Vulnerability to heat stress in informal settlements

Abstract

Global climate change and rapid urbanization increase the risk of extreme weather events and turn urban spaces into focal points for adaptation and mitigation measures. The social inequalities inherent in many cities exacerbate pre-existing vulnerabilities and expose the local population to environmental and health risk situations, for example, such as heat stress. Given this, the objective of this work is to assess the vulnerability to thermal stress in the open spaces of informal settlements during the occurrence of a heat wave. A multidimensional index was used to evaluate this vulnerability. To achieve this, a field survey was carried out in the Paraisópolis slum, São Paulo, to collect meteorological data and administer questionnaires to pedestrians. The results indicated that the PET (physiological equivalent temperature) index underestimated pedestrians' actual thermal sensation. Considering the multidimensional index, approximately a quarter of the sample was found to be in a high or very high vulnerability situation, with the key individual factors contributing to the higher vulnerability being low education, advanced age, and the presence of diabetes and hypertension. Therefore, the findings suggest that populations residing in slums are susceptible to thermal stress and exposed to significant health risks.