Committee on Climate Change warns that zero carbon homes will be more likely to overheat unless rules are introduced to tackle the problem

黑洞社区 regulations should include standards to prevent overheating, the government鈥檚 climate change advisor has said.

In a report, published this week, the Committee on Climate Change said that 鈥渕any homes, hospitals and care homes鈥� were already at risk of overheating and this would get worse as the UK鈥檚 climate is expected to warm.

It said the introduction of zero carbon homes standard in 2016 was 鈥渓ikely to exacerbate鈥� the problem if no steps were taken to mitigate it.

It recommended that the government introduce new standards, possibly in building regulations, to mitigate the effect of overheating in new homes and other buildings.

It said: 鈥淢any homes, hospitals and care homes are already at risk of overheating. By the 2040s, half of all summers are expected to be as hot, or hotter, than in 2003 when tens of thousands of people across Europe died prematurely.

鈥淎 standard or requirement is needed in order to ensure new homes are built to take account of the health risks of overheating now and in the future.鈥�

It also found that the UK鈥檚 infrastructure was still at increasing risk of flooding and storms and would require significant adaptation to cope with the UK鈥檚 changing climate.

Lord Krebs, chair of the Adaptation Sub-Committee of the Committee on Climate Change, which wrote the report, said there was 鈥済ood evidence of positive action being taken in a number of areas to safeguard public health and the economy from the impacts of climate change鈥�.

He added: 鈥淒espite the disruption experienced by many in the storms this winter, the impacts would have been much worse if it hadn鈥檛 been for past investment in flood defences, and in flood forecasting and emergency planning.

鈥淭his is a clear demonstration of the benefits that result from investing in greater resilience, but there is no room for complacency.鈥�

David Balmforth, vice president of the Institution of Civil Engineers, said the committee was right to call for a 鈥渕ore comprehensive approach to UK flood resilience鈥� and the UK鈥檚 plans needed to  鈥渂etter reflect interdependencies 鈥� or the 鈥渄omino effect鈥� that can be felt across energy, transport, water and waste networks when a flood defence is overwhelmed鈥�.

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