Climate change is a big issue right now. Many people still don’t even believe climate change is a real thing. A new report from the White House claims that the changing climate poses a bigger health risk than polio.
Polio was eradicated with a simple vaccine. Fixing the environment does not have such an easy solution. This report estimates that there will be 11,000 additional heat related deaths by 2030. Because of this threat, there will be a government gathering on April 22 in New York to get a climate change agreement signed.
This gathering will include 55 countries that produce the most carbon emissions. They will have research conducted by 100 scientists around the world. It details the risks of a changing climate that includes heat waves, pollution-related illnesses, and the lowering nutritional value of the rice and wheat crops.
Extreme heat waves could make part of the world uninhabitable. A high concentration of urban buildings can create more heat related issues also.
It is already happening. Climate change has created changes in precipitation which are changing the availability and quantity of water. These changing ecosystems could cause an increase in waterborne diseases as well.
We need to take action to reduce carbon emissions now. The quality of air could affect rates of asthma and other respiratory illnesses. These environmental changes even hurt those with mental illnesses. The increase of natural disasters keeps people stressed out. Extreme weather can lead to lost property and lost loved ones..
Two years ago, the EPA released a plan to cut carbon emissions by 2030. It includes cutting carbon emissions from power plants by 30-percent.
In November, the president went to a climate change conference in Paris. Current climate change commitments are expiring in 2020, and many countries had their own plans to cut greenhouse gas emissions. Obama presented his Clean Power plan.
Hopefully, these climate change summits will help curb these health risks for everyone and make our planet better.
