Europe’s Worst Heatwave On Record Raises Debates Over Air Conditioning Culture
Europe is currently enduring its worst heatwave on record, and it’s bracing for it to get even hotter as the summer progresses. The continent’s lack of air conditioning has often been a major point of contention for travelers and residents alike during the summer months. Now, health experts are entering the conversation over the culture of air conditioning, especially for vulnerable groups.
The head of the World Health Organization’s Europe office, Hans Kluge, said that “much of Europe’s investment has rightly gone into longer-term solutions like shade, insulation, and cooling centers, rather than mechanical cooling.”
The WHO office also recommends a “nuanced adoption” of air conditioning that specifically works to protect those at high risk, “both have a role,” Kluge said.
The Guardian recently reported on studies that suggest Europe’s efforts to adapt to modern cooling systems have decreased the death toll by 75% for the kind of heat that was considered to be extreme 20 years ago. However, it’s clear now that all over the world heatwaves and dangerously high temperatures have gotten even worse within the past two decades.
The WHO estimates that over 200,000 people have died from the heat in Europe within the last four years. In June, record-breaking heat levels will likely “yield a death toll in the thousands, if not low tens of thousands,” the publication reported.
These numbers are also well above the levels that are experienced in the US, where historic heatwaves are also occurring, but air conditioning is used in 90% of homes.
Although most political parties in Europe agree that hospitals, care homes, schools, and public transport should all have proper air conditioning, many mainstream parties are also blocking air conditioning services due to not viewing climate change as a serious concern.
For example, this year, the day after Germany broke their heat record, Marc Bernhard, the construction spokesperson for the far-right Alternative für Deutschland (AfD) stated that his party would stop people “being sacrificed on the altar of mainstream climate ideology. Climate hysteria is leading to more heat-related deaths due to ideological construction errors such as abstaining from air conditioning.”
In France, on the other hand, Marin Le Pen’s National Rally has been fighting against renovations to make buildings energy-efficient and even has tried to block wind turbines and solar panels. However, the rally has also made air conditioning a main focus while simultaneously going against policies to combat climate change.
In some of the world’s richest nations, including the US, Australia, and Japan, air conditioning is normalized, however, only around 15% of the 3.5 billion people living in regions with some of the highest global temperatures own an AC unit.
The demand for global cooling is expected to increase significantly within the next decade and beyond. For example, in south-east Asia, the International Energy Agency expects the number of air conditioners to “rise ninefold” between 2020 and 2040 if current policies remain.
While air conditioning can impact climate change due to the fact that it expels hot air into surrounding streets and the energy use can increase the risk of blackouts, in Europe the risk of these detrimental effects is significantly lower than other urban areas around the world.
Additionally, although there are laws in some areas that make it difficult to install air conditioning in private buildings, there isn’t a lot of data to back up that this is the driving reason for the low amounts of air conditions adopted throughout the continent.
Despite all of this, there are many citizens throughout Europe that are protecting themselves from the extreme heat and cooling their homes. Reports indicate that the share of households in Italy and Spain with air conditioning has grown to more than 50%, and in France it’s risen to 24%.
On the opposite end, Germany has some of the lowest air conditioning installations in Europe. This is partially due to a large proportion of renters, but a lot of it has to do with homeowners not being able to justify the cost even with record-breaking temperatures and dangerous conditions.
Gabriele Werner, a worker in the tourist information office of Neuzelle, said that they’d “consider getting air conditioning if the summers keep getting hotter, but when it’s just a few days [they] can bear it.”
The Guardian actually visited Neuzelle and their neighboring district of Neißemünde, where they reported that the response to the recent heat wasn’t met with any urgency or sympathy for those suffering.
Reinhard Lang, a retired electrician who lives in a 150-year-old house, told the publication that “climate change is just a word that gets trumpeted. Back when I was a child, it was also warm. It just wasn’t played up.”
Kluge stated that Europe’s strong emergency response to their recent heat has saved lives.
“The priority now is ensuring AC reaches people for whom it’s a medical necessity, while continuing to build out the infrastructure – trees, green roofs, cooler buildings – that protects everyone, including people who simply can’t fit a unit in their home.”
Dr. Chloe Brimicombe, a climate scientist at Oxford University who focuses on extreme heat gave some of the other solutions that are being looked into as well. “We are currently focusing a lot of our energy and water resources during heatwaves on cooling data centers.”
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Eric Mastrota is a Contributing Editor at The National Digest based in New York. A graduate of SUNY New Paltz, he reports on world news, culture, and lifestyle. You can reach him at eric.mastrota@thenationaldigest.com.
