IMPACT ON HEALTH

The interactions between climate change and human health are multiple and complex. However, they can be summarized as follows: (a) changes in morbidity and mortality in relation to temperature; (b) health effects related to extreme weather events (tornadoes, storms, hurricanes and extreme precipitation); (c) air pollution and the associated increase in health effects; (d) food- and water-borne diseases; and (e) diseases transmitted by infectious vectors and rodents. Climate change-related air emissions can exacerbate the health effects of air pollution on the health of citizens, not only directly through the impact on weather events, but immediately through the direct health effects of pollutants. For too many years, however, efforts in most parts of the world have been directed at dealing with these two problems separately.