Media release 16 September 2014
Embargoed until 12.01 am Tuesday 16 September 2014
‘Call to action on climate change and health’ from health organisations
Ten New Zealand health organisations have released a joint ‘Call to Action on Climate Change and Health’ today.
The ten organisations, including national professional bodies for doctors, nurses, midwives and medical students, say
they recognise climate change as an increasingly serious and urgent threat to health and fairness in New Zealand and
worldwide. In contrast, they point to specific policy responses that provide exciting opportunities to improve health
and create a fairer society.
The ‘Call to Action’ identifies serious health threats for New Zealanders, including direct impacts from extreme heat
and weather events, changing patterns of infectious disease, and rising food prices impacting on nutrition.
“There will also be flow-on health effects from climate change impacts on people’s livelihoods and homes in New Zealand
and the Pacific – causing forced migration and mental health impacts” say Dr Rhys Jones and Dr Alex Macmillan,
Co-convenors of OraTaiao: The NZ Climate and Health Council. “New Zealand has already had its first claim for refugee
status on the basis of climate change impacts on Kiribati – this is a clear warning about what lies ahead” says Dr
Jones.
“These health impacts will be worst for Maori, Pacific people, children, the elderly and low income households,
worsening the unfair distribution of ill-health that already exists here” Dr Jones adds.
However the ‘Call to Action’ is also hopeful in stating that well-planned government and societal action on climate
change in New Zealand could improve health and fairness if implemented urgently.
“Rapid moves to much more walking, cycling and public transport; a transition to healthier plant based diets; and energy
efficient, warm homes will all help cut greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions while also reducing heart disease, cancer,
diabetes, and respiratory disease” says Dr Macmillan. “New Zealand’s carbon-intensive health sector should be leading by
reducing its own emissions and helping society adapt to expected climate change impacts.”
The ‘Call to Action on Climate Change and Health’ calls for a rapid, society-wide transition to a low GHG-emitting
nation, in a way that improves health and fairness. It also calls for New Zealand to be a better leader in pushing for
effective and fair global action to reduce GHG emissions.
“This call to action highlights climate change as a key health issue that requires an urgent response. The next five
years really are ‘make or break’ in terms of avoiding the worst impacts of climate change and reaping the benefits, so
we need leaders who can contribute effectively to global action. It is important that this is in New Zealanders’ minds
as they vote over the coming days” Dr Macmillan ends.
ENDS
Notes to editors:
Dr Rhys Jones (Ngati Kahungunu) (rg.jones@auckland.ac.nz) is a Public Health Physician and Senior Lecturer in Maori Health at the University of Auckland. He is Co-convenor of
OraTaiao: The New Zealand Climate and Health Council.
Dr Alex Macmillan (alex.macmillan@otago.ac.nz) is a Public Health Medicine Specialist and Senior Lecturer in Environmental Health at the University of Otago Dunedin.
Her research expertise is in the intersecting areas of urban planning, climate change and public health. She is Acting
Co-convenor of OraTaiao: The New Zealand Climate and Health Council.
OraTaiao: The New Zealand Climate & Health Council comprises senior doctors and other health professionals concerned with climate change as a serious
public health threat. They also promote the positive health gains that can be achieved through action to address climate
change. See: www.orataiao.org.nz
Background
The ‘Climate Change and Health: Health Professionals Joint Call for Action’ September 2014 is available at www.orataiao.org.nz. An abridged version was published in the NZ Herald on Tuesday 16th September on Page 9.
About Climate Change and Health
Climate and health information is available in the New Zealand College of Public Health Medicine’s policy statement on
climate change: http://www.nzcphm.org.nz/media/67575/2013_11_6_climate_change_substantive_policy__final-corrected_.pdf
Human-caused climate change is a serious and urgent threat to human health. Climate change and its environmental effects
(e.g. warmer temperatures, more heat waves, altered rainfall patterns, more extreme weather such as heavy rainfall
events and/or drought, tropical storms, sea-level rise) result in many risks to human health, both direct and indirect,
that are recognised by world health authorities and leading medical journals alike.
Globally, leading health threats include water and food shortages, extreme weather events, and changing patterns of
infectious disease. In NZ there will also be new health and social pressures relating to climate migrant and refugee
populations arriving in NZ and flow-on health impacts from changes in the global economy. NZ already has a relatively
high burden of several diseases that are sensitive to climatic conditions, and climate trends may already be affecting
the health of New Zealanders.
The health impacts of climate change most seriously affect people in developing countries, and the most disadvantaged
and vulnerable within all countries.
Health Co-benefits of Climate Action
Addressing climate change is an opportunity to improve population health and reduce inequities (unfair differences in
health between different population groups). In NZ, well-designed policies to reduce greenhouse gas emissions can bring
about substantial health co-benefits including reductions in heart disease, cancer, obesity, Type 2 diabetes,
musculoskeletal disease, respiratory disease, and motor vehicle injuries, and improvements in mental health - with
resultant cost savings for the health care system.
These co-benefits arise because some emission reductions measures impact on important determinants of health, especially
energy intake (nutrition) and expenditure (physical movement). Housing insulation, clean energy, great public transport
and safer walking and cycle ways will all give a double benefit. They give immediate health benefits, especially to New
Zealand's poorest families, and also lead the way on reducing carbon emissions. For example:
• Active transport (walking, cycling, public transport) improves physical activity, reduces emissions, and can reduce
air pollution and road traffic injuries. Walking and cycling are inexpensive, and public transport is used
proportionately more by people with lower incomes – with benefits to health, climate and equity.
• Healthy eating, including increased plant and less red meat and animal fat consumption, would reduce the emissions
associated with food production and likely lead to reduced rates of bowel cancer and heart disease.
• Improving indoor environments (e.g. energy efficiency measures such as home insulation) can reduce illnesses
associated with cold, damp housing (e.g. childhood asthma and chest infections which are leading causes of hospital
admissions, particularly for Maori and Pacific children).
• Increasing energy efficiency and/or moving away from fossil fuels would reduce health-damaging air pollution (e.g.
particulates) from fuel combustion, in both indoor and outdoor environments, with large health gains.
References
Health impacts of climate change
Smith KR, Woodward A, Campbell-Lendrum D, Chadee D, Honda Y, et al. Human Health: Impacts, Adaptation, and Co-benefits.
In: Climate Change 2014: Impacts, Adaptation and Vulnerability. Contribution of Working Group II to the Fifth Assessment
Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change [Field CB, Barros VR, Mastrandrea MD, Mach KJ, et al. (eds.)].
Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, UK and New York, NY, USA, 2014. http://ipcc-wg2.gov/AR5/images/uploads/WGIIAR5-Chap11_FGDall.pdf
Woodward A, Smith KR, Campbell-Lendrum D, Chadee DD, Honda Y, et al. Climate change and health: on the latest IPCC
report. Lancet. 2014;383(9924):1185-9. http://www.thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PIIS0140-6736(14)60576-6/fulltext
McCoy D, Montgomery H, Sabaratnam A, Godlee F. Climate change and human survival. BMJ. 2014;348:g2351. http://www.bmj.com/content/348/bmj.g2351
McMichael AJ. Globalization, climate change, and human health. N Engl J Med. 2013;368(14):1335-43. doi:
10.1056/NEJMra1109341. http://www.nejm.org/doi/full/10.1056/NEJMra1109341
Metcalfe S, Woodward A, Macmillan A, Baker M, Howden-Chapman P, et al; New Zealand Climate and Health. Why New Zealand
must rapidly halve its greenhouse gas emissions [Special Article]. N Z Med J. 2009 Oct 9;122(1304):72-95.http://journal.nzma.org.nz/journal/122-1304/3827/
Phipps R, Randerson R, Blashki G. The climate change challenge for general practice in New Zealand. NZ Med J. 2011 Apr
29; 124(1333): 47-54.
New Zealand Medical Association. NZMA Position Statement on Health and Climate Change. Wellington: NZMA, 2010. http://www.nzma.org.nz/policies/advocacy/position-statements/climatechange
New Zealand College of Public Health Medicine. Policy Statement on Climate Change. Wellington: New Zealand College of
Public Health Medicine, 2013. http://www.nzcphm.org.nz/media/74098/1._nzcphm_climate_change_policy__final_comms_version2_.pdf
Costello A, Abbas M, Allen A, et al. Managing the health effects of climate change: Lancet and University College London
Institute for Global Health Commission. Lancet 2009,373:1693–1733. http://www.thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PIIS0140-6736(09)60935-1/fulltext
World Health Organization and World Meterological Association. Atlas of Health and Climate. Geneva: WHO, 2012. http://www.who.int/globalchange/publications/atlas/en/index.html
Climate Vulnerability Monitor 2nd Edition: a guide to the cold calculus of a hot planet. DARA International and the
Climate Vulnerable Forum, 2012. http://daraint.org/climate-vulnerability-monitor/climate-vulnerability-monitor-2012/report/
Joint statement: It's time to act on climate change. Faculty of Public Health, Royal College of Physicians and 17 other
organisations London: Faculty of Public Health, 2008. http://www.fph.org.uk/uploads/sustainble_development_joint_statement.pdf
Joint letter 2009 from The Royal College of Physicians and 17 other professional bodies, published simultaneously in The
Lancet and the BMJ. Politicians must heed health effects of climate change. Lancet. 2009;374:973; BMJ. 2009;339:b3672.
doi: 10.1136/bmj.b3672. http://www.thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PIIS0140-6736%2809%2961641-X/fulltext, http://www.bmj.com/content/339/bmj.b3672
Chan M. Climate change and health: preparing for unprecedented challenges. The 2007 David E. Barmes Global Health
Lecture, Bethesda, Maryland, USA, 10 December 2007. (World Health Organization, Director-General speeches 2006-12.) http://www.who.int/dg/speeches/2007/20071211_maryland/en/
World Medical Association. WMA Declaration of Delhi on Health and Climate Change. Adopted by the 60th WMA General
Assembly, New Delhi, India, October 2009. http://www.wma.net/en/30publications/10policies/c5/index.html
Health co-benefits of climate action
Chan M. Cutting carbon, improving health. Lancet. 2009;374(9705):1870-1.
Haines A, McMichael AJ, Smith KR et al. Public health benefits of strategies to reduce greenhouse-gas emissions:
overview and implications for policy makers. Lancet. 2009;374(9707):2104-14. http://ehs.sph.berkeley.edu/krsmith/publications/2009%20pubs/Lancet%20Policy.pdf
West JJ, Smith SJ, Silva RA et al. Co-benefits of mitigating global greenhouse gas emissions for future air quality and
human health. Nature Climate Change. 2013;3:885–889. http://www.gfdl.noaa.gov/cms-filesystem-action/user_files/van/publications/west_etal_nclimate.pdf
Haines A, Wilkinson P, Tonne C, Roberts I. Aligning climate change and public health policies. Lancet.
2009;374(9707):2035-8. http://www.thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PIIS0140-6736(09)61667-6/fulltext
Campbell-Lendrum D, Bertollini R, Neira M, Ebi K, McMichael A. Health and climate change: a roadmap for applied
research. Lancet. 2009;373(9676):1663-5. http://www.thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PIIS0140-6736(09)60926-0/fulltext
Hosking J, Mudu P, Dora C. Health Co-benefits of Climate Change Mitigation - Transport sector. Geneva: World Health
Organization, 2011. http://www.who.int/hia/green_economy/transport_sector_health_co-benefits_climate_change_mitigation/en/index.html
Macmillan A, Connor J, Witten K, Kearns R, Rees D. The societal costs and benefits of commuter bicycling: simulating the
effects of specific policies using system dynamics modeling. Environ Health Perspect. 2014;122(4):335–344.http://ehp.niehs.nih.gov/1307250/
Woodcock J, Edwards P, Tonne C et al. Public health benefits of strategies to reduce greenhouse-gas emissions: urban
land transport. Lancet. 2009;374(9705):1930-43. http://www.thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PIIS0140-6736%2809%2961714-1/fulltext
Lindsay G, Macmillan A, Woodward A. Moving urban trips from cars to bicycles: impact on health and emissions. Aust NZ J
Public Health, 2011;35(1):54-60. http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/j.1753-6405.2010.00621.x/full
Woodcock J, Banister D, Edwards P, et al. Energy and transport. Lancet. 2007;370:1078-88.
Smith KR, Jerrett M, Anderson HR et al. Public health benefits of strategies to reduce greenhouse-gas emissions: health
implications of short-lived greenhouse pollutants. Lancet. 2009;374(9707):2091-103. http://www.thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PIIS0140-6736(09)61716-5/fulltext
Roberts I, Arnold E. Policy at the crossroads: climate change and injury control. Inj Prev. 2007;13:222-3.
Friel S, Dangour AD, Garnett T et al. Public health benefits of strategies to reduce greenhouse-gas emissions: food and
agriculture. Lancet. 2009;374(9706):2016-25. http://www.thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PIIS0140-6736(09)61753-0/fulltext