Recently the weather has been grey, wet, and cold, disappointing as it is the Easter holidays. The rain was necessary for nature though, as the weather has been too dry in the months since December.
Humans have always been prone to talking about the weather, and that will not change in the future. With climate change, weather conditions will have more of a direct impact on how we as humans design our daily lives, especially in periods of extreme weather.
The climatologist Andrew Ferrone suggested a few examples to aid in the latter:
“In the event of heatwaves, it is important to drink a lot of water and to avoid sports activities outside in the peak of heat. It is better to work out in the morning or in the evening, when the sun has cooled down. Every individual needs to instate these measures for their own good. In the event of floods, people need to protect themselves efficiently, with the right measures. If the water gets into the house, one should remain in the upper parts of the building, and by no means should one try to remove the car from the garage.”
Even though Luxembourg’s climate has changed, you will not be seeing palm trees across the streets. Nevertheless, it is crucial to plan for the future while still living in the present. Small changes can already have an impact, argues Andrew Ferrone.
“It looks like people are starting to place stones in their gardens. However, if it comes to heatwaves and strong rainfall, that will not help. So, shading is important. One can even go so far as to advise those who have the possibility to take shading all the way to the facade, as that really cools the house down.”
The planning, construction, and planting of greenery should be decided in keeping with the country’s natural air conditioners and the CO2 reservoir, the forests.
“There are a lot of places, even recently renovated, where concrete is still the primary lining, thus the developers did not consider the impact of forests. There is still room for improvement. When cities or communes are planning new districts, it is essential to include trees and plants because of their many advantages. On the one hand, they lower temperatures, they soak up rainfall in times of heavy precipitation. On the other hand, they stock CO2 which helps to limit climate change as well as improve air quality.”
The fight against climate change, prioritising the reduction of CO2 emissions, must remain at the top of the political agenda, even in times of strained geopolitics, appeal climatologists. If climate change is neglected, we are not going to be able to reach the goal of being climate neutral by 2050. Andrew Ferrone is content that the World Economic Forum for economy has recognised climate change as the largest danger for humanity in the long run.
