Spain, the European country in which heat-related deaths are increasing the most
“The climate crisis is killing us“. UN Secretary General António Guterres could have said it louder, but not clearer. Global warming is causing severe impacts on human health: aggravates the transmission of numerous infectious diseases and increases respiratory and cardiovascular ailments, as well as mental problems and food insecurity. More and more are recorded heat-related deaths. And in Spain, more than in any other country in Europe.
The alert has been launched by the hundred international researchers who prepared this year’s report ‘The Lancet Countdown’ on health and climate change.
The drift of the planet is worrying: every year there are more fires, more droughts, more extreme weather events and the spread of infectious diseases increases exponentially.
An example: the probability of dengue transmission increased by 12% since the middle of the last century. And the incidence of this disease multiplied by eight in the last two decades. The report highlights that in the last five years cases of dengue have been reported in Spain and France.
The environmental risk of outbreaks of West Nile virus, on the other hand, increased in the period 1986-2020 by 149% in southern Europe and 163% in the rest of the continent compared to 1951-1985.
The authors are clear:The world is at a critical moment“And they are clear on responsibility: Persistent addiction to fossil fuels is amplifying the health impacts of the concurrent crises we face.”
“People around the world are increasingly feeling the impact of climate change on their health and well-being. However, governments and companies continue to prioritize fossil fuel interests“, denounce the researchers.
Multi-million dollar losses
The data collected in the report is scary. The extreme droughts between 2012 and 2021 affected 29% more of the earth’s surface than between 1951 and 1960. And human exposure to days with Fire danger very high or extremely high increased by 61% compared to twenty years ago.
More: the extreme heat waves registered 2020 caused food insecurity in 98 million more people than the average for the period 1981-2000. And people in vulnerable age groups (underage and over 65) were exposed to 3.7 billion more heat wave days in 2021 than between 1986 and 2005.
All this also has a huge economic impact: exposure to heat led to the loss of 470 billion potential working hours worldwide in 2021, with associated revenue losses of €670 billion. The Balearic Islands, Cyprus and the South Aegean, in Greece, are the places on the continent where the heat caused the greatest loss of working hours.
Meanwhile, the lag in the adoption of clean energy (it contributes just 2.2% of the world’s total energy supply) leaves dependent households vulnerable to rising “dirty energy” prices and the associated health damage. causes the “energy poverty“, well many homes breathe “dangerous levels of air pollution derived from the burning of fuel in its interior”, collects the document.
States are not meeting their commitments to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. “The carbon intensity of the global energy system has decreased by less than 1% since 1992. And with the increase in energy consumption, energy-related CO2 emissions hit a record high in 2021“, he points out.
Governments continue to subsidize oil
“Governments around the world continue to subsidize fossil fuels with hundreds of billions of dollars a year. In many cases for amounts comparable to or even higher than their health budgets,” criticize the authors.
But, in addition, the highest income countries have so far not delivered the 100,000 million dollars that they had committed to support a just transition. “A profound underfunding undermines action towards a low-carbon, climate-resilient future“, lament the researchers.
The report points directly to the “fossil fuel giants“, which are pursuing plans that would lead to emissions that would vastly exceed the goals of the Paris Agreement.
If these large multinationals achieve their goals “they would lock the world in a fatally warmer future, with catastrophic health impacts“. And there seems to be no going back, because “as they make record profits, the fact that they will not invest in a healthy future becomes clear.”
The signatories stress that this is not the way to go and that a response to crises “focused on health” can still provide “a healthier future.” But for that they need “urgent” and “forceful” actions.
“Move away from fossil fuels could prevent the 1.2 million deaths resulting from exposure to environmental particles PM 2.5″, they point out. “The transition to renewable energy sources can help build more resilient energy networks and reduce energy poverty by delivering clean and healthy energy to households,” they add.
“The green urban redesign could increase climate resilience while improving physical and mental health with healthier and more livable cities”, and “the low-carbon, plant-rich diets would help avoid low intakes of fruits and vegetables and high intakes of red meat and dairy”.
“Glimpses of Hope”
Despite the bleak picture, the report’s authors observe “some emerging glimmers of hopeThus, they emphasize that although total clean energy generation remains “insufficient”, reached record levels in 2020and that zero carbon sources accounted for more than 80% of investment in electricity generation in 2021.
“The public engagement with health issues related to climate change is at an all time high. Media coverage of health and climate change is increasing every year. There has been a Greater commitment from world leaderswith 60% of countries drawing attention to climate change and health in the 2021 UN general debate,” they add.
“But this heightened awareness must urgently become action for hope to become reality,” the researchers point out.
“After 30 years of negotiations, countries and companies continue to make decisions that threaten the health and survival of people around the world. At this critical juncture, an immediate health-focused response can still secure a future in which the world’s populations can not only survive but thrive.”
As to Spainthe report reveals that It is the European country in which the most heat-related deaths are recorded: 30.6 per million inhabitants and decade, double the continental average. And those deaths could double in Europe in the next 34 years.
It also underlines that Spain is one of the countries in which forest fires caused the most “devastation” in the whole worldalong with Canada, the United States, Greece, Algeria, Italy and Turkey.
Reference report: https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PIIS0140-6736(22)01540-9/fulltext
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