public health

| Post

Tired of wells that threaten residents’ health, a small California town takes on the oil industry

Committee For A Better Arvin / Comite para un Arvin mejor

by Julia Kane, Inside Climate News Highlights In the Central Valley of California, exhaust from semi-trucks, oil and gas fumes, plus pesticides from the agricultural sector are trapped in the valley, creating mass pollution that creates severe health problems Health effects include asthma, respiratory illnesses, preterm birth, low birth weight, and cancer  Pollution caused by … Read more

Categories Climate Justice Fossil Fuels Public Health
| Post

What greater good? COVID is unmasking America’s collective action problem

Climate Action Now

by Shannon Osaka, Grist Highlights The failure of Americans to wear protective masks in order to keep themselves and those around them safe highlights a collective action issue the country faces The climate crisis is the world’s most notorious collective action problem because all countries would need to participate and lower emissions all together Political … Read more

Categories Public Health
| Post

Deforestation, oil spills, and coronavirus: Crises converge in the Amazon

by Rachel Ramirez, Grist  Highlights Brazil now has the second-highest number of documented COVID-19 cases, with 400,000 confirmed cases and 25,000 deaths According to the Articulation of Indigenous Peoples of Brazil, an indigenous rights organization, the mortality rate among the indigenous population of nearly one million is double that experienced in Brazil overall The entire Amazon region … Read more

Categories Climate Justice Public Health
| Post

Coronavirus is not just a health crisis — it’s an environmental justice crisis

Nick Fullerton – Richmond oil refinery fire1

 By Yvette Cabrera, Grist Highlights There are large disparities in COVID-19 deaths among people who have historically faced environmental justice issues within the US.  African-American communities have historically been disproportionately housed near sources of large pollution, particularly in the South, leading these communities to develop asthma, cancers, and other respiratory problems This life long exposure … Read more

Categories Climate Justice Public Health
| Post

Breathing polluted air shortens people’s lives by an average of 3 years, a new study finds

by Neela Banerjee, Inside Climate News Highlights Air pollution, mainly from burning fossil fuels, reduces life expectancy worldwide by an average of 2.9 years and has led to 8.8 million premature deaths according to a new study in Cardiovascular Research. In North America, lives were shortened by 1.4 years on average due to air pollution. … Read more

Categories Fossil Fuels Public Health
| Post

Lab-grown food will soon destroy farming – and save the planet

Lab Grown Food

Highlights: “Scientists are replacing crops and livestock with food made from microbes and water. It may save humanity’s bacon.” Natural disasters are threatening our food supply. “The UN forecasts that by 2050 feeding the world will require a 20% expansion in agriculture’s global water use.” RethinkX shows that proteins from precision fermentation will cost ten … Read more

Categories Carbon Sequestration Public Health
| Post

Public health, climate impacts, and The Climate Center’s new campaign

The Climate Center speakers Amanda Begley and Destiny Rodriguez

As the nexus between public health and climate impacts comes into sharp focus, public health officers are convening to share their challenges and strategies for addressing the climate crisis. On September 26th at the Westin Sacramento, the Health Officer Association of California (HOAC) met for their bi-annual gathering to discuss climate change as a public … Read more

Categories Public Health