Targeted, Integrated, and Prepared Policy Packages to Addressthe Urban Heat in Korea : Policy Brief (English)

Global warming has dramatically increased the frequency, intensity, and duration of extreme heat events, or heatwaves. Exposure to extreme heat presents a wide range of challenges for public health, labor productivity, and economic growth, among other areas, which are often amplified in cities. Globally, recent deadly heatwaves attest to the urgency of the urban heat problem, which is growing with the ongoing expansion of urban populations and the progression of climate change. This policy brief examines the responses of the Republic of Korea to urban heat problems at national and city levels. Korea formally recognized heat as a natural disaster in 2018, which represented a significant milestone in institutionalizing urban heat interventions across various ministries and agencies. Guided by national frameworks, Korean cities, including Busan and Daegu, the two cities presented as cases in this brief, developed and implemented a package of complementary actions, consisting of legislation and planning, small-scale capital investments, and social programs. This comprehensive effort to address the urban heat agenda in Korea contributed to lowering local temperatures, reducing heat-related health costs by US173.22 million dollars, and reducing the heat related mortality rate by 72 percent compared to the counterfactual. The Korean experience can inform World Bank task teams and client cities and countries as they explore feasible entry points for refining and scaling up urban heat interventions in the coming years.