London’s risk from rising temperatures

It's not "how to deal with heatwaves" that concerns me but what we are doing. What we have. (The way.) I'm glad that there are still many places AC free in London as a reminder of how things used to be and work very well for us not a long time ago. Besides, AC is a killer. Imagine it's super nice outside, British summer at its best (we are still SO LUCKY) and you have to "enjoy" 'lightly air conditioned" yoga and pilates spaces (they won't open the window, the trend is trendy and never mindful and the Elizabeth Line should operate Manhattan where these things are the norm: cold so cold). I'm even happy the Northern Line is AC free. I'm fortunate to be in England but what does that mean? I's a global life from childhood to death where you find the good and glorify it.

Thank you for reading.

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Stay in sanity.

What are we doing to ourselves, who aren't our lives, in plural, but (no "one") singularity.

I wish people would stop driving massive cars around London. Land rovers, BMWs etc. People are way to careful dependent in this city. 

Hi, my comment is probably not related but wanted to tell my experience...

It's regarding Persistent Noise & Vibration from Haringey Café – No Action from Council

I would like to write here to seek your help regarding a serious and ongoing noise and vibration problem I’ve been facing as a resident in Haringey.

A café next to my home has installed a loud fan unit on top of a thin dividing wall. The sound and vibration from this machine run continuously throughout the day, creating a low, disturbing hum and shaking that penetrates my living space.

This has been going on for weeks and weeks in summer even today during cool summer. It affects my health: I feel physically unwell, anxious, unable to rest or sleep properly, and deeply exhausted. In addition there are other noise neusances with the cafe I have been patient with...

I have reported the issue multiple times to Haringey Council, contacted my councillor, and even written to my MP – but no one has taken action.

I feel completely neglected. I am just one individual, but I am suffering every day in my own home.

I am reaching out in the hope that you might consider reporting on this case, or simply speaking with me to raise awareness about the real harm environmental noise can cause – and the lack of response from local authorities.

I can provide a noise diary, copies of my communications with the council and councillors. The owner can be hostile when last one of the councillors approached. I just do tied....

Thank you for your time reading my case.

New build apartment blocks from 2020 onwards are heat traps because of poor Building Regulations that are yet to be updated to remove this loophole. 

Shared ownership/social rent sections of those new builds over the last 25 years do not have cooling systems/AC in-built. Once people moved into those social housing flats, usually at the bottom of the building, they find that the inside temperatures can go up to 52 degrees centigrade (usually averaging 35-45 at peak summer). It's a nasty surprise, and residents then end up battling with their social housing landlords for a decade to retrofit AC/cooling systems, which end up costing more that simply connecting them with the private housing flats above during the original building of the housing block. Builders cut corners and put flimsy fixtures for social housing flats. They also actively disconnect the social housing floors from the main AC system during the build-phase.

My health was damaged for life after living 15 years in my first buyer shared ownership flat in a mid-rise building with 13 floors. The damage to health and the financial exploitation of ever increasing rent and service charge is not worth it long term. It can ruin your chances in life as you are run down to the ground and you become a regular fixture at the GP surgery and hospitals. No one wants that life. My old flat was surveyed by the council and found to have a Category 1 heat hazard. That was the type of flat sold to me by the housing association. It's criminal. I'm sacred of the 800,000 new build homes the government are planning because there is a high probability they will be heat hazard apartment blocks like this.

I would never live in a flat again.

It is so nice to have a decent summer again. At a few weeks short of 88 years old and with no air-conditioning or other help I am coping splendidly thanks. The sooner all this drivel from the Mayor and others about a "climate crisis" comes to a stop, the better. All the evidence shows that extremes of COLD cause more deaths than warmth. Enjoy the sunshine and stop wasting time and money.

High rise especially single aspect is hellish (Times june 29) People in flats cant ventilate and cant retrofit  blinds or shutters. Tenants can do nothing.

Where London councils are freeholders they should be enabling insulation and measures like external awnings. My freeholder Newham doesn't do anything.

I have been enjoying the sun and have been sleeping a lot with the fan on. I have enjoyed going out and socialising with my friends and family. 

Allowing more people to install air conditioning at home might seem like a short-term fix, but it actually adds to the problem. AC units pump heat out of buildings and into the air — making the city even warmer. It's a dangerous loop we're creating, like opening Pandora’s box.

Instead of just cooling ourselves indoors and pushing the problem outside, we need to find ways to reduce the overall heat in the environment. Otherwise, London will end up like the Victoria Line — electrified and overheating — where trapped heat becomes a design failure, not a solution. 

Agreed alarmism is not helpful during a crisis. Climate change however is real and a look at stats from experts across the globe confirms it 

How about taking Thames Water back? Thrice water is being cut off because some pipes burst. Privatized water company not reinvesting on infrastructure and blaming on old assets. Water is a necessity for humans and should never be privatised for profits in the first place.

Not one single answer related to the provision of air conditioning or the Mayor’s attempts to prevent and deter new builds from installing air conditioning. New builds are designed to keep heat in and are dangerously hot in the summer, even when there are no heatwaves. The Mayor and his team are failing Londoners. They must do something to help those in new builds to keep their flats cool. Paying lip service to this issue by discussing ridiculous and ineffective options, and totally ignoring the need for air conditioning is sadly not unexpected. Shame on the Mayor and his team. 

Insulation, ventilation and working with the sun are key. 

I live in a tiny, well-insulated, basement flat, which is easily aired by opening doors and windows. Plus I have a small but leafy garden which cools the air.  Only downside is occasional humidity. Wish I had permission for a heat pump as then I wouldn't need my dehumidifier. 

Many urban new builds have large windows, glass cladding and inadequate ventilation. And snobby rules about not drying clothes on the balcony!  Shutters, solar panels and green walls/roofs should be mandatory and outdoor laundry-drying encouraged.  More vegetation and less heat-holding concrete. Grey water soakaways to irrigate the vegetation and save energy on water purification.

Air con in public spaces is usually too cold imo and uses loads of electricity.  

As someone on SSRIs, I don't think public officials take to account just how bad heatwaves are for people on medication. It makes it unbearable and should be listed as vulnerable people that need extra support 

I have just been searching online for the best kind of blinds for reflecting sunlight and radiant heat. It is not that easy. The usual 'thermal' blind fabric is silvery coloured but not very efficient at keeping heat and light out. The blinds that do reflect solar light and heat are prohibitively high cost.  Maybe the GLA and Mayor should engage with blind manufacturers and suppliers about improving thermal and solar blinds, while keeping costs down so that ordinary people can afford them. The information about these blinds could be more accurate and detailed too.