New green space created in Palma, Mallorca

New green space in Palma where there used to be the dog track. | Jaume Morey

Andrew EdePalma23/04/2023 08:53
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Tamara Iungman is a researcher at ISGlobal, the Institute of Global Health in Barcelona, and author of a study entitled 'Cooling cities through green infrastructure: an assessment of the health impact of European cities', which was published in The Lancet in January. Iungman has investigated data from 93 European cities for deaths attributable to the heat island effect, increase in temperatures, and density of trees.

"Deaths will go up as temperatures rise. It is a problem that will continue to increase and will become even more evident. You don't need a thermometer to see that it's already happening."

The increase in temperatures has a direct impact on health. In Palma, 11.99 percent of deaths in summer are attributable to the heat island effect - the heat accumulation due to the mass of concrete. This is the fourth highest rate in Spain behind Barcelona (14.82), Malaga (12.39) and Madrid (12.27). Elsewhere in Europe, rates include 7.36 in Vienna and 3.52 in Berlin.

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Iungman's report shows the direct relationship between mortality and tree density. In Palma, only eight per cent of urban land is covered by trees, one of the lowest rates in Europe. The lowest of all include Seville (5.44%) and Athens (3.26%). In Berlin, with one of the lowest mortality rates, 33.38 per cent of urban land is covered by trees. In Munich it is 20.46 per cent and in Vienna 15.41 per cent.

She has also analysed what would happen if 30 per cent of urban land were covered with trees. In Palma, there would be a reduction of 22 deaths per 100,000 inhabitants, the highest figure in Europe. In addition, this tree coverage would mean a one degree temperature reduction in Palma.

At Palma town hall, the director-general for urban planning, Biel Horrach, says: "We have to go from grey to green infrastructure and to re-naturalising the city to make it more habitable and resilient. You have to adapt to climate change, as it is a matter of health."

In this respect, the new urban plan increases Palma's system of open spaces by 44 per cent. For a red-hot city, a solution lies with being green.