end of the century, coastal flooding will increase rapidly (exacerbated by rising sea levels) and become the main hazard after river flooding in 2100,” the report noted.
Analysis of the health of hospitals around the world reveals six risks associated with climate change: coastal flooding, river flooding, surface water flooding, forest fires, extreme winds and cyclonic winds.
The analysis focuses on the physical damage caused to building structures and calculates how different emission scenarios can reduce the risk.
The publication of the research coincides with the first Health Day at the COP28 climate summit, currently taking place in Dubai.
Again, this is an issue that affects the poorest, as seven in ten hospitals (71%) that could be affected are in low- or middle-income countries.
Source: DN
