Lack of heat action plan leaves Hong Kong’s vulnerable residents at risk, experts warn
Environmentalists and academics have criticised the omission of a systemic heat-health action plan in Hong Kong’s first five-year plan and latest policy address, warning that relying on “common sense” is failing to protect vulnerable residents from rising temperatures. Their comments came as new research from the University of Hong Kong (HKU) found that extreme heat may have contributed to as…
Environmentalists and academics in Hong Kong have raised concerns over the absence of a comprehensive heat-health action plan in the city's recent policy documents, despite extreme heat being linked to a significant number of excess deaths in the past decade. The University of Hong Kong's research found that heatwaves between 2014 and 2023 may have contributed to 1,455 to 3,238 excess deaths, with the latest estimate being closer to the higher end.
Despite the government's efforts to improve interdepartmental collaboration through initiatives like the "city brain," environmentalists argue that a cross-departmental heat action plan is crucial for protecting vulnerable residents, particularly the elderly, from rising temperatures.
Brief written by urgent.news from South China Morning Post's own syndicated text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
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