Independent advisors have warned that the European Union is unprepared for worsening climate change and should urgently step up its investments for protecting the people and infrastructure from growing floods, wildfires and severe heatwaves.
Europe is now the fastest-warming continent due to climate change, as reported by the World Meteorological Organisation, and has been subject to frequent and intense heatwaves, flooding, coastal destruction and storms.
€45 billion In Damage Per Year
The economic damage dealt to European infrastructure and buildings from weather and climate extremes has reached €45 billion ($53.34 billion) per year, five times more than the 1980s, according to EU data released.
The EU has made some ambitious targets to curb greenhouse gas emissions; however, its efforts have fallen short when adapting to the extreme weather that climate change is fuelling, the European Scientific Advisory Board on Climate Change said.
The advisors warned that without stronger preparations, extreme weather will severely impact the EU’s competitiveness, add strain to public budgets and increase security risks.
They have recommended that the EU agree to prepare, across all member states, for the risks associated with the increasing global temperature of 2.8 to 3.3 °C by 2100. They should develop policies to aid people and businesses to adapt—for example, ensuring housing is not built in flood-exposed areas, planning support for drought-hit farmers, or designing cities to help people stay cool during temperature spikes.
EU’s New Climate Resilience Strategy
The average global temperature has reached 1.4 °C above pre-industrial times. National climate pledges across the globe, if achieved, would still only curb global warming at 2.3-2.5 °C this century, according to the UN.
Another key area the advisors mentioned is investigating early public warning systems, increasing insurance coverage by considering EU-level reinsurance. As of now, only a quarter of climate-related economic losses in the EU are insured.
The European Commission is expected to propose a new strategy on “climate resilience” later this year, a response after a series of weather disasters, including the 2023 floods in Slovenia, where the reconstruction cost equalled 11% of the country’s GDP and in 2025, when Europe’s worst wildfire season was recorded.
(With inputs from Reuters)
