Human Health, Well-being, and Safety in Saskatchewan: Dealing with a Changing Climate
Why should we care about the possible effects of climate change on health?
Health and well-being are strongly linked with weather and climate. For example, the incidences of infectious diseases and deaths have a strong seasonal pattern. Examples include Hanta Virus Pulmonary Syndrome or West Nile Virus.
Extreme climate- events such as droughts, floods, and heat waves are expected to increase under climate change. Consequently, the risk of injury, illness, stress-related disorders and death will also rise. An especially important concern is the effect of decreased availability of water resources. Saskatchewan already experiences frequent droughts, which could become worse with climate change causing farmers and many other even more stress.
Climate changes will force us to deal with conditions beyond our past experience, such as larger floods or hotter summers. Thus, climate change may have unexpected costs to the health-care sector, unless the appropriate adaptations are made.
Climate change may cost governments, communities and individuals a great deal of money. Economic losses, especially ones that individuals cannot afford, are a major source of stress. Conflicts with insurance companies and the government over who pays for the damage are a major source of worry for individuals.
What are some human health impacts expected from climate change?
Heavier rainfall events can increase the occurrence of waterborne diseases such as giardiasis and cryptosporidiosis. Warmer temperatures would enhance water contamination through increased evaporation, and better conditions for disease reproduction.
Increased intensity and frequency of heat waves would be especially hazardous for vulnerable groups, such as infants, the elderly, and those with pre-existing health conditions. Elderly people are more susceptible to heat-related death and illness than others. Heat-waves are associated with higher night-time temperatures, which means less relief from the heat during the evening when the elderly most need it.
Forest fires and drought will increase dirt, dust and smoke in the air. This can increase the risk of respiratory disease or trigger asthma attacks.
In Canada, cold spells are responsible for more deaths in than heat-waves. Warmer winters will result in fewer deaths, to the benefit of health. However, over time this trend may reverse with hotter summer temperatures resulting in more deaths.
Shorter and warmer winters could lead to shorter seasons for winter roads and ice bridges that link northern communities to the southern portions of the country. This would greatly restrict the transportation of food, medicines, and the provision of health care for these northern communities.
Climate change will likely increase the environmental conditions favorable for vectors like mosquitoes that carry diseases. This could mean new diseases would make Saskatchewan their home, or present diseases could become more common. For example, mosquito carriers of the West Nile Virus are likely to be more active during warmer evenings.
Longer summers will lengthen the growing seasons, which also means an extended allergy season. Allergy-induced asthma may also become more common.
Lengthy summers, recreational and outdoor working seasons can lead to increased exposure to ultraviolet radiation and additional recreational injuries. UV exposure causes sunburn, eye damage and skin cancer.
Climate related hazards such as floods, droughts, and severe storms can cause significant mental stress and financial ruin for people living through them. It can affect people for years after the event causing depression, and post-traumatic stress disorder. Financial difficultly is a leading cause of depression in farmers.
Northern communities are especially vulnerable to climate change. Snow cover, lake ice, and frozen ground regimes are decreasing and forest fires are increasing, changing the landscape needed for survival. In addition, traditional food sources also may be at increasing risk due to pollutant loading and ecosystem changes.
Not all the health consequences associated with climate change can be foreseen. Surprises are almost certain, as the dependence of humans on their environment is complex, and it is difficult to anticipate the consequences of a rapidly changing climate.
How can society adapt to decrease the negative effects of climate change and increase the positive effects? Adaptation is necessary to reduce health-related vulnerabilities to climate change. Ideas include:
Assess the vulnerability and adaptive capacity of different regions, communities, business sectors, and population groups.
Assess the capacity of present technology to reduce the effects of future weather extremes (e.g., dikes and dams) safety procedures.
Identify, select and test the most appropriate adaptation strategies
Some more specific actions include:
Monitor for emerging infectious diseases and develop new vaccines to limit the future spread of emerging viral diseases. Reduce the risk of exposure and transmission
Enhance emergency management plans to prepare for increased frequencies of extreme events
Implement early warning systems, such as those to help reduce the health impacts of heat waves
Increase professional and public education as well as awareness regarding climate change related risks and adaptive actions
Increase mental health services and dialogue in drought-prone areas and elsewhere during drought years.
Identify the most costly impacts from extreme weather and take the appropriate measures to reduce the economic impact on communities and individuals. Research has found that economic losses, especially ones that individuals cannot afford, are a major source of stress.
Successful adaptation requires coordination among many groups and levels of government and the consideration of climate change implications in health care decision making.
Work towards building a flexible and resilient health management system that will be able to cope with change and surprise.
Government of Canada's Climate Change Impacts and Adaptation Program provides funding for research and activities to improve our knowledge of Canada’s vulnerability to climate change, to better assess the risks and benefits posed by climate change and to build the foundation upon which appropriate decisions on adaptation can be made.
