Artefacts and art treasures in York under threat as climate costs laid bare

Artefacts and art works are coming under threat from climate change, a study has warned (Image: Anthony Chappel-Ross)

ARTEFACTS and art works are under threat locally, a report laying bare the effects of climate change in York and North Yorkshire has found.

Items in museums' collections are being damaged while stored in old buildings struggling to cope with increasingly extreme weather, according to the York and North Yorkshire Climate Adaptation Study.

It stated leaking roofs and windows, poor insulation, limited to non-existent humidity controls and a lack of features preventing flooding were all putting collections at risk.

The warning comes as part of the study which also forecast that the cost of climate change to York and North Yorkshire could be more than £160 million by the 2050s.

The study also warned despite some action to prepare for climate change, measures to cope with extreme heat, droughts, the spread of pests and diseases and other issues were limited.

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Increased costs for farming and from flooding, extreme heat affecting productivity and moorland and heather wildfires are expected to drive up financial losses.

But the study stated those four factors were among 113 potential risks facing the region, meaning the cost would likely be much higher.

Property damage from flooding, which already stands at £38 million a year, is forecast to rise to more than £70 million annually by the 2050s or to £120 million under worst-case scenarios.

A total of 45,028 homes and 14,931 commercial properties across the region are currently deemed to be at risk from river and sea flooding.

Selby has been identified as a hotspot for flood risk and York is also highly exposed.

Extreme heat is expected to become more common and is forecast to cost £35 million alone as outdoor and temperature-sensitive work is impacted.

Fires like that seen on the North Yorkshire Moors in 2025 could become commonplace due to climate change, the study warned (Image: PA)

Wildfires like that seen on the North Yorkshire Moors in the summer of 2025, which resulted in economic losses of around £25.9 million, could happen yearly by the 2050s.

Conditions suited to wildfires sparking and spreading look set to become commonplace during summer in the coming decades.

The study stated a distinct risk was posed to the collections held by organisations such as York Museums Trust (YMT).

YMT runs the Yorkshire Museum and York Art Gallery.

The study added historic buildings could be damaged by increasingly intense rainfall, storms and heatwaves.

It stated: “Stakeholders indicate that cultural collections are held in inadequate facilities, such as older buildings that are not resilient to extreme weather events.

“As a result, stored collections are being damaged by increasingly extreme weather events.

“This risk emerged as a priority due to the high cultural and non-financial value of these collections.”

The study's findings are set to go before a City of York Council decision session on Tuesday, October 6.