Climate Change's Impact on Human Health
Thanks to climate change, we'll be seeing more asthma, allergies, Lyme disease and foodborne illnesses.
The Obama administration has released a major new report on how manmade global warming is making Americans sicker—and it's only going to get worse.
Developed over three years and involving approximately 100 climate and public health experts, the 332-page report was based on more than 1,800 published scientific studies and new federal research, and was reviewed by the National Academies of Sciences.
The report, titled The Impacts of Climate Change on Human Health in the United States, "significantly advances what we know about the impacts of climate change on public health, and the confidence with which we know it," according to a White House fact sheet about the report.
"As the climate continues to change, the risks to human health will grow, exacerbating existing health threats and creating new public health challenges, and impacting more people in more places," the fact sheet states. "From children to the elderly, every American is vulnerable to the health impacts associated with climate change, now and in the future."
The report also involved the participation of representatives from a number of federal departments and agencies, including the Environmental Protection Agency, the Department of Health and Human Services, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration, the Department of Agriculture, the U.S. Geological Survey, the Department of Defense and the Department of Veteran’s Affairs.
"It's not just about polar bears and melting ice caps," said EPA administrator Gina McCarthy at a White House event unveiling the report. "It's about our families.It's about our future."
http://www.alternet.org/environment/9-ways-global-warming-making-us-sick
Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade