Climate Change and Human Health Lesley Jantarasami EPA Office of Air and Radiation Office of Atmospheric Programs May 21, 2015 Presentation to the National Tribal Forum
Climate Change and Human Health
Lesley JantarasamiEPA Office of Air and Radiation
Office of Atmospheric ProgramsMay 21, 2015
Presentation to the National Tribal Forum
For public health, climate change is the defining issue for the
21st century.Margaret Chan: Director General of
World Health Organization
Climate change is a public health issue and is one of the greatest threats to
human health.Lynn Goldman, Testimony to Subcommittee on Energy and Power,
Representing American Public Health Association
Few Americans are aware of the current or projected future health impacts of global warming [for the U.S. or worldwide].Public Perceptions of the Health Consequences of Global Warming, Yale Project on Climate Change Communication
US Global Change Research Program (USGCRP)
Mission: To build a knowledge base that informs human responses to climate and global change through coordinated and integrated federal programs of research, education, communication, and decision support
The cast = lots of acronyms Product of USGCRP
Part of NCA
Driven by CCHHG
Coordinated by EPA
Written by HHS (NIH, CDC,
NIOSH, ASPR, FDA, SAMHSA,
USUHS, VA), NOAA, EPA, USDA,
NASA, USGS, DOD…
What’s in1. Climate Change and Human Health (Intro)2. Temperature-Related Death and Illness3. Air Quality Impacts4. Vectorborne Disease5. Water-Related Illnesses6. Food Safety, Nutrition, and Distribution7. Extreme Weather8. Mental Health and Well-Being9. Risk Factors and Populations of Concern
What’s out Mitigation, adaptation, or economic valuation Policy recommendations Most compounding, secondary, or cumulative
climate and health effects Assessment of research needs
Informing other Federal Climate and Health Initiatives
Climate Data Initiative (climate.data.gov)• Over 150 Federal climate and health datasets that are freely accessible to
researchers and data innovators to produce new tools and applications.
Climate Resilience Toolkit (toolkit.climate.gov)• Provides scientific tools, information, and expertise to help people manage their
climate-related risks and improve resiliency to extreme events.
Sustainable Climate Resilience Healthcare Facilities Initiative• Best Practices Guide and Toolkit to improve healthcare resiliency to extreme events.
An “interim report”
• To be published between the Third and Fourth National Climate Assessments• Current plan for release is Spring 2016– After National Research Council (NRC) peer review
– After interagency review and clearance
Strengthens and expands our understanding of health impacts
• Updated Findings• Stronger Evidence• New analyses • Broader Scope• Identifies Risks and Vulnerabilities
This is a DRAFT
www.globalchange.gov/health-assessment
Climate change • is a significant threat to the health of the
American people
• exposes more people in more places to public health threats
• exacerbates and accelerates some existing health threats and creates new public health challenges
Draft Findings
NON-CLIMATE STRESSORS
• Land-use change• Ecosystem degradation• Infrastructure condition• Geography• Agricultural production
& livestock use
CLIMATE DRIVERS• Increased temperature• Precipitation extremes• Extreme weather events• Sea level rise
EXPOSURE PATHWAYS• Extreme heat• Poor air quality• Reduced food & water quality• Changes in infectious agents• Population displacement
HEALTH OUTCOMES• Heat-related illness• Cardiopulmonary illness• Food-, water-, & vectorborne
disease• Mental health consequences
& stress
SOCIAL DETERMINANTS• Age & gender• Race & Ethnicity• Poverty• Housing &
infrastructure• Education• Discrimination• Access to care &
community health infrastructure
Draft Findings
Temperature-Related Death and Illness
Increasing concentrations of greenhouse gases lead to a warming of both average and extreme temperatures. This is expected to lead to a decrease in deaths from cold and an increase in deaths and illness from heat, particularly for a number of communities especially vulnerable to these changes, such as children, the elderly, and disadvantaged groups.
Draft Findings
Air Quality Impacts
Changes in the climate affect the air we breathe both indoors and outdoors. The changing climate has modified weather patterns, which in turn have influenced the levels and location of outdoor air pollutants such as ground-level ozone and fine particulate matter. Increasing CO2 levels will also promote the growth of plants that release airborne allergens.
Draft Findings
Vectorborne Diseases
The seasonality, distribution, and prevalence of vectorborne diseases are influenced significantly by climate factors, primarily high and low temperature extremes and precipitation patterns. Climate change is likely to have both short- and long-term effects on vectorborne disease transmission and infection patterns, affecting both seasonal risk and broad geographic changes in disease occurrence over decades.
Draft Findings
Water-Related Illness
Across most of the United States, climate change is expected to affect fresh and marine water sources in ways that will increase people’s exposure to contaminants that cause illness. Certain climate and weather factors enhance the growth, survival, spread, and virulence, or toxicity, of water-related pathogens and toxins, which make them more likely to cause disease.
Draft Findings
Extreme Weather
Climate change has already resulted in a shift in the frequency, intensity, and duration of certain extreme events. Health hazards associated with extreme events can result in death, injury, disease, and other negative effects on human physical, mental, and social well-being.
Draft Findings
Climate-Health Risk Factors & Populations of Concern
Populations of concern include those with low income, communities of color, those with limited English proficiency and immigrant groups, Indigenous peoples, children and pregnant women, older adults, certain occupational groups, persons with functional disabilities, and persons with biologically determined vulnerability, such as pre-existing or chronic medical conditions.
Draft Findings
Climate-Health Risk Factors & Populations of Concern
Spotlight on Indigenous Peoples Section of Chapter
– Food Safety and Security– Water Security– Loss of Cultural Identity– Degraded infrastructure and other impacts
Photos: Mark Henle/The Arizona Republic
Photo: US DOI
Draft Findings
Demonstration of the USGCRP Public Review and Comment System
Submit Comments: April 7 – June 8 (by noon EDT)https://review.globalchange.gov
Thank You!
Contact me at: [email protected]
www.globalchange.gov/health-assessment
review.globalchange.gov