UNEP: Tackling Climate Change to Decrease Health Issue Load

A report from the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) has highlighted the severe and accelerating toll that environmental degradation is taking on human health.

The Global Environment Outlook 7 (GEO 7) warns that the world is confronting multiple interconnected crises of climate change, biodiversity loss, land degradation and pollution.

These are pushing global systems toward irreversible tipping points with profound consequences for health and wellbeing.

The report states, "The excessive and unsustainable use of both finite and renewable natural resources... puts pressure on environmental systems," and that "these crises are interlinked and mutually reinforcing, pushing planetary systems towards uncharted territory where there is a growing likelihood that several tipping points may be irreversibly crossed.”

According to the report, environmental pollution is the world’s largest risk factor for disease and premature death, responsible for nine million human deaths annually, with more than 90% of these deaths occurring in low and middle-income countries.

The pervasive and direct threat of pollution

According to the report, environmental pollution is the world’s largest risk factor for disease and premature death, responsible for nine million human deaths annually, with more than 90% of pollution-related deaths occurring in low and middle-income countries.

The methods of waste disposal in these nations create severe hazards, as in low-income nations, 93%of municipal waste is either burned or dumped in open landfills, posing serious environmental and health risks.

The report details the vast scope of environmental contaminants, noting that pollutants in the environment encompass a wide range of contaminants, including noise, light and radioactive pollution, as well as contaminated water, soil and land contamination, atmospheric pollution, industrial waste and plastic litter.

This toxic burden disproportionately harms the most vulnerable.

The report specifies that pollution affects women’s health differently, particularly in terms of reproductive health and exposure to household pollutants and the adverse health effects of pollution on the elderly may also be disproportionate.

A growing toxic burden on human health is highlighted, with the report noting that "the number of chemicals released into the environment, including plastics, has grown over time, with an estimated 350,000 chemicals available globally and new threats arise, such as the forever chemicals (poly and perfluorinated chemicals)."

Air pollution remains a primary killer.

A global model estimates that, in 2022, 96%, 82% and 53% of Earth’s populated areas experienced unhealthy air quality for at least one day, one week, and one month, respectively.

“If we choose to stay on the current path, powering our economies with fossil fuels, extracting virgin resources, destroying nature, polluting the environment, the damages would stack up,” says Inger Andersen, Executive Director, United Nations Environment Programme, in the report.

“Climate change would cut 4% off annual global GDP by 2050, claim many lives and increase forced migration. 

“Amazon forest dieback and ice-sheet collapse would become more likely. Hundreds of millions more hectares of natural lands would be lost. 

“Vital species such as pollinators would be decimated. Food availability would fall. 

“Urban air pollution would continue, with fine particulate matter alone causing around four million premature deaths annually. 

“Solid waste, currently more than two billion tonnes per year, would almost double, turning our world into a toxic garbage dump. 

“By contrast, the report shows that transforming these systems together can generate wide-ranging benefits, from reducing air pollution and preventing millions of premature deaths to improving resilience against climate impacts.”

The report explains that urbanization and human-driven emissions heighten the risk of heatwaves in cities.

It warns that continuous day-night heat waves, compound hot extremes, are more dangerous than isolated daytime or night time heat alone, especially for vulnerable groups like women and the elderly.

Climate models project a two to fivefold rise in these events by the 2090s.

The economic case for investing in a healthy planet

The report frames environmental protection as a direct investment in public health and economic stability.

“As the Global Environment Outlook 7 reminds us: now is the time for courage and creativity,” says António Guterres Secretary-General of the United Nations in the report.

While sustainability transitions require upfront investment, the report estimates the global economic benefits could reach US$20tn per year by 2070, caused largely by improved health outcomes, productivity gains and reduced climate damage.

Inclusive and holistic solutions for global wellbeing

GEO-7 emphasises that technology and finance alone are not enough.

The report calls for inclusive governance and social participation, integrating diverse knowledge systems from science to Indigenous and Local Knowledge.

"Digital transformation can support the efficient distribution of resources, balance supply and demand and drive the development of innovative city solutions. These efforts can positively impact the achievement of the SDGs and promote social inclusion," the report states.

Despite the challenges, there is a path forward.

“This is not an easy time to press the world’s governments to take action on environment matters when national agendas come before global co-operation but as Bob Watson and Inger Andersen reminded us there has been progress even this year,” writes Hilary Allison, Secretariat Liaison for Global Environment Outlook at UNEP.

The report underlines that the next five years are crucial for implementing these changes to prevent the most severe health impacts of environmental breakdown.