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Whether you are rich or poor also determines if you can withstand the heat
🇳🇱 Netherlands /Environment & Climate

Whether you are rich or poor also determines if you can withstand the heat

From NRC Handelsblad · () Dutch

Translated from Dutch, summarized and contextualized by DistantNews.

At a glance

News Named sources Context piece
  • A 71-year-old woman in Amersfoort struggles with extreme heat in her poorly insulated home, highlighting heat inequality.
  • The article explains that lower-income households are more vulnerable to heatwaves due to older housing, dependence on landlords, and lack of green spaces.
  • This vulnerability is compounded by higher rates of obesity and cardiovascular diseases within lower-income groups, increasing the risk of heat-related mortality.

Griet, a 71-year-old resident of Amersfoort's Soesterkwartier, sits in her small kitchen, the only place she can tolerate being with a fan. Even then, electricity costs mean the fan is off, and she relies on her front door being open for any breeze, though none is present. Her thermostat reads 29.5 degrees Celsius.

The power is also not free, so she has now turned it off and just opened the front door.

— GrietExplaining her efforts to cope with the heat while managing costs.

She points to her neighbor's house across the street, remarking, "That one has air conditioning." Griet, who has lived in her modest working-class home for 53 years, notes that such units are expensive. Consequently, she keeps her living room blinds shut, living "in the dark" to mitigate the heat. Even these blinds are falling apart, a common issue in older homes where parts are not easily replaceable, forcing her to resort to makeshift repairs.

But such an air conditioner costs a lot of money, you know.

— GrietCommenting on the expense of air conditioning units.

The article highlights a phenomenon termed "heat inequality," where socioeconomic status significantly impacts one's ability to cope with rising temperatures. Households with lower incomes are disproportionately affected. They often reside in older neighborhoods with single-glazed windows, rent properties where modifications like insulation or awnings are dependent on landlords, and live in densely built areas lacking sufficient green spaces.

All people are warm, but some are warmer than others.

— Wetenschappelijke Raad voor het Regeringsbeleid (WRR)Quoted from a report on the impact of climate change on different societal groups.

This vulnerability is exacerbated by a higher prevalence of health issues such as obesity and cardiovascular diseases among lower-income populations. These conditions increase the risk of heat stress and mortality, illustrating how multiple factors converge to make the heat more dangerous for those with fewer resources. The situation in Amersfoort's northern districts, characterized by a higher concentration of lower-income residents and less greenery, exemplifies this stark reality.

The weaker the socio-economic position, the greater the consequences of climate threat, such as the heatwave that is currently sweeping our country.

— Wetenschappelijke Raad voor het Regeringsbeleid (WRR)Summarizing the core finding of their report on heat inequality.
DistantNews Editorial

Originally published by NRC Handelsblad in Dutch. Translated, summarized, and contextualized by our editorial team with added local perspective. Read our editorial standards.

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