Air pollution and environmental degradation
Climate change is one of the biggest challenges for present and future generations. It is linked to many different types of environment distress, including air pollution and extreme temperatures. Air pollution is already the most significant environmental health risk and a major cause of death and disability, and its future impact is likely to be even greater without adequate policy action. Projections have estimated that outdoor air pollution may cause between 6 million and 9 million premature deaths a year worldwide by 2060, and cost 1% of global gross domestic product (GDP) as a result of sick days, medical bills and reduced agricultural output (OECD, 2015[44]).
Among OECD countries, ambient (outdoor) particulate matter pollution (especially PM 2.5) caused about 29 deaths per 100 000 people in 2019 (Figure 4.21). Death rates ranged from over 60 deaths per 100 000 in the Slovak Republic, Hungary and Poland, to fewer than 7 deaths per 100 000 in Sweden, New Zealand and Iceland. In partner countries, death rates were particularly high in India (around 72 deaths per 100 000) and China (around 99 deaths per 100 000); they were also higher in Russia and Indonesia than in most OECD countries. Since 2000, deaths per 100 000 from ambient particulate matter pollution have declined markedly – by 25% on average – in most OECD countries, although the rates rose in seven countries over the period (Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Mexico, Japan, Korea and Turkey). Over the same period, deaths rose rapidly in a number of partner countries – by 43% in Indonesia, 58% in China and 97% in India.
Extreme temperatures are also a consequence of climate change. Both extreme heat and extreme cold can cause health problems and lead to death. For OECD countries, extreme cold has generally had a greater impact on mortality than heatwaves – particularly in eastern Europe and the Nordic countries – although heatwaves have also caused significant numbers of deaths in certain years. The record warm summer of 2003, for example, caused around 80 000 deaths in Europe, and the heatwaves in the summer of 2015 caused more than 3 000 deaths in France alone. Furthermore, the 2021 heat wave in Western Canada and the United States caused hundreds of deaths, especially among older adults. Temperature records were broken, and scientists have determined that the heat wave would have been “virtually impossible” without climate change (Philip et al., 2021[45]).
While the origins of SARS-CoV-2 have not been determined definitively, the pandemic has nevertheless drawn attention to the impact of environmental degradation and the possible effects of changes in land use on the spillover of disease from animals to humans. Even before COVID-19, a number of recent pandemics of global concern – including SARS, the 2009 H1N1 pandemic influenza and the Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus – were found to have originated in animals before passing to humans. The continued degradation of natural ecosystems, including the loss or change of key habitats for wildlife due to changes in land use, has meant growing threats to biodiversity and an increasing risk of transmission of new zoonotic diseases from wildlife to humans (Plowright et al., 2021[46]).
Between 2000 and 2014, built-up areas increased by more than 15% on average across OECD countries (Figure 4.22). This increase was lowest in Japan and the United Kingdom – two countries whose proportion of total land devoted to built-up areas is higher than the OECD average – but the increase in built-up areas was 30% in Mexico and Norway between 2000 and 2014. The increase was notably high in a number of OECD countries with relatively low population density, including Finland and Norway. OECD partner countries also experienced high rates of change in land use, with China’s built-up area growing by 34% and India’s by 30% over the period. In OECD countries, the development of mostly artificial surfaces, including buildings, was largely built on what was formerly cropland, while natural and semi-natural areas remained mostly stable (OECD, 2021[47]).
Inter-sectoral policies are needed to address the impact of climate change. Countries can start planning to address pollution and its impacts on health, for instance, by creating partnerships with various international, national and local stakeholders, including local city authorities and ministries of industry, environment, transport and agriculture. Reducing crop burning and lowering emissions from motor vehicles and industries would lower ambient air pollution. Health systems can also contribute, by preparing for new diseases that can develop with new climate and biodiversity conditions; promoting consumption of sustainably grown and sourced food; and reducing the carbon footprint of health facilities. In addition, health providers can reduce the environmental footprint in hospitals and in nursing homes by encouraging healthier food consumption, waste reduction and efficient energy use (Landrigan et al., 2018[48]; OECD, 2017[49]).
Ambient (outdoor) particulate matter pollution results from emissions from industrial activity, households, cars and trucks, which are complex mixtures of air pollutants, many of which are harmful to health. Of all these pollutants, fine particulate matter, even at low levels, has the greatest effect on human health. Polluting fuels include solid fuels such as wood, coal, animal dung, charcoal, crop waste and kerosene. Data on mortality and disability-adjusted life-years from exposure to environmental risks are taken from the Global Burden of Disease (GBD) Study 2019 results (Abbafati et al., 2020[50]).
Data on land cover are based on Land Cover Annual Maps from the Copernicus/European Space Agency and Université catholique de Louvain Geomatics Climate Change Initiative.
Source: OECD Environment Statistics, 2020.
Source: OECD Environment Statistics, 2020.
References
[50] Abbafati, C. et al. (2020), “Global burden of 87 risk factors in 204 countries and territories, 1990–2019: a systematic analysis for the Global Burden of Disease Study 2019”, The Lancet, Vol. 396/10258, https://doi.org/10.1016/S0140-6736(20)30752-2.
[15] Chatterji, P. and J. DeSimone (2005), Adolescent Drinking and High School Dropout, National Bureau of Economic Research, Cambridge, MA, https://doi.org/10.3386/w11337.
[43] Currie, C. et al. (eds.) (2012), Social determinants of health and well-being among young people : Health Behaviour in School-Aged Children (HBSC) study : international report from the 2009/2010 survey, World Health Organization, Copenhagen, https://apps.who.int/iris/handle/10665/326406.
[16] EMCDDA Joint Publications, P. (ed.) (2020), ESPAD Report 2019, Results from the European School Survey Project on Alcohol and Other Drugs, https://europa.eu/!Xy37DU (accessed on 17 September 2021).
[14] Enstad, F. et al. (2019), “Predicting hazardous drinking in late adolescence/young adulthood from early and excessive adolescent drinking: A longitudinal cross-national study of Norwegian and Australian adolescents”, BMC Public Health, Vol. 19/1, https://doi.org/10.1186/s12889-019-7099-0.
[41] Fryar, C., M. Carroll and J. Afful (2020), Prevalence of Overweight, Obesity, and Severe Obesity Among Children and Adolescents Aged 2-19 Years: United States, 1963-1965 through 2017-2018, National Center for Health Statistics, Hayatsville, https://doi.org/10.1001/jama.2020.14590.
[4] Gendall, P. et al. (2021), “Changes in Tobacco Use During the 2020 COVID-19 Lockdown in New Zealand”, Nicotine & Tobacco Research, Vol. 23/5, pp. 866-871, https://doi.org/10.1093/ntr/ntaa257.
[21] Graf, S. and M. Cecchini (2017), “Diet, physical activity and sedentary behaviours: Analysis of trends, inequalities and clustering in selected oecd countries”, OECD Health Working Papers, No. 100, OECD Publishing, Paris, https://dx.doi.org/10.1787/54464f80-en.
[20] Guerin, N. and V. White (2020), ASSAD 2017 Statistics & Trends: Australian Secondary Students’ Use of Tobacco, Alcohol, Over-the-counter Drugs, and Illicit Substances. Second Edition, Cancer Council Victoria, Melbourne.
[3] Guignard, R. et al. (2021), “Changes in smoking and alcohol consumption during COVID-19-related lockdown: a cross-sectional study in France”, European Journal of Public Health, https://doi.org/10.1093/eurpub/ckab054.
[26] Guthold, R. et al. (2019), “Global trends in insufficient physical activity among adolescents: a pooled analysis of 298 population-based surveys with 1.6 million participants”, The Lancet child and Adolescent Health, Vol. 4, pp. 23-35, https://doi.org/10.1016/S2352-4642(19)30323-2.
[29] Hartley, L. et al. (2013), “Increased consumption of fruit and vegetables for the primary prevention of cardiovascular diseases”, Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews, Vol. 2013/6, https://doi.org/10.1002/14651858.CD009874.pub2.
[23] Hu, F. and V. Malik (2010), “Sugar-sweetened beverages and risk of obesity and type 2 diabetes: Epidemiologic evidence”, Physiology & behavior, Vol. 100/1, p. 47, https://doi.org/10.1016/J.PHYSBEH.2010.01.036.
[19] Inchley, J. et al. (eds.) (2020), Spotlight on adolescent health and well-being. Findings from the 2017/2018 Health Behaviour in School-aged Children (HBSC) survey in Europe and Canada. International report. Volume 2. Key data, WHO Regional Office for Europe, Copenhagen, https://www.euro.who.int/en/publications/abstracts/spotlight-on-adolescent-health-and-well-being.-findings-from-the-20172018-health-behaviour-in-school-aged-children-hbsc-survey-in-europe-and-canada.-international-report.-volume-2.-key-data.
[12] Inchley, J. et al. (2016), Growing up unequal: gender and socioeconomic differences in young people’s health and well-being : Health Behaviour in School-Aged Children (HBSC) Study : international report from the 2013/2014 survey, WHO, Copenhagen (DK), http://apps.who.int/iris/handle/10665/326320.
[22] Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation (2020), Diet low in Fruit, Vegetable and Legumes, http://www.healthdata.org/results/gbd_summaries/2019/diet-low-in-legumes-level-3-risk (accessed on 15 July 2021).
[36] Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation (2020), High body-mass index — Level 2 risk, http://www.healthdata.org/results/gbd_summaries/2019/high-body-mass-index-level-2-risk (accessed on 15 July 2021).
[37] Katz, M. (2021), Regardless of Age, Obesity and Hypertension Increase Risks with COVID-19, https://doi.org/10.1001/jamainternmed.2020.5415.
[5] Koyama, S. et al. (2021), “Changes in Smoking Behavior Since the Declaration of the COVID-19 State of Emergency in Japan: A Cross-sectional Study From the Osaka Health App”, Journal of Epidemiology, Vol. 31/6, pp. 378-386, https://doi.org/10.2188/jea.je20200533.
[48] Landrigan, P. et al. (2018), The Lancet Commission on pollution and health, https://doi.org/10.1016/S0140-6736(17)32345-0.
[13] O’Cathail, S. et al. (2011), “Association of cigarette smoking with drug use and risk taking behaviour in Irish teenagers”, Addictive Behaviours, Vol. 36, pp. 547-550, https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/21315520/ (accessed on 9 June 2021).
[47] OECD (2021), Environment at a Glance Indicators, OECD Publishing, Paris, https://dx.doi.org/10.1787/ac4b8b89-en.
[10] OECD (2021), Preventing Harmful Alcohol Use, OECD Health Policy Studies, OECD Publishing, Paris, https://dx.doi.org/10.1787/6e4b4ffb-en.
[11] OECD (2021), “The effect of COVID-19 on alcohol consumption, and policy responses to prevent harmful alcohol consumption”, OECD Policy Responses to Coronavirus (COVID-19), OECD Publishing, Paris, https://doi.org/10.1787/53890024-en.
[42] OECD (2019), Health at a Glance 2019: OECD Indicators, OECD Publishing, Paris, https://dx.doi.org/10.1787/4dd50c09-en.
[28] OECD (2019), The Heavy Burden of Obesity: The Economics of Prevention, OECD Health Policy Studies, OECD Publishing, Paris, https://dx.doi.org/10.1787/67450d67-en.
[49] OECD (2017), “Healthy people, Healthy planet: The role of health systems in promoting healthier lifestyles and a greener future”, OECD, Paris, https://www.oecd.org/health/healthy-people-healthy-planet.htm.
[44] OECD (2015), The Economic Consequences of Climate Change, OECD Publishing, Paris, https://dx.doi.org/10.1787/9789264235410-en.
[45] Philip, S. et al. (2021), Rapid attribution analysis of the extraordinary heatwave on the Pacific Coast of the US and Canada June 2021.
[46] Plowright, R. et al. (2021), “Land use-induced spillover: a call to action to safeguard environmental, animal, and human health”, The Lancet Planetary Health, Vol. 5/4, pp. e237-e245, https://doi.org/10.1016/s2542-5196(21)00031-0.
[6] Reddy, R. et al. (2021), “The effect of smoking on COVID-19 severity: A systematic review and meta-analysis”, Journal of Medical Virology, Vol. 93/2, https://doi.org/10.1002/jmv.26389.
[2] Reitsma, M. et al. (2021), “Spatial, temporal, and demographic patterns in prevalence of smoking tobacco use and initiation among young people in 204 countries and territories, 1990–2019”, The Lancet Public Health, Vol. 6/7, pp. e472-e481, https://doi.org/10.1016/s2468-2667(21)00102-x.
[24] Rosinger, A. et al. (2017), Sugar-sweetened beverage consumption among U.S. adults, 2011-2014 Examination Survey, National Center for Health Statistics, Hyattsville, MD, https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/databriefs/db270_table.pdf#1. (accessed on 21 September 2021).
[33] Rosinger, A. et al. (2017), Sugar-sweetened beverage consumption among U.S. youth, 2011–2014, National Center for Health Statistics, Hyattsville, https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/databriefs/db271_table.pdf#2. (accessed on 21 September 2021).
[31] Ruiz-Roso, M. et al. (2020), “Covid-19 confinement and changes of adolescent’s dietary trends in Italy, Spain, Chile, Colombia and Brazil”, Nutrients, Vol. 12/6, pp. 1-18, https://doi.org/10.3390/nu12061807.
[7] Sanchez-Ramirez, D. and D. Mackey (2020), “Underlying respiratory diseases, specifically COPD, and smoking are associated with severe COVID-19 outcomes: A systematic review and meta-analysis”, Respiratory Medicine, Vol. 171, p. 106096, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.rmed.2020.106096.
[40] Stavridou, A. et al. (2021), “Obesity in Children and Adolescents during COVID-19 Pandemic”, Children, Vol. 8/2, p. 135, https://doi.org/10.3390/children8020135.
[27] Stockwell, S. et al. (2021), “Changes in physical activity and sedentary behaviours from before to during the COVID-19 pandemic lockdown: a systematic review”, BMJ Open Sp Ex Med, Vol. 7, p. 960, https://doi.org/10.1136/bmjsem-2020-000960.
[38] Tartof, S. et al. (2020), “Obesity and Mortality Among Patients Diagnosed With COVID-19: Results From an Integrated Health Care Organization”, Annals of internal medicine, Vol. 173/10, https://doi.org/10.7326/M20-3742.
[34] U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (n.d.), Increase the proportion of adolescents who do enough aerobic physical activity, Healthy People 2030, https://health.gov/healthypeople/objectives-and-data/browse-objectives/physical-activity/increase-proportion-adolescents-who-do-enough-aerobic-physical-activity-pa-06 (accessed on 21 September 2021).
[32] Wambogo, E. et al. (2020), Fruit and Vegetable Consumption Among Children and Adolescents in the United States, 2015-2018, National Center for Health Statistics, Hyattsville, https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/products/index.htm. (accessed on 21 September 2021).
[25] Warburton, D., C. Nicol and S. Bredin (2006), “Health benefits of physical activity: the evidence”, Canadian Medical Association Journal, Vol. 174/6, p. 801, https://doi.org/10.1503/CMAJ.051351.
[18] WHO (2021), Tobacco control to improve child health and development: thematic brief, Word Health Organization, Geneva, https://apps.who.int/iris/handle/10665/340162.
[8] WHO (2020), Smoking and COVID-19: Scientific Brief, World Health Organization, Geneva, https://apps.who.int/iris/handle/10665/332895.
[1] WHO (2020), Tobacco - Fact sheets, https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/tobacco (accessed on 22 June 2021).
[9] WHO (2019), WHO report on the global tobacco epidemic, 2019: offer help to quit tobacco use: executive summary, World Health Organization, https://apps.who.int/iris/handle/10665/325968.
[35] WHO (2018), Global Action Plan On Physical Activity 2018-2030: More Active People For A Healthier World-2030, World Health Organization, Geneva, https://apps.who.int/iris/handle/10665/272721.
[17] WHO (2018), Global Information System on Alcohol and Health (GISAH): Sporting events by country, World Health Organization, Geneva, https://apps.who.int/gho/data/node.gisah.A1168?lang=en&showonly=GISAH.
[39] WHO (2018), Taking Action on Childhood Obesity, World Health Organization, https://apps.who.int/iris/handle/10665/274792.
[30] World Cancer Research Fund / American Institute for Cancer Research (2018), Wholegrains, vegetables and fruit and the risk of cancer. Continuous Update Project Expert Report 2018.