6. Health and the environment
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Underdevelopment, unsustainable patterns of development and production and consumption processes, at both global and local level, are using resources and degrading the environment in a manner that is seriously damaging to health now and even more so in the future.
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It has been estimated that poor environmental quality contributes to around 25% of all preventable ill-health in the world today.
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The future impact on life support systems and consequent health effects often take second place to short term gains, albeit that one-third of the world's stocks of natural ecological resources have been lost since 1970. In contrast, balanced and functional ecological systems contribute to health through a number of pathways.
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Local environmental problems impacting on health are widespread and varied, but among the most harmful to health are inadequate water (quantity and quality) and sanitation (sewage and waste disposal), and fuel combustion. The extent of the harm is influenced by factors such as sanitation behaviour, poverty (for example the cost of purchasing water impacting on money for food and other essentials), and housing - through factors such as overcrowding and rudimentary shelter. More than one billion people are without access to improved water supply and 2.4 billion without access to improved sanitation. Approximately two million deaths annually are attributed to air pollution, mainly from use of traditional biomass fuels. Local environmental burdens and the ability to manage them are influenced by social, political and economic forces at country and international level and by the quality of governance.
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Rapidly urbanising areas in middle and also lower-income countries face a number of environmentally - driven health problems related to industrialisation, poverty, social dislocation (for example trauma from violence) and lack of utilities. The problems of unplanned human settlements - overcrowded housing, pollution, noise and waste lead to widespread ill-health. In addition, social instability and undermining of moral values are contributing to increased violence, the abuse of women and children, drug and alcohol abuse and mental ill health. The effects are generally worse in urban fringes and inner cities.
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Although different hazards and health consequences are frequently associated with levels of poverty, affluence and types of settlement, the relationships vary widely. Also, the future health risks will have an impact beyond the source creating them.
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Examples of how unsustainable patterns of development affect health through environmental degradation are shown in Table 2 below.
| Table 2: Examples of how environmental degradation affects health |
- Excessive use of fossil fuels is leading to global climate change, increasing weather-related disasters and communicable diseases.
- Emissions such as chlorofluorocarbons are depleting stratospheric ozone, leading to increases in skin cancer.
- Impairment of food producing ecosystems (including productive soils) and fish stocks threaten nutrition, particularly as downturns in yields are greater in food-insecure regions.
- Biodiversity loss reduces the chances of finding new medicines derived from indigenous plants.
- Depletion of freshwater supplies poses increased water stress, while declines in quality will increase water-related diseases.
- Chemical hazards may have direct toxic effects, such as in the case of asbestos, lead and arsenic. Many chemicals in commercial use have not been adequately tested for their toxicological properties.
- Poor water, sanitation and hygiene are associated with diarrhoea (a big killer of children in the developing world) and other water-related diseases, for example skin and eye infections.
- Household fuel combustion, particularly using firewood and crop residues indoors, contributes to acute and chronic respiratory infections, including pneumonia (another big killer of children in the developing world).
- Exposure of workers in poorly controlled industries leads to an array of occupational diseases and to pollution of air and water.
- Poor housing incorporates a range of environmental hazards associated with communicable and non-communicable conditions, including social causes of ill health.
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