Most Dutch people concerned about extreme weather's impact, but less than in 2021

A majority of Dutch people are concerned about the consequences of extreme weather in the area where they live, and are worried about the impact of heavy rainfall, flooding, heat or drought. At the same time, the percentage of people concerned dipped slightly from 60 percent in 2021 to 56 percent at the end of last year, according to a survey carried out by ANP and Kieskompas. Additionally, the wealthiest people on the planet have already generated their fair share of carbon dioxide emissions for the year, according to Oxfam.

The results of the study were released on Friday morning, after European climate service Copernicus revealed that the average global temperature last year was 1.6 degrees Celsius warmer than before the industrial era. This made 2024 the warmest year on record, and marked the first time that the critical limit of 1.5 degree was exceeded in a calendar year.

In the Netherlands, the decline in concern for extreme weather is mainly due to the fact that more people indicated that they do not have a strong opinion on this subject. This also varies greatly by voting behavior. More than eight out of ten voters who marked their ballots for left-wing parties GroenLinks-PvdA or Partij voor de Dieren said that they are worried about severe weather in their neighborhood.

This was considerably lower at about 35 percent among those who voted for the far-right PVV or their right-wing coalition partner, BBB. Among voters for the extreme-right Forum voor Democratie, only 6 percent said that they are worried.

In Limburg, the share of people who are worried is the highest at just over 60 percent. However, this group is considerably smaller than in 2021, when the research was first conducted. In the summer of that year, Limburg struggled mightily with excessive amounts of precipitation and the consequences of major flooding. The 2021 survey was conducted after those events.

After Limburg, Noord-Holland, Utrecht and Noord-Brabant residents showed the greatest level of concern. Flevoland was the only province where fewer than half of the inhabitants said they are worried about extreme weather. Moreover, the share has decreased in Flevoland compared to 2021.

Kieskompas conducted the survey of 8,076 Dutch adults in early December 2024. They responded to the statement, "I am concerned about the consequences of extreme weather (such as very heavy showers, heat waves and/or prolonged drought) in my living environment".

According to Dutch meteorological institute KNMI, 2024 was "extremely warm and very wet." On average, 986 millimeters of precipitation fell at the measuring stations, where normally the year would conclude at about 795 millimeters. Thermometers rose to at least 20 degrees or warmer on more than a hundred days, when 93 would be normal. And on average there should have been 63 days where the temperature did not rise above the freezing point, but last year this happened only 23 times.

The richest 1 percent "burned through their share of the annual carbon budget" within the first 10 days of the year, Oxfam said on Friday. At the same time, the poorest 50 percent alive today generate the same amount of carbon dioxide after 1,022 days, or about three years. The organization defines the carbon budget as "the amount of CO2 that can be added to the atmosphere without pushing the world beyond 1.5°C of warming."

Oxfam has designated January 10 as "Pollutocrat Day." The organization said, "The richest 1 percent are responsible for more than twice as much carbon pollution than the poorest half of humanity, with devastating consequences for vulnerable communities and efforts to tackle the climate emergency. To meet the 1.5°C goal, the richest 1 percent need to cut their emissions by 97 percent by 2030."

The wealthiest Dutch people also cause a relatively high volume of greenhouse gas emissions, but the difference between the richest 1 percent and the least prosperous half of the population is less extreme than worldwide. The wealthiest in the Netherlands emit almost nine times as much as the poorest half of inhabitants, according to the study.

Oxfam found that the emissions generated by the wealthiest 1 percent since 1990 has led to trillions of dollars in economic damage, in addition to heavy crop losses, and millions of excess deaths. "By 2050, the emissions of the richest 1 percent will cause crop losses that could have provided enough calories to feed at least 10 million people a year in Eastern and Southern Asia," the organization stated. "Roughly eight in every 10 excess deaths due to heat will occur in low- and lower-middle-income countries. Around 40 percent of these deaths will occur in Southern Asia."

“The future of our planet is hanging by a thread. The margin for action is razor-thin, yet the super-rich continue to squander humanity’s chances with their lavish lifestyles, polluting stock portfolios and pernicious political influence. This is theft, pure and simple: a tiny few robbing billions of people of their future to feed their insatiable greed,” said Nafkote Dabi, who leads Oxfam International’s Climate Change Policy.

World leaders made a deal during the Paris Climate Agreement that they want to keep global warming below 1.5 degrees, with that level used as a reference point for talks, negotiations and plans. Climate scientists emphasized that it can have much more serious consequences if the 1.5 degrees is exceeded for an extended period.

Still, the results from last year's meteorological analysis does not mean that the Paris Agreement was broken. This agreement looks at warming of the long-term average over a period of at least 20 years, as annual figures can fluctuate every year.

Scientists already said they expected that 2024 would probably break the heat record again. Many months were warmer than ever measured and on July 22 the daily global average temperature was higher than ever.