Extracting, transporting and burning planet-warming fossil fuels has a dramatic impact on people’s health, starting before birth and continuing until death, a report warned on Monday.
Pollution from fossil fuels such as oil, coal and natural gas has been linked to a variety of health problems, including miscarriage, asthma, cancer, stroke and heart disease.
"Fossil fuels are a direct attack on health, harming us at every stage of our life cycle, from the womb to old age," Shweta Narayan, author of the new report from the Global Climate and Health Alliance, said in a statement.
The Global Climate and Health Alliance, a coalition of more than 200 organizations representing 46 million health workers, said the report was the first comprehensive look at how fossil fuels affect health throughout a person's lifetime.
The report cites peer-reviewed research showing that living near coal mines or fracking sites is associated with higher rates of premature birth, miscarriage and other problems during pregnancy.
The report added that during childhood, air pollution from fossil fuels was linked to higher rates of asthma and cancers such as leukemia.
In older age, people exposed to air pollution have been found to have a higher risk of heart disease, stroke, some forms of dementia, and premature death.
In addition to the health impacts of extracting and burning fossil fuels, transporting them can also pose threats, such as leaks from natural gas pipelines into water supplies or large-scale oil spills.
The report warns that even after fossil fuels are burned, chemicals such as lead, mercury and the "forever chemicals" per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances ( PFAS ) will persist in soil, water and the food chain.
More intense and frequent extreme weather events, driven by global warming fueled by fossil fuels, could also exacerbate health impacts. For example, hurricanes can overwhelm medical facilities, while smoke from wildfires can cause respiratory problems.
The report also said that the disproportionate damage to health often falls on already vulnerable and marginalized groups in poorer countries.
"The age of fossil fuels poisons our air, destroys health and tears apart dignity," Christiana Figueres, former executive secretary of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change ( UNNFCCC ), said in a statement linked to the report. She urged a rapid transition to renewable energy.
Despite repeated warnings about the devastating impacts of man-made climate change, global carbon dioxide emissions from fossil fuels broke records again last year.
Source: Net Zero CNA
Website: 報告：從母胎到老年 化石燃料危害健康一輩子 | 淨零碳排 | 中央社 CNA
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