EU funding to promote climate change adaptation and risk prevention and management in Portugal: Potential effects on mitigating health hazards

Abstract

Following the publication of the most recent (2018) National Spatial Policy Programme (Programa Nacional da Política de Ordenamento do Território—PNPOT), several critical development risks were identified for the Portuguese territory over the next few decades. These include expected rises in average temperatures and overall reduction of precipitation levels. This novel climate panorama can negatively impact human and environmental health, for instance via increasing numbers and intensity of forest fires, biologic desertification processes, and heatwaves. These predicted climate changes can also lead to high peaks of intensive rain, leading to catastrophic river floods which, associated with rising sea levels, in a coastal country like Portugal, can lead to increasing health hazards of all sorts in Portuguese territory over the coming decades. In this context, this article analyses the EU funding on promoting climate change adaptation and risk prevention and management in Portugal (2014–2020) via the Operational Programme for Sustainability and Efficient Use of Resources (POSEUR), and its potential effects on mitigating health hazards in the Portuguese territory. In parallel, it analyses existing Portuguese environmental development strategies to unveil the extent to which policy actions to mitigate health hazards are being considered.