By Paul Roberts / For The Herald
Climate change is accelerating. So, too, are the impacts, including threats to human health and all living things on the planet.
Let’s examine a few of the growing health impacts associated with a warming world. Space does not allow a thorough review. However, a comprehensive review can be found in the excellent work of The Washington Physicians for Social Responsibility (WPSR). In 2022 WPSR published “Climate and Health Washington 2022”: wpsr.org/climateandhealthreport. Retired Everett physician Dr. Jonathan Witte has been a leader in WPSR’s efforts for many years.
The science and causal relationships of climate change are well established. Consumption of fossil fuels generate greenhouse gas emissions, trapping heat and warming the planet.
Heat is the primary driver of climate change and the most lethal of its effects. The Pacific Northwest heat dome of 2021 is estimated to have killed more than 440 people. Heat-related deaths are typically underreported as heat exacerbates other health conditions. Higher temperatures will stress health care systems here and around the globe. Recent examples of heat related deaths in Europe include more than 30,000 deaths in 2003 and more than 61,000 in 2022.
The economic consequences of rising temperatures are inextricably tied to physical impacts and health effects. Rising temperatures will increase costs for a number of sectors including health care, labor, agriculture, infrastructure, building and construction.
Another significant impact to human health is something called PM 2.5. These are fine particles 2.5 micrometers in diameter or smaller. They are 30 times smaller than the average width of a human hair. They are inhaled through the lungs into the bloodstream, brain and organs. The sources of PM 2.5 particles are typically wildfire smoke, auto and diesel exhaust, complex reactions of chemicals such as sulfur dioxide, nitrogen oxide and volatile organic compounds. We generally lump all these particles together as air pollution. But they are not all the same.
Wildfires are a particularly toxic source of PM 2.5, and urban wildfires even more so. Wildfires in cities unleash a toxic, unpredictable combination of compounds into the air and soils. Recent examples in Los Angeles and Lahaina, Hawaii found that toxic compounds were hundreds of times higher than fires in woodland areas. These compounds settle into the soils complicating cleanup and rebuilding efforts.
PM 2.5 pollutants can cause difficulty breathing and irritation of the eyes and throat. They increase risks of cardiovascular disease, heart attacks and strokes, respiratory illnesses like asthma and COPD, and cancers. New research led by the University of Washington found that prolonged exposure to the ultra fine particles in wildfire smoke increases the risk of dementia for those 60 and older.
Other climate change health impacts include sea level rise, harmful algal blooms, allergies, and infectious disease including those that spread through vectors such as mosquitoes or through foods and water. These include West Nile virus and vibriosis.
Climate change is contributing to species and disease migration. As the planet warms, plants, animals, and pathogens are migrating to farther north and south latitudes.
Diseases and climate change impacts are oblivious to political boundaries. The effects of climate change such as heat, fires, smoke, floods, drought, hurricanes and sea level rise are driven by physics not boundaries.
Likewise, communicable diseases are not constrained by boundaries. They are driven by pathogens. Climate change is a factor increasing risks for some of them.
While the Trump administration is preoccupied with curbing illegal immigration, they have left the door open for diseases and climate impacts to do more damage to in the U.S.
Trump withdrew from the Paris agreement and the World Health Organization, both critical structures addressing climate change and fighting infectious diseases, including pandemics such as covid and bird flue.
The current administration also is cutting funds to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Institutes of Health, Environmental Protection Agency, Federal Emergency Management Agency, wildfire fighters and other agencies and operations essential for protecting health and fighting climate change. These actions leave the U.S. and the world more vulnerable to climate impacts and diseases, while disabling or dismantling early warning, detection and response systems.
Human health and climate change are unquestionably linked. The earth has a fever and the prescription is reducing greenhouse gas emissions by transitioning to a clean energy economy. It is the most effective treatment for global warming and reducing adverse health impacts.
Paul Roberts is retired and lives in Everett. His career spans over five decades in infrastructure, economics and environmental policy including advising Washington cities on climate change and past chair of the Puget Sound Clean Air Agency Board of Directors.
Eco-nomics
“Eco-nomics” is a series of articles exploring issues at the intersection of climate change and economics. Climate change (global warming) is caused by greenhouse gas emissions — carbon dioxide and methane chiefly — generated by human activities, primarily burning fossil fuels and agricultural practices. Global warming poses an existential threat to the planet. Successfully responding to this threat requires urgent actions — clear plans and actionable strategies — to rapidly reduce GHG emissions and adapt to climate-influenced events.
The Eco-nomics series focuses on mitigation and adaptation strategies viewed through the twin perspectives of science and economics. Find links to the series thus far at tinyurl.com/HeraldEco-nomics.
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