Climate Impacts - Impacts For People, Health

To-Do Date: Apr 26 at 11:59pm

The health impacts of global warming can be broken up into those that are direct (burning fossil fuels leads to air pollution which has a direct impact on health) and those that are indirect (increased temperatures lead to more wildfires and therefore air pollution). 

Study Guide Questions

5. What are the health impacts of global warming and climate change?

    • What are the impacts of  Air Pollution, Allergens and Pollen, Diseases Carried by Vectors, Food and Waterborne Diarrheal Disease, Food Security, Mental Health Disorders, Floods, Temperature Extremes, Wildfires
    • What are the greatest links for our region? 
    • Which populations are most vulnerable to either these impacts and why?  

Climate Change and Health

Read this article from the CDC  on Climate Affects on Health. Links to an external site. Investigate each of the topics: Air Pollution, Allergens and Pollen, Diseases Carried by Vectors, Food and Waterborne Diarrheal Disease, Food Security, Mental Health Disorders, Floods, Temperature Extremes, Wildfires.

Then select ''Regional Health Impacts''  the Southwest and read about the specific concerns for California. 

Climate Health Impacts and Environmental Justice

The combustion of fossil fuels has direct impacts on human health, especially communities living near coal-powered power plants, oil refineries, highways, and fracking sites.  These are usually disproportionally black, Latinx, and indigenous communities.   Below are some statistics from the article, Coal Pollution and the Fight For Environmental Justice Links to an external site..  

      • 39% of the people living near coal-fired power plants are people of color
      • 78% of African Americans live within 30 miles of a coal-fired power plant
      • Latino communities, as well as indigenous communities and low-income communities, are more likely to live next to coal-fired plants
      • African American children are three times more likely to go into the emergency room for an asthma attack than a white child and twice as likely to die from asthma attacks than a white child.
      • African Americans are more likely to die from lung disease, but less likely to smoke. 

Watch the two short videos below to learn about youth activists are fighting for cleaner air and water in their communities.

 

 

 

Update -- in December 2020, the Navajo Generating Station was demolished. 

 

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