How climate change fuels extreme weather events
We are feeling the impacts of climate change now.
Heatwaves are fast becoming the new norm in the UK. And we're likely to see more intense flooding and droughts globally. This is largely due to humans burning coal, oil and gas, as well as cutting down forests.
If we don't stop doing these things, the planet will continue to heat up. Each degree of warming will bring more extreme weather, placing communities across the world at risk of wildfires, floods and droughts.
Heatwaves: the growing threat
What's a heatwave?
A heatwave is a long period of unusually hot weather. It can lead to widespread drought and increase the risk of wildfires.
Heatwaves harm crops and wildlife and can be deadly to humans. Air stagnates so pollution sticks around in the environment, instead of being replaced with fresh air.
Climate change is making the chance of seeing 40°C — as we saw in 2022 — more likely in the UK.
The super-rich and big polluters should pay for climate action
Tax the super-richWhat are the impacts of heatwaves on people?
Extreme heat and high levels of air pollution are dangerous. People with heart conditions, asthma and severe allergies are most at risk.
4,500 deaths were recorded during the 2022 heatwave in England. Many of these were linked to the high temperatures and were therefore preventable.
Heat-related deaths could become a summer norm killing up to 10,000 people a year by 2050 according to the Climate Change Committee's 'A well Adapted UK' report. It's another good reason to demand urgent climate action from our government.
Drought impacts and causes
What causes drought?
Prolonged periods of low rainfall can lead to drought, though other factors are often involved. Scorching hot weather causes more water to evaporate into thin air, and climate change is leading to more intense heatwaves that are drying out crops and landscapes.
Cutting down forests also contributes to drought. This is because trees increase rainfall. Large-scale deforestation reduces rainfall in some areas.
In 2022, extreme and unusual weather triggered droughts in Europe. Meteorologists said this could be the continent’s worst year in more than 5 centuries.
Who's affected by drought?
Droughts are among the most expensive weather-related disasters in the world. They affect plants, animals and people in unimaginable ways.
Heatwaves have scorched land and emptied reservoirs in the UK. This has led to hosepipe bans, dying crops and farmers struggling to feed livestock. But it doesn't compare to drought in places like southern India where it's got so bad that some farmers have taken their own lives.
Wildfires and climate change
Frequency and causes of wildfires
Fires broke out across Europe during the 2018 heatwave, from Sweden to Portugal to Greece. Australia saw unprecedented fires in 2019-20, and even the Arctic had more than 100 long-lived and intense fires in summer 2019.
Hot weather increases the danger of wildfires, whether they've been started deliberately or not. When forests remain drier for longer it creates the conditions for wildfires to ignite and spread.
Climate change is driving up temperatures – increasing the danger wildfires pose around the Mediterranean. And scientists expect wildfires around the world to burn more land as temperatures continue to rise.
Impact of wildfires
Wildfires cause heartache and misery. They're a major driver of greenhouse gas emissions and are also responsible for 5-8% of the 3.3 million annual premature deaths from poor air quality.
In southern Colorado, a wildfire ravaged more than 130 homes and blackened nearly 170 square miles – more land than 60,000 Wembley pitches.
Even in the UK, wildfires raged in places like Saddleworth Moor.
Flood risk and climate change
Greater risk of flooding
The super-rich and big polluters should pay for climate action
Tax the super-rich
Flooded homes and businesses
Hurricanes and storm surges
More destructive hurricanes and typhoons
These fierce storms produce violent winds (74 miles per hour or more), dangerous waves, torrential rain and flooding.
Hurricanes and typhoons are the same thing. They're both tropical cyclones that form over warm ocean waters near the equator.
Human-caused global warming is raising sea levels and ocean temperatures. These conditions are likely to create more intense tropical cyclones – carrying higher wind speeds and more rain.
Higher storm surges
A storm surge happens when water is pushed towards the shore by strong hurricane winds. If the surge hits normal high tide, it can rear up to 20 feet or more, causing extreme flooding in coastal areas.
Climate change is likely to lead to higher storm surges as sea levels rise.
Higher sea levels give storm surges a higher starting point, increasing their size and reach when they make landfall.
The dangers of hurricanes
Intense hurricanes have increased in the past few decades, threatening more people. Dangers include flying debris, flooding and disruption to vital services like healthcare.
Hurricanes range from (1) a risk of minimal damage to (5) catastrophic. Hurricane Maria, which hit Puerto Rico in 2017, was a category 5. It's estimated to have killed over 4,600 people. It was one of 3 major Atlantic hurricanes to make landfall in the same year.
2020 saw the second highest number of hurricanes in the USA, which resulted in the death of more than 400 people.
Global warming is likely to result in more devastating hurricanes.
