A hőhullámok hatására 2003-ban figyeltek fel Európa-szerte, és bár ezt követően sok országban vezettek be hőségriasztást és preventív intézkedéseket, azonban így is 11-35% között regisztrálnak a hőhullámok alatt többlethalálozást. A Nemzeti Népegészségügyi és Gyógyszerészeti Központ (NNGYK) jogelőd intézménye 2005-ben dolgozta ki a hazai hőségriasztást, azóta évente 1-5 alkalommal vált szükségessé a kihirdetése. 2011 és 2023 között az éves országos többlethalálozás átlagosan 814 (28-1741) fő. Közleményünkben áttekintjük a hőségriasztás jogi hátterét, a riasztást megalapozó vizsgálatok eredményeit. Bemutatjuk a nemzetközi irodalomban használt hőségindexek összehasonlító elemzését, ami alapján a napi középhőmérséklet-mutató kiválasztása és a riasztási küszöbhőmérséklet (25°C, ill. 27°C) meghatározása történt. A küszöbértékek felülvizsgálata alapján ezek használata továbbra is indokolt. Kitérünk a hőségriasztás előrejelzésének, a hőmérséklet-halálozás valós idejű nyomon követésének nehézségeire. Bemutatjuk a hőségriasztások alatti többlethalálozás jellegzetességeit, összefüggését az influenza és a felső légúti fertőzések súlyosságával. Megállapítottuk, hogy 2011-2023 között a hőségriasztások alatti többlethalálozás enyhe csökkenő tendenciát mutat, amely a hőségtervek, az intézményi és lakossági alkalmazkodás erősödésére enged következtetni.

Honeydew extracted by aphids serves as nutrient for the development of sooty moulds. Hypothetically, population dynamics of aphids should therefore have an effect on the airborne levels of the spores of fungi colonizing honeydew. In this study, the effects of seven aphid taxa on Alternaria and Cladosporium spore seasons (both pathogenic and allergenic fungi) were analysed on a total of 20-year-long dataset in Kecskemét (Hungary), Leicester (UK) and Poznań (Poland). Meteorological factors strongly effected both aphid and fungal populations. In most cases, a direct effect of weather on fungal levels were found. Direct effect of two aphid species, Acyrthosiphon pisum and Euceraphis punctipennis, on the atmospheric concentration of Alternaria spores was identified in Leicester and Poznań in June and July respectively. Other aphid species had secondary, but significant effects during other time periods. This suggests aphid population data can be informative in predicting airborne concentrations of Alternaria and Cladosporium spores. Graphical abstract

A klímaváltozás a környezetben okozott jelentős változásokon keresztül az emberi egészségre is hatást Az Egészségügyi Világszervezet (WHO) főigazgatója 2020. március 11-én minősítette a SARS-CoV-2 okozta járványt pandémiává. Világszerte igen nagyarányú COVID-19 megbetegedési és halálozási hullám következett be a SARS-CoV-2 új koronavírus járvány következtében. A járvány ideje alatt számos szerző elemezte a COVID-19 fertőzéssel kapcsolatos halálozást, az eredmények sok esetben nehezen összevethetők az eltérő mutatók és definíciók használata miatt. Magyarország 2010 óta vesz részt az EuroMOMO hálózatban, amelynek célja a közegészségügyi-járványügyi események okozta halálozási eltérések időbeni detektálása. A rendszer a valós idejű nyers összhalálozási adatokat dolgozza fel standardizált módszer segítségével, így a rendszerbe jelentő 23 európai ország halálozási adatai összevethetők. A közlemény bemutatja a 2020. év során és a 2021. I. negyedévében a COVID-19 világjárvány hatását a jelentő országokban a heti adatok alapján. A járvány első, 2020. tavaszi hulláma elsősorban a nyugat-európai országokban és néhány mediterrán országban okozott igen jelentős többlethalálozást, a nyári időszakban csak néhány országban emelkedett meg kismértékben a halálozás. A második hullám a 41. héttől kezdődött és 2021. 5. hetéig tartott, a skandináv országok kivételével minden jelentő országban, eltérő heteken és eltérő mértékben okozott a közepes kategóriától az extrém magas kategóriáig (ami az átlaghoz képest több mint kétszeres heti halálozást jelentett) többlethalálozást. A járvány 3. hulláma alatt 2021. február-márciusban a legnagyobb hatást Magyarországon lehetett megfigyelni. A többlethalálozást mutató hetek után csak két országban, rövid ideig lehetett kimutatni a halálozás – a korábbi évek influenza járványmentes heteihez képest - szignifikáns csökkenését. Az EuroMOMO rendszer által alkalmazott módszertan lehetővé teszi az országok adatainak összehasonlítását, egy-egy ország esetében a valós idejű adatok gyors értékelése jól felhasználható a döntéshozatali folyamatokban és a krízis helyzetekre való gyors reagálásban.

Az egészségügyi ellátórendszer nemcsak gyógyít, hanem jelentősen növeli a légkör üvegház hatású gázainak mennyiségét és működése során más környezeti elemekre (levegő, víz, talaj stb.) is negatív hatást gyakorolhat. A probléma kezelésére az elmúlt években több érdemi lépést fogalmaztak meg, amelyek a szakterület fontosságára is felhívják a figyelmet. Az egészségügy karbonlábnyomát az elmúlt években Angliában rendszeresen vizsgálták. Az angol Egészségügyi Szolgálat nemrég publikálta karbonlábnyomának alakulását, az egészségügyi rendszeren belüli arányokat 1990 és 2019 közötti időszakra vonatkozóan. A tanulmány az üvegházhatású gázok kibocsátását tevékenységekhez rendelte és rendszerezte, figyelembe véve az ellátottak számát is. A fajlagos, egy betegre jutó értékek publikálása segíti az angol egészségügy hosszú távú mitigációs céljainak elérését. Az alkalmazott megközelítés segítheti, illetve ajánlható más országok egészségügyi rendszereinek vizsgálatához is. A világon elsőként Anglia tűzte ki célul az egészségügy klímabaráttá alakítását. A „Net zero NHS” program keretében, amellyel két lépcsőben 2040-ig, illetve 2045-ig megvalósítja az egészségügyi rendszer karbon semlegességét az Egyesült Királyság egészségügyi és szociális intézményrendszerét működtető National Health Service (NHS). 2021 májusa óta 21 országból 11500 kórházat és egészségügyi centrumot képviselő mintegy 50 egészségügyi intézmény jelentette be csatlakozási szándékát a „Race to Zero” kezdeményezéshez. A magánszféra után számos kormány is elköteleződött a karbonsemleges egészségügy mellett. Az ENSZ Éghajlatváltozási Keretegyezményének (UNFCCC) 2021. október 31-től november 12-ig Glasgowban tartott 26. éghajlatváltozási konferenciáján (COP26) 197 ország kormánya képviseltette magát. A konferenciára az Egészségügyi Világszervezet (WHO) két elsődleges célt és felhívást tett közzé, amelyek révén az országok elköteleződhetnek a klímaváltozásnak ellenálló, alacsony karbon kibocsátású, illetve karbonsemleges egészségügyi ellátó rendszer kialakítására. A felhívásra 51 ország, a résztvevő tagállamok több mint negyede tett egy vagy több kategóriában hivatalos vállalást, 14 ország célja a karbonsemlegesség elérése 2050-ig.

Az egészségügyi ellátórendszer nemcsak gyógyít, hanem jelentősen növeli a légkör üvegház hatású gázainak mennyiségét és működése során más környezeti elemekre (levegő, víz, talaj stb.) is

The European monitoring of excess mortality for public health action (EuroMOMO) network monitors weekly excess all- cause mortality in 27 European countries or subnational areas. During the first wave of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic in Europe in spring 2020, several countries experienced extraordinarily high levels of excess mortality. Europe is currently seeing another upsurge in COVID-19 cases, and EuroMOMO is again witnessing a substantial excess all-cause mortality attributable to COVID-19.

Mortality anomalies in Europe in the first quarter of 2020 ̶ based on the EuroMOMO network Összefoglalás Világszerte igen nagyarányú COVID-19 megbetegedési és halálozási hullám figyelhető meg a SARS

Objectives: Weekly monitoring of European all-cause excess mortality, the EuroMOMO network, observed high excess mortality during the influenza B/Yamagata dominated 2017/18 winter season, especially among elderly. We describe all-cause excess and influenza-attributable mortality during the season 2017/18 in Europe. Methods: Based on weekly reporting of mortality from 24 European countries or sub-national regions, representing 60% of the European population excluding the Russian and Turkish parts of Europe, we estimated age stratified all-cause excess morality using the EuroMOMO model. In addition, age stratified all-cause influenza-attributable mortality was estimated using the FluMOMO algorithm, incorporating influenza activity based on clinical and virological surveillance data, and adjusting for extreme temperatures. Results: Excess mortality was mainly attributable to influenza activity from December 2017 to April 2018, but also due to exceptionally low temperatures in February-March 2018. The pattern and extent of mortality excess was similar to the previous A( H3N2) dominated seasons, 2014/15 and 2016/17. The 2017/18 overall all-cause influenza-attributable mortality was estimated to be 25.4 ( 95% CI 25.0-25.8) per 100,000 population; 118.2 ( 116.4-119.9) for persons aged 65. Extending to the European population this translates into over-all 152,000 deaths. Conclusions: The high mortality among elderly was unexpected in an influenza B dominated season, which commonly are considered to cause mild illness, mainly among children. Even though A( H3N2) also circulated in the 2017/18 season and may have contributed to the excess mortality among the elderly, the common perception of influenza B only having a modest impact on excess mortality in the older population may need to be reconsidered. (c) 2019 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd on behalf of European Society of Clinical Microbiology and Infectious Diseases. This is an open access article under the CC BY-NC-ND license

Background: The association between heat and daily mortality and its temporal variation are well known. However, few studies have analyzed the inter-annual variations in both the risk estimates and impacts of heat. The aim is to estimate inter-annual variations in the effect of heat for a fixed temperature range, on mortality in 9 European cities included in the PHASE (Public Health Adaptation Strategies to Extreme weather events) project for the period 1990–2010. The second aim is to evaluate overall summer effects and heat–attributable deaths for each year included in the study period, considering the entire air temperature range (both mild and extreme temperatures). Methods: A city-specific daily time-series analysis was performed, using a generalized additive Poisson regression model, restricted to the warm season (April–September). To study the temporal variation for a fixed air temperature range, a Bayesian Change Point analysis was applied to the relative risks of mortality for a 2 °C increase over the 90th percentile of the city-specific distribution. The number of heat attributable deaths in each summer were also calculated for mild (reference to 95th percentile) and extreme heat (95th percentile to maximum value). Results: A decline in the effects of heat over time was observed in Athens and Rome when considering a fixed interval, while an increase in effects was observed in Helsinki. The greatest impact of heat in terms of attributable deaths was observed in the Mediterranean cities (Athens, Barcelona and Rome) for extreme air temperatures. In the other cities the impact was mostly related to extreme years with 2003 as a record breaking year in Paris (+ 1900 deaths) and London (+ 1200 deaths). Conclusions: Monitoring the impact of heat over time is important to identify changes in population vulnerability and evaluate adaptation measures.

Introduction and objective. Hungary is one of the areas in Europe most infected with ragweed (Ambrosia artemisiifolia L.) and its pollen, and is the most important cause of seasonal allergic rhinoconjunctivitis in the country. The aim of the study was to investigate the association between ragweed pollen allergy and long-term ragweed pollen load, as well as analysis of the the impacts of additional potential risk factors on health outcomes. Materials and method. A modified version of standardized questionnaires, based on the International Study of Asthma and Allergy in Childhood, were completed by the parents of schoolchildren aged 8 - 9 attending 3rd grade classes throughout the country. Pollen load was calculated for each settlement from daily ragweed pollen concentrations monitored by 19 monitoring stations in the country. Descriptive and analytical statistical methods were applied. Results. At national level there was a significant inverse association between prevalence of ragweed allergy and its pollen load, but significance was lost after excluding data from Budapest, the capital city, due to the impact of urbanization. In the adjusted model, parental atopic disease was the strongest risk factor (either parent had atopic disease aOR=2.60; 95% CI=2.31-2.93 or both parents had atopic disease aOR=4.56; 95% CI=3.71-5.60). Further significant risk factors were male gender (aOR=1.52; 95% CI=1.36-1.71), lower respiratory infection in the first two years of life (aOR=1.91; 95% CI=1.70-2.16), and unshared children's room (aOR=1.22; 95% CI=1.09-1.37). Allergy was significantly less common among children whose parents received social aid (aOR=0.83; 95% CI=0.72-0.97) and whose mother smoked during pregnancy (aOR=0.80; 95% CI=0.64-0.99). Conclusions. Higher ragweed pollen exposure was not found to be associated with higher risk of ragweed allergy.

The association between heat and daily mortality and its temporal variation are well known. However, few studies have analyzed the inter-annual variations in both the risk estimates and impacts of heat. The aim is to estimate inter-annual variations in the effect of heat for a fixed temperature range, on mortality in 9 European cities included in the PHASE (Public Health Adaptation Strategies to Extreme weather events) project for the period 1990–2010. The second aim is to evaluate overall summer effects and heat–attributable deaths for each year included in the study period, considering the entire air temperature range (both mild and extreme temperatures). A city-specific daily time-series analysis was performed, using a generalized additive Poisson regression model, restricted to the warm season (April–September). To study the temporal variation for a fixed air temperature range, a Bayesian Change Point analysis was applied to the relative risks of mortality for a 2 °C increase over the 90th percentile of the city-specific distribution. The number of heat attributable deaths in each summer were also calculated for mild (reference to 95th percentile) and extreme heat (95th percentile to maximum value). A decline in the effects of heat over time was observed in Athens and Rome when considering a fixed interval, while an increase in effects was observed in Helsinki. The greatest impact of heat in terms of attributable deaths was observed in the Mediterranean cities (Athens, Barcelona and Rome) for extreme air temperatures. In the other cities the impact was mostly related to extreme years with 2003 as a record breaking year in Paris (+ 1900 deaths) and London (+ 1200 deaths). Monitoring the impact of heat over time is important to identify changes in population vulnerability and evaluate adaptation measures.

Bevezetés: Azt tűztük ki célul, hogy elemezzük az összefüggést a hazánkban jelentős népegészségügyi problémának számító parlagfűpollen-allergia előfordulási gyakorisága és a hosszú távú pollenterhelés, valamint egyes légszennyezők (NO2, PM10, CO) hatása, továbbá egyes kora gyermekkori környezeti tényezők között. Módszerek: A vizsgálathoz az Országos Közegészségügyi Központ által végzett országos szintű, az ISAAC tanulmány kérdőívén alapuló felmérés (Országos Gyermek Légúti Felmérés, OGYELF, 2005) parlagfűallergiára és lehetséges kockázati tényezőire vonatkozó kérdéseit használtuk fel. A települések hosszú távú pollenexpozícióját az országot lefedő 19 aerobiológiai mérőállomás átlagos napi pollenkoncentrációiból számoltuk, míg a hosszú távú légszennyezettséget kormányrendelet alapján kialakított légszennyezettségi zónákba sorolás alapján kaptuk. Az elemzéshez leíró és analitikus statisztikai módszereket alkalmaztunk. Eredmények: A mérések alapján jellemző magas tartományban a pollenterhelés nem mutatott szignifikáns összefüggést az allergia rizikójával. Országos szinten szignifikánsan kisebb volt az allergia előfordulása az alacsonyabb légszennyezettségű területeken, Pest megye kizárása után azonban ez a szignifikáns hatás eltűnt. Gyakrabban fordult elő allergia fiú gyermekeknél, továbbá növelte az allergia rizikóját a pozitív családi anamnézis, a kora gyermekkori súlyos, alsó légúti infekció, a különálló, saját gyermekszoba. A rendszeres szociális juttatásban részesülő szülők gyermekeinél kisebb gyakorisággal fordult elő allergia. A várandósság alatti dohányzás negatív összefüggést mutatott a kimenetellel az országos elemzésben, de Pest megye kizárásával a szignifikancia eltűnt. Az anyai életkor a gyermek születésekor nem mutatott szignifikáns összefüggést az allergiarizikóval. Következtetés: A genetikai hajlam mellett számos környezetei tényező is szerepet játszik a fokozott allergiarizikó hátterében, ugyanakkor az előfordulási gyakoriságot egyéb faktorok (szülői ismeretek az allergia tüneteiről, infrastrukturális különbségek, ellátórendszerhez való hozzáférhetőség) is befolyásolhatják, melyek hatását további vizsgálatokban tervezzük elemezni.

Since December 2016, excess all-cause mortality was observed in many European countries, especially among people aged ≥ 65 years. We estimated all-cause and influenza-attributable mortality in 19 European countries/regions. Excess mortality was primarily explained by circulation of influenza virus A(H3N2). Cold weather snaps contributed in some countries. The pattern was similar to the last major influenza A(H3N2) season in 2014/15 in Europe, although starting earlier in line with the early influenza season start.

According to the 5th Assessment Report of IPCC, one of the greatest health impacts of climate change will be the heat-related excess mortality. In Hungary, the National Adaptation Geo-Information System (NAGiS) helps the adaptation process of climate change. Within CRIGiS project, which was initiated to extend the NAGiS, our special subtask was the assessment of heat-related excess mortality at different area levels in the present and for two predicted future periods. This assessment is described in this paper.The Hungarian Central Statistical Office provided the daily mortality data for the period of May 1 - Sep 30, 2005-2014. The observed daily mean temperature data for the same period at small area level (NUTS 4, Nomenclature of territorial units for statistics) were provided by the Hungarian Meteorological Service (HMS). The modeled daily mean temperature data at NUTS 4 level based on the ALADIN-Climate model for three periods, May 1 - Sep 30 of 1991-2020, 2021-2050, and 2071-2100, were also provided by HMS.The heatwave days were defined by the 90th percentile of the frequency distribution of daily mean temperatures at different area levels. The excess mortality was computed by extracting the mean daily mortality of cool days from the number of deaths on heatwave days. As we found a difference between the frequency distributions of observed and modeled present periods, a correction was done assuring that the yearly sums of excess mortality were the same in the observed and modeled present periods. Based on the corrected threshold values the changes in the future could be predicted.During 2005-2014, the range of daily threshold temperature was between 22.3 degrees C and 25.4 degrees C, the mean excess mortality was 15.8% on the heatwave days at NUTS 4 level. At national level, daily mortality was higher by 51 cases on heatwave days than on cool days, which corresponded to an excess of 783 death cases per year in average. According to the climate model, the number and intensity of heatwave days will increase in relation to the present situation. Assuming the same population and level of sensitivity, for 20212050 a 2.6-fold, for 2071-2100 a 7.4-fold increase of excess deaths is predicted causing 2030 and 5800 cases per year, respectively.The prediction of excess mortality at different area levels in the NAGiS database will help stakeholders to prepare adaptation measures to climate change.

In this study, the effect of the thermophilic fungi of composts was analysed on the fungal composition of the air above. Air samples were collected with an Andersen air sampler at 1.5 m height in three large industrial composting facilities treating different waste types. Repetition was collected on three calm and rain-free days of three consecutive weeks in October 2011, in January, April and July 2012; five plates were exposed successively per sampling day. Compost samples were also collected (averaging 1 kg/compost piles). Air and compost samples were cultured at 50 °C. The thermophilic fungal composition of the air near the compost piles of different waste types differed significantly (p < 0.05) from that of the control site above a grassland ecosystem at each sampling time. Seasonal differences could be detected regarding the total number of thermophilic fungi in the air near the agricultural and horticultural compost types, but smaller differences were found near the municipal compost type. A total of 13 and 11 fungal species were detected in the compost and air samples where the dominant species were Thermomyces lanuginosus and Rasamsonia emersonii, respectively. The concentration of airborne thermophilic fungi was higher near the horticultural compost type and lower near the municipal compost. The results suggest that the differences between the incidences of some species in composts and associated aerosols refer to spore ontogeny and biological mechanisms of spore liberation.

The increase of the temperature and frequency of extreme weather events are predicted as the most visible effects of expected climate change. The number of publications dealing with heat-related mortality has been increasing for the last 20 years. They concluded that no formal definition of a heat wave existed, so the definition of such events would be very important. A more consistent methodology for calculating excess mortality would enhance comparisons between studies.It is a growing demand to elaborate and use indicators which can provide comparable information of the impact of heat on mortality in different geographic and climatic regions. Therefore, the World Health Organization developed a set of climate change related health indicators in the CEHAPIS (Climate, Environment and Health Action Plan Information System) project. The authors aimed to assess heat related excess mortality by using this methodology, in addition to indicators used in the Hungarian Heat Alert System, in order to provide a recommendation for a more precise detection of health effects in Budapest.In this paper, the heat wave related daily excess mortality is analyzed for the summer periods of 2000-2010 in Budapest. Mortality is characterized by the daily total mortality and that of the age group 65 years and over. Meteorological variables of the Pestszentlorinc station, regarded as an urban background meteorological station, were used. Daily temperature was characterized by four indicators: mean and maximum daily temperatures, and mean and maximum daily apparent temperatures. The impact on mortality was compared in relation to the different temperature indicators and threshold values. A method was developed to define the optimal threshold range where the excess mortality could be identified effectively.The recommended method is capable to detect the changes of temperature and to assess the impact of heat waves on daily mortality. The results are in accordance with previous studies. Concerning the indicators, the application of daily mean temperature values seems to be optimal for Budapest. Further analyses are required to answer the question to what extent the Budapest findings can be used in other cities.

Since December 2014 and up to February 2015, the weekly number of excess deaths from all-causes among individuals ≥ 65 years of age in 14 European countries have been significantly higher than in the four previous winter seasons. The rise in unspecified excess mortality coincides with increased proportion of influenza detection in the European influenza surveillance schemes with a main predominance of influenza A (H3N2) viruses seen throughout Europe in the current season, though cold snaps and other respiratory infections may also have had an effect.

The EU Strategy on adaptation to climate change (20 13) called the attention that climate change might potentially increase the seasonality a nd duration of allergic disorders like hay fever or asthma. Because it is of high importance t o evaluate the pollen exposure of population living in different geographical and cli matic regions in order to adjust information and adaptive measures, tools for calculation and vi sualization of pollen indicators were developed to aid creating reports and scientific pu blications. Taking into account the above mentioned needs climate related pollen indicators w ere developed by WHO/ECEH Bonn Office with the contribution of Member States withi n the frames of CEHAPIS project . In this article we present two new software-based tools for calculate and visualizes climate related pollen indicators: the UNIPHE (Use of Sub-national Indicators to Improve Public Health in Europe) platform and P.E.A.S. (Pollen Exposure Anal yser Software), respectively. UNIPHE platform is available at http://data.uniphe.eu. and the P.E.A.S software is freely accessible at the link http://data.uniphe.eu/software-tools The effect of climate change on pollen seasons The 4 Assessment Report of IPCC (2007) states that clima te change has caused an earlier onset of the spring pollen season in the Northern H emisphere. It is reasonable to conclude that allergenic diseases caused by pollen, such as aller gic rhinitis, have experienced some concomitant change in seasonality. There is limited evidence that the length of the pollen season has also increased for some species. Furthermore the EU Strategy on adaptation to climat e change (2013) called the attention that climate change might potentially increase the season lity and duration of allergic disorders like hay fever or asthma with implications for dire ct costs in terms of care and medicines, as well as lost working hours. The 5 th Assessment Report of IPCC (2014) stated that warme r conditions generally favour the production and rele ase of air borne allergens. Visual monitoring and experiments have shown that increase s in air temperature cause earlier flowering. Progressively increasing temperatures ma y odify the global pollen load (Ariano et al 2010), the start, duration and intensity of t he pollen season are likely to change significantly with the projected likely increase te mperature of 1.8° to 4.0°C in this century (Solomon et al. 2007) thus likely to influence the already high prevalence of allergic respiratory diseases, e.g. asthma and allergic rhin itis and affect the rate of allergic sensitization across long periods. Changes in the spatial distribution of natural vege tation, such as the introduction of new aeroallergens into an area, increases sensitisation (V ltolini et al., 2000; Asero, 2002). The pollen map of Europe is changing also as a result o f cultural factors: for example, importation of plants such as birch and cypress for urban parkl ands (Ziska et al 2003), greater international travel e.g. colonization by ragweed i n France, northern Italy, Austria, Hungary (D’Amato 2007). Ragweed ( Ambrosia artemisiifolia) an invasive plant with highly allergenic pollen, presents important health risks n many parts of Europe (Cecchi et al., 2006, Rybnicek and Jaeger, 2001, Šikoparija et al, 2009). Adaptation measures identified to date include aero llergen monitoring and forecasting, allergenic plant management, planting practices and policies, access to health care, education and awareness raising. Therefore it is of high impo rtance to evaluate the pollen exposure of population living in different geographical and cli matic regions in order to adjust information and adaptive measures. The development of climate related indicators Taking into account the above mentioned facts and o bservation the WHO/ECEH Bonn Office with the contribution of Member States has develope d climate related indicators within the frames of CEHAPIS project (supported by DG Sanco) . Four allergen plants were selected for the indicato rs: (a) Alder/ Alnus; (b) Birch/Betula; (c) Grasses/Poaceae; and (d) Ragweed/ Ambrosia (Páldy et al. 2014). Those stand for high sensitisation rates, fairly good European both geog raphical (from Nordic to Mediterranean countries) and temporal coverage of the flowering s eason from spring to autumn. The pollen out of the selected indicator taxa: lder (Alnus) and birch (Betula), cause serious health problems, primarily in the northern and north-weste rn parts of Europe, but also in Hungary. Their pollination period is important in relation t o he impacts of climate change. The third indicator is the family of true grasses (Poaceae). Due to the large number of species with in the family, their blooming and pollen season is lon g. Their effects are felt mostly in the atlantic, continental, and mediterranean regions. T he fourth indicator is ragweed (Ambrosia), and especially the common ragweed ( Ambrosia artemisiifolia L.). The reason why it was selected is because its pollen is strongly allergen ic, and also because, as an invasive weed, it causes significant agricultural damage, especially in Central Europe. The indicator set is based on daily airborne pollen immission measurements in continuous volumetric samplers (e.g. Hirst type, Burkard) by s tandard methods. The data of the existing monitoring stations representing different climatic regions of the country is recommended to be used. Each climatic zone needs to be characteriz ed by a sufficient number of stations. Only data from stations located in populated areas are r ecommended to be used in the analysis. Census data for the smallest territorial units avai l ble is used to estimate the population living in a defined area (usually within 10-30 km radius) of each station depending on the local geographical situation as well the from the distanc e between monitoring stations. The indicators used for each of the above mentioned taxa are the following: the beginning, the end, and the length of the pollen season ; the yearly maximum pollen concentration; and the total pollen load (number of pollen grains/m ). The beginning of the season is the day of the year when the pollen count reached or exceed ed 1% of the yearly total pollen count. According to the definition, the end of the season is the day of the year when the yearly pollen count reached 99% of the cumulative pollen count. 1 Climate Change, Environment and Health Action Plan and Information System CEHAPIS Co-funded by EC DG Sanco SPC 2007WHO03 In case of the especially significant ragweed, oth er parameters characterising the population exposure are also available. These are th population weighted average pollen concentration, the weighted length of the pollen se ason, and the weighted proportion of allergenic days. These complex indicators aim to estimate the aller genic effect while taking into account the potential exposure of the populati on. An interactive information platform to visualise the climate specific pollen indicators The pollen reports of the Hungarian Aerobiological Network (coordinated by the National Institute of Environmental Health, Budapest, NIEH) use parameters describing the extent of pollen exposures (e.g. country average, weekly a verage, weekly maximum pollen concentration). However, the time and length of the season and the geographic distribution of the pollen concentration must also be taken into ac count in order to better assess the pollen exposure of the population. Until 2011, these param eters were only available in the yearly reports, but due to our developments, they are now available throughout the season. The UNIPHE (Use of Sub-national Indicators to Improve P ublic Health in Europe) project 2 was started in 2009 with the co-operation of six Member States of the EU in order to develop and apply countryand smaller scale environmental heal t indicators. The geographic system is based on the Nomenclature of Units for Territorial Statistics (NUTS). The role of the Hungarian partner (NIEH) was to establish a databas e at subnational level synchronised with the Environment and Health Information System (ENHI S) and to develop an online, interactive data-retrieval web surface for this dat ab se. The application is available under http://data.uniphe.eu. Concerning the above described four indicator taxa information is available for almost the entire period of the monitoring activity of the Aerobiology Network through the UNIPHE application. The database, undergone a data cle ning process (screening, verification) contains the daily pollen concentrati on data of 18 stations from 1999 to 2014, updated annually. The pollen counts on days being o ut of the ragweed pollen season according to phonological observation, are not incl uded in the UNIPHE database. The data can be accessed according to the indicator s on several scales (national, regional, county, settlement), in different time un its, and in different display modes. The three-year moving average option can assist in smoo thing variability, while the national averages shown on the diagrams and the map figure t ype on the settlement scale can help determine spatial variability. This smallest geogra phic scale typically represents the city and its agglomeration with a 17.5 km radius, specified for Hungary, around the a given aerobiological monitoring station (Figure 1). 2 supported by DG SANCO No 2008 13 04) 3 http://data.euro.who.int/eceh-enhis/Default2.aspx Fig. 1: Regional differences in the length of the ragweed pollen season (in days) in 2012 in Hungary by the UNIPHE information system We can access the population weighted pollen exposu re values on larger, e.g. regional (NUTS3), scales (Figure 2). Fig. 2: Population-weighted length of pollen season ( in days) in 2007, Hungary by the UNIPHE information system It is also important to note that at the line chart op ion (on the settlement scale) we can deselect those cities with Aerobiology