Heat Stress May Affect over 1.2bn People Annually by 2100: Study

Heat stress from extreme heat and humidity will annually affect areas now home to 1.2 billion people by 2100, assuming current greenhouse gas emissions, say researchers. Rising global temperatures are increasing exposure to heat stress, which harms human health, agriculture, the economy and the environment, the study, published in the journal Environmental Research Letters, said. "When we look at the risks of a warmer planet, we need to pay particular attention to combined extremes of heat and humidity, which are especially dangerous to human health," said study researcher Robert E. Kopp from Rutgers University in the US, and co-director of the Climate Impact Lab.