Sherry Rehman issues Heatwave Guidelines for Southern Pakistan

ISLAMABAD, MAY 09 (DNA) — Federal Minister for Climate Change and Environmental Coordination, Senator Sherry Rehman on Tuesday advised provincial and local institutions to take necessary precautions to safeguard public health and minimize the impact of extreme weather on vulnerable communities amid predicted heatwave in the Southern parts of the country.

Minister Rehman’s call to action comes in response to the latest weather forecast from the Pakistan Meteorological Department’s (PMD) for May, which predicts a higher likelihood of heatwaves starting from the second week of the month, particularly in the southern half of the country, a news release said.

To mitigate the potentially disastrous consequences of heatwaves, she is calling on institutions to follow the ministry for Climate Change’s recently issued ‘Heatwave Guidelines – Urgent Preparatory Measures’.

These guidelines offer a proactive approach to prevent the spread of heat-related illnesses and provide critical information on how to prepare for and respond to extreme heat events. Key short-term measures specified in the Guidelines, included, “The activation of Union Council level heat wave response units (HRU) and establishing provincial level control rooms for coordination to protect vulnerable segments of the urban population.”

The minister also outlined several medium to long term measures to address the underlying causes of heatwaves such as climate-induced disaster management to school curriculums, increasing green spaces by planting more trees in urban areas, establishing ‘Cool Centers’ at easily accessible public locations, and developing an early Heat-Health Warning System (HHWS).

These steps, she emphasized, would help build the country’s resilience to extreme weather events and protect the health and safety of its citizens in the long run.

The minister elaborated, “The effects of climate change, especially with increasing greenhouse gas emissions globally are contributing to more frequent, highly severe, and longer lasting heatwaves across the region and the country. Pakistan is a negligible emitter yet our most vulnerable pay the price for the overheated climate.

 It is not easy to switch to a resilient development model, which costs four times as much as regular reconstruction, while you are still rebuilding from the last shock, but we have to try.”

She highlighted that “Pakistan is listed among the ten most vulnerable countries to climate change in the world, experiencing frequent climate induced disasters. Over the past decade, the frequency of hot days has been three times higher than the frequency of cold days at the global scale.

Pakistan has recorded the hottest temperatures on the planet consistently for the last three years, and with El Niño expected to return this year which could push global temperatures past the 1.5°C mark with devastating impacts on ecosystems & vulnerable countries. The extreme temperatures and heatwaves that are expected to hit the south of the country this summer will put vulnerable populations at the forefront of another climate crisis.”

The minister further stated that the responsibility for responding to the damaging impacts of heatwaves rested primarily with the districts, the Provincial Disaster Management Authorities (PDMAs), Health Departments, and local administration, and that the guidelines had been distributed to the chief secretaries of all the provinces and relevant authorities in Islamabad.

She underscored the importance of the authorities utilizing the guidelines to take necessary and timely measures to protect vulnerable communities and mitigate the impacts of extreme heat. — DNA