Climate change: More and more people in Hamburg take precautionary measures

Climate change is perceptible and poses a threat to Hamburg. The majority of respondents in the study "Risk Awareness of Hamburg Citizens for Climate Change 2024" conducted by the Helmholtz Center Hereon agree on this. Most people see the greatest danger in storm surges and heavy rainfall. The majority of people already use weather and warning apps to prepare for such extreme weather events. Many people also stockpile for emergencies.

"For a long time, climate change was seen as a global problem that the government had to solve. In the meantime, however, many people have realized that it is a problem for the whole society and that everyone has to do something about it. Everyone has a responsibility," says Prof Beate Ratter, head of the long-term study and scientist at the Helmholtz Center Hereon. She has been conducting the study with the opinion research institute Forsa for 17 years. Johanna Nicolaysen from Hereon was involved this year. 505 people from Hamburg were asked by telephone how they perceive climate change and its consequences.

According to Beate Ratter, the results of the study are similar to those of the previous year. However, there were new highs in terms of precautionary measures. According to the study, 73% of respondents want to use weather and warning apps to prepare themselves against extreme weather events. This is 4 percent more than in the previous year and more than ever before. 50 percent also stockpile water, food and medicines so that they can be supplied for a longer period of time in an emergency. This corresponds to an increase of 6% compared to 2023.

Although so many people in Hamburg are already taking precautionary measures or planning to do so, only 59% of them believe it is possible to be personally affected by a natural disaster.

When asked which natural disaster would have the most fatal consequences for Hamburg, 68 percent of respondents answered storm surges and flooding. Since 2008, when the study was first conducted, the majority of respondents have given this answer. Beate Ratter attributes this on the one hand to the general proximity to the Elbe. On the other hand, she says, disasters such as the great storm surge of 1962 have shaped people's awareness for generations. "Storm surges are always a threat in the minds of the people of Hamburg," she says.

A new record was also set this year for heavy rainfall. 16 percent of respondents said that this extreme weather event would have the most fatal consequences for Hamburg. That is more than ever before. In contrast, only 8 percent voted for heatwaves - that is almost half as many as in 2023. Beate Ratter assumes that the flooding caused by rain in Lower Saxony and Southern Germany last year may have led to this attitude.

The proportion of respondents who generally consider climate change to be a major or very major threat to the city of Hamburg remained at the same level as last year at 66 percent. However, significantly more people (66 percent) believe that the consequences of climate change are already being felt. In 2023, the figure was 56 percent.

In her study, Beate Ratter also asks about the biggest problems in Hamburg in general. This open question is asked before all other questions on climate change. Concerns about climate landed again at the bottom of the poll this year with 4 percent. In contrast, the majority of respondents are most concerned about traffic in Hamburg (39 percent), followed by rents and housing (31 percent) and education policy (18 percent). "We have to accept that climate change is not the problem number one for many people in our degree of latitude. Although it is perceived as a problem, it competes with other pressing current and regional issues," summarizes Beate Ratter.

The conclusion of the study: people in Hamburg are increasingly willing to take precautionary measures themselves in the event of a natural disaster. Beate Ratter sees this as an opportunity: "The city of Hamburg can tap into this", she says. With disaster control exercises, for example. These should be practiced more often and more intensively in schools, companies and public areas so that people learn how to behave in an emergency. "There are hardly any such exercises these days. We live in a safety bubble. We need to develop routines again so that people can use on in an emergency," says Beate Ratter.

Background of the study

The long-term study "Risk awareness of Hamburg citizens regarding climate change " was first carried out in 2008 and has been conducted annually since then. In the telephone survey conducted by Forsa every year, respondents answer four questions on their perception of climate change risks. Since 2019, respondents have also been asked about personal precaution and, since 2010, their opinion on Hamburg's most important problems. The survey results from this year and previous years are publicly available.