More New Yorkers could die of overheating in the next few years, researchers said on Thursday. People are dying due to dehydration, heat exhaustion, and heart and respiratory conditions.
According to the new study, as many as 3,331 people in New York City could die from heat waves per annum. The study also warns that this trend would continue until 2080, with hot days expected to triple until the said year if no steps are taken to reduce carbon emissions and global warming.
By retrospect, the National Center for Health Statistics claims that there were about 600 heat deaths in the city between 2000 and 2006.
Meanwhile, another separate study has also been released, tracing climate change and effects of air pollution on children.
Both studies from Columbia University were published online this week in the journal Environmental Health Perspectives and both say that carbon use should be reduced effective immediately.
According to the director of the Columbia Center for Children's Environmental Health at the Mailman School of Public Health, Frederica Perera via (Scientific American):
"We now know a great deal about the harm from the emissions from fossil fuels. We know a great deal about how to reduce our dependence on fossil fuels."
As a result, New York City is combating the problem with countermeasures such as covering building roofs with reflective paint, according to Reuters.
Elisaveta Petkova, project director at the National Center for Disaster Preparedness at Columbia University's Earth Institute, said these measures - creating better infrastructure and providing access to cooling - can indeed help. In fact, people also become resilient to the rising temperatures over time.
"People become more resilient to heat. We don't know exactly why," Petkova said.
However, addressing climate change and reducing greenhouse gas emissions is also equally important.
Petkova adds that the new study "just highlighted how important it is to take proactive measures to reduce greenhouse gas emissions."
As also noted in the second study, harmful products, which are sources of carbon dioxide, have more devastating effects on the very young, which begins in utero.
It's not just New York, but the entire United States has been experiencing more frequent heat waves in recent decades, according to the government report on 2014's National Climate Assessment.
The Obama administration is now making an effort to address climate change while protecting public health. Not only will it be beneficial to the people's health, but to the country's economy as well. According to U.S. EPA, the estimated value of lessened deaths by air pollution amounts up to $2 trillion in 2020.