Equipped for the summer of 2024
Increasing periods of heat pose new challenges for society
As climate change continues, heatwaves and periods of extreme heat are increasing and their impact on people, the environment and the economy is significant. Heat poses a considerable risk to the health of the urban population, with older people and young children being particularly affected.
Heat action plan for the city of Bergisch Gladbach
From March to October 2023, bifa Umweltinstitut developed a heat action plan for the city of Bergisch Gladbach in collaboration with Lohmeyer GmbH. It is the result of an in-depth analysis of what heat means for the city and its citizens today and in the future. The finished document contains a description of the development process as well as a package of measures tailored to the city, which is intended to sensitise the various stakeholder groups to the consequences of heat caused by climate change and show them how they can take action themselves.
The first step in the heat action plan was to identify thermally stressed residential areas with a high proportion of heatsensitive population were identified for the heat action plan. Within several participation formats such as expert interviews, citizen surveys and workshops, profiles of measures were then developed. Finally, individual measures were analysed and evaluated in terms of their climate impact using microclimatic simulations.