The World health organization predicts
climate change will cause 250,000 extra deaths per year by 2030.
Of this figure, roughly 48,000 will be via diarrhea; 60,000 via malaria; 95,000 via under-nutrition during childhood; and 38,000 via heat exposure (the elderly mostly) — according to the new report.
“Our planet is losing its capacity to sustain human life in good health,” stated Dr Margaret Chan, the director general of the World Health Organisation (WHO). “Earlier this year, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) issued its most disturbing report to date, with a strong focus on the consequences for health.” ...
Dr Chan continued: “Debates about climate change are still not giving sufficient attention to the profound effects that climate variables have on health. Many of the world’s most worrisome diseases have transmission cycles that are profoundly shaped by conditions of heat and humidity and patterns of rainfall. As one important example, malaria parasites and the mosquitoes that transmit them are highly sensitive to climate variability, which has been repeatedly linked to epidemics.” ... “Other epidemic-prone diseases, like cholera, dengue, and bacterial meningitis, are likewise highly sensitive to climate variability. All of these diseases have a huge potential for social disruption and make huge logistical demands on response teams.”
Meanwhile, in their latest global
Global Climate Analysis of October 2014, a National Ocean and Atmospheric Administration report indicates that the first 10 months of 2014 have been the hottest on record.
* The combined average temperature over global land and ocean surfaces for October 2014 was the highest on record for October, at 0.74°C (1.33°F) above the 20th century average of 14.0°C (57.1°F).
* The global land surface temperature was 1.05°C (1.89°F) above the 20th century average of 9.3°C (48.7°F)—the fifth highest for October on record.
* For the ocean, the October global sea surface temperature was 0.62°C (1.12°F) above the 20th century average of 15.9°C (60.6°F) and the highest for October on record.
* The combined global land and ocean average surface temperature for the January–October period (year-to-date) was 0.68°C (1.22°F) above the 20th century average of 14.1°C (57.4°F). The first ten months of 2014 were the warmest such period on record.
With records dating back to 1880, the global temperature averaged across the world's land and ocean surfaces for October 2014 was the highest on record for the month, at 0.74°C (1.33°F) above the 20th century average. This also marks the third consecutive month and fifth of the past six with a record high global temperature for its respective month (July was fourth highest). ...
The global oceans were the warmest on record for October, with a temperature that averaged 0.62°C (1.12°F) higher than the 20th century average. This marks the sixth month in a row (beginning in May 2014) that the global ocean temperature broke its monthly temperature record. October 2014 also ties with June 2014 for the third highest ocean temperature departure on average for any month on record; the second highest departure from average occurred in August 2014 and the all-time highest occurred just last month.
With scientific reports such as this coming in on a regular basis, how long will it take climate change deniers to feel the heat of being on the hot-seat of debate and wake up to our new realities of global warming?
We need to take urgent political actions to reduce fossil fuel emissions. With the Republicans now in control of both the House and Senate it is more incumbent on Senator Mitch McConnell and Speaker John Boehner than ever to demonstrate true leadership and reject the zealous anti-science ideologue extremists on their right and advance legislation to protect our planet and future generations.
President Obama has shown courage, leadership and insight in advancing policies to fight global warming. Now that Republicans have control of congress, history will record that the responsibility for any failures to take the appropriate actions to ameliorate global warming will rest soundly on their shoulders.
I challenge and call upon the Republican leadership to propose their plans for dealing with global warming and also demand that the media stop giving politicians who refuse to deal with reality and profess climate denial or climate "mutism" a free pass. Climate change is not a political game, but a dangerous crisis, and real and present danger. People are dying.
Our Washington political leaders need to lead, follow, or get the heck out of the way.
10:07 AM PT: Title changed to add "per year" on alert from Gooserock.
The article reported that we've already had over 70,000 from the heat wave in Europe in 2003.
On the subject of heat-related deaths, it’s worth making note of the European/French heatwave of 2003, which caused at least 14,800 deaths in France over a very short period of time. The total estimated death toll of the event is estimated to be over 70,000.