The heat is here to stay

Friday, April 26, 2024 marked a record-setting weather phenomenon in the country: including Friday, at least 24 days of this month were heatwave days. This is the highest number of heatwave days in a year in Bangladesh in 76 years. And it will only get hotter in the days to come as we trudge down the path of reckless consumption, with global policymakers and businesses still refusing to prioritise the environment and sustainable development over capitalist expansion. How do we prepare for the impending apocalypse?

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Are we preparing for heatwave impacts?

Bangladesh is ranked eighth among the countries most vulnerable to climate change, according to a recent scientific synthesis by the International Centre for Climate Change and Development (ICCCAD) and Bangladesh University of Engineering and Technology (Buet). The report highlights that, though the country has played a pioneering role in global efforts for adaptation and resilience, there has been a noticeable lack of good governance when it comes to implementing climate change projects. Additionally, indigenous knowledge has not been integrated into project interventions, leading to a gap between the top-down initiatives and local community needs.

While Bangladesh has been a leader of climate-vulnerable countries, its own track record is abysmal, with rampant industrialisation and urbanisation destroying forests, rivers and entire ecosystems. If the government is truly committed to its fight against climate change, it must begin by challenging and reimagining its own ideas of development and progress.

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Heatwaves, global warming, and the ethics of our cities

In the short run, the government must seriously assess public health risks of extreme heat, and develop heat mitigation and emergency response plans. Already, the specialised hospitals have seen an influx of patients suffering from heart and kidney conditions, among others. Extreme heat exposure can cause heat rash, cramps, heat exhaustion or heat stroke, and the authorities' failure to respond effectively to heatwaves can have fatal consequences, particularly for already vulnerable populations. The Human Rights Watch (HRW) has documented that heat affects certain communities far more than others, such as those often doing low-paying work outdoors, or in hot kitchens and warehouses, or those living in poverty with unequal access to electricity, housing, water and healthcare services. We are already seeing how rural communities are having to bear the brunt of loadshedding in this unbearable heat. It is imperative that the government ensures access to energy and water to poor and marginal communities to ease their sufferings. When and where possible, it should increase access to cooling or shaded areas, and limit or change work hours for those exposed to extreme heat.

Moving forward, we must declare a public health emergency and come up with a holistic disaster management plan with a particular focus on low-income communities and workers. Bangladesh has always managed to rise above disasters; may its planning and implementation prove to be as successful in the latest denomination of disasters facing the country.