Cities at the epicentre of climate risks, report finds

Four in five cities across the world are facing critical climate hazards such as heatwaves, floods and droughts, according to data from environmental group CDP.

The report by CDP, titled Protecting People and the Planet, surveyed 998 cities and found that in addition to 80% of them facing extreme climate events, climate-related hazards threaten at least 70% of the populations of almost one-third of the cities surveyed.

CDP is a London-based non-profit organisation that runs a disclosure system for companies, cities and states worldwide to report the environmental impact of their operations.

It said nearly two-thirds of cities expect the hazards to become more intense, while more than half anticipate them becoming more frequent by 2025.

Among numerous cities hit so far this year are Karachi in Pakistan, where devastating flooding has killed nearly 1,700 people; and Fort Myers in Florida, where Hurricane Ian killed more than 100 people.

The elderly, those in low-income households, children and marginalised minority communities were most exposed, and policymakers needed to reflect the needs of citizens when planning their response to the climate crisis, the CDP said.

“Putting people at the heart of climate action, from planning to implementation, improves lives,” said acting global director Maia Kutner.

Almost two-thirds of cities were taking at least one people-centred course of climate action and seeing benefits, the report shows, including better health and social protections, economic enhancements and environmental improvement.

However, not all cities can adopt such approaches and the CDP said greater financial support from governments was required to enable environmentally sound initiatives and regulations.

More than half of the cities reported facing obstacles in achieving their emissions-reduction goals, with fiscal capacity the most common hurdle, according to the report.

Reuters