While flooding has a lot of attention, there is less work and awareness of the risks associated with drought and vulnerability. Several public health strategies have now been developed to respond to the challenges related to climate change, with flooding recognised as having a significant impact on people’s health and well-being. Thomas and Niedzwiedz (2024) still argue that there is an urgent need for further research on the physical and mental health impacts of flooding in Scotland, particularly focusing on understanding the impacts on certain vulnerable groups and communities. Compounding this need is the lack of recognition of drought in Scotland – so new research addresses both, with ‘hydrological extremes’ being the focus.
A PhD project (2024-2027) at the University of Glasgow seeks to address knowledge gaps and expand understanding by investigating the impacts of both floods and droughts on mental health, utilising community knowledge and expertise to better examine the mental health implications of such hydrological extremes on vulnerable groups, specifically farming, elderly and deprived communities. The PhD project will be working with communities in Dumfries, Dumfries & Galloway; Ayr, South Ayrshire; and Wick, Caithness. From this work, a better understanding of the risks for those groups will emerge.
The project seeks to develop locally produced accounts of climate change and resilience resources, informed by community knowledge of flooding and drought events. Furthermore, the project will also facilitate the co-production of community hazard maps, to better represent where and how hazards occur locally, for example, which car parks and streets are more likely to flood, which directions sandbags need to be placed to best deflect flood water, and which local streams best indicate when droughts are most likely to happen. Such adaptation resources and maps are being created to collate community knowledge for present and future generations and to help communities better understand how climate change is influencing their local area. Using adaptation resources to reduce the local impacts of climate change is crucial in decreasing the negative mental health and well-being effects of flooding and drought events (Lawrance et al., 2022).
Studies show the greatest health impacts of flooding in the UK and here in Scotland are on mental health: people who experience flooding are at higher risk of depression, anxiety and post-traumatic stress disorder (e.g. Mulchandani et al, 2020; Philip et al 2020). However, the evidence base for Scotland is limited, and we need to understand more about who is most vulnerable through the lens of hydrological extremes, not just flooding.
Public Health Scotland’s Climate Change and Sustainability Strategic Approach 2023-26 notes the negative mental health implications of climate change and how these might be addressed in public health planning measures. Despite such developments, further evidence is still needed to offer guidance for the protection of vulnerable groups, such as children, the elderly, and people with disabilities. The Glasgow research will help address this need.
If you are interested in being connected with the research, please email: r.hawkins.1@research.gla.ac.uk
Rhiannon Hawkins, Hester Parr and Rhian Thomas (University of Glasgow).
You can connect with Rhiannon via LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/rhiannon-hawkins-45709921b
