October 31, 2024
4 minutes read
Vote for a healthy climate for our children
The 2024 presidential election will have a huge impact on the climate, children’s health, and our future.
Tourists were walking along the National Mall as smoke from Canadian wildfires created acrid odors and hazy conditions in Washington, D.C. on June 7, 2023. Washington officials warned that air quality was “unhealthy for people with heart or lung disease and for older adults.” , canceled all outdoor activities in public schools, including for children and youth.
Saul Loeb/AFP via Getty Images
For American children, this will be one of the most important elections in American history. Climate change is taking a huge toll on children’s health. This election will decide whether we continue to curb fossil fuel pollution and slow global warming, or whether we reverse climate change. hard-earned achievement In recent years it has had fatal consequences.
Former President Donald Trump, the Republican candidate, resigned. Global warming is a ‘hoax’ And if elected, I swore Expanding drilling in earnest For oil and gas. He has pledged to roll back or repeal the Biden administration’s clean energy and climate policies, specifically targeting the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022. $370 billion To reduce greenhouse gas emissions and become eco-friendly clean renewable energy. deregulation roadmap For a second Trump administration, “Project 2025” would similarly feature unlimited fossil fuel production and the repeal of the IRA and other climate and environmental regulations.
In contrast, Democratic candidate Vice President Kamala Harris describes climate change this way: An ‘existential’ threat. As Vice President, she cast. tie vote Allowed passage of IRA and supported new emissions standards to curb pollution. oil and gas business, automobile, truck and dirty power station. Harris announced more than $1 billion in grants to states in 2022 to address flooding and heat waves exacerbated by climate change, and environmental justice programs to reduce the impacts of climate change and fossil fuel pollution on underserved communities. has been advocating.
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Researchers like me, who study the health effects of climate change and air pollution on children from in utero to adolescence, know that climate change is threat multiplierThis puts nearly every child in the United States and around the world at risk from one or more of the following climate-induced risks: extreme heat, severe storms and flooding, wildfires, food insecurity, and insect-borne diseases.
The toll is physical and mental health The number of children is huge and growing. The number of babies being born prematurely or with low birth weight is increasing due to mothers’ long-term exposure to extreme heat or forest fire smoke. pregnant. Babies, children, and youth athletes can experience hyperthermia, kidney disease, and even death from exposure to extreme heat. annually Wildfires in the western United States have exposed more than 7 million children to lung-damaging smoke that often triggers asthma attacks. Infectious diseases like Lyme are increasing among children, largely due to climate change. Children are also suffering physical and psychological trauma from severe storms and flooding, which has resulted in many suffering from PTSD and depression. Awareness of the health impacts of climate change increases the risk of anxiety and other mental health problems in children. recently investigated They said concerns about climate change were having a negative impact on their daily lives. Exposure to extreme heat can reduce a child’s cognitive function, impair their ability to concentrate, learn and perform academically, potentially impacting their future earnings.
air pollution This is now recognized as a parallel health crisis for which fossil fuel emissions are largely responsible. Air pollution, long recognized as a cause of asthma attacks in children, is now understood to be a direct cause of asthma and other respiratory diseases. Everything from infant deaths and childhood asthma to mental health conditions has been linked to air pollution. Like climate change, exposure to air pollution affects children’s ability to learn. In my New York City study, my colleagues and I found that: that IQ score and academic achievement The proportion of children exposed prenatally to air pollution from automobiles, construction, and industry has decreased.
All children are vulnerable, but low-income, black, and Hispanic children are vulnerable. disproportionate exposure On air pollution in underprivileged areas. discriminatory policy, like redliningIt has created urban heat islands in communities of color with fewer trees and shady areas.
On the sound side of the ledger, the climate and energy provisions of the Inflation Reduction Act would reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 1 billion metric tons in 2030, helping us meet our nation’s goal of at least a 50% emissions reduction. By then, the IRA will have dramatically reduced the level of small, inhalable particles to a maximum. 4,500 premature deaths119,000 asthma attacks, approximately 179,000 cases of respiratory symptoms and bronchitis, and thousands of hospital admissions and respiratory emergency department visits each year. Avoidable deaths will be concentrated in communities of color, which have historically been hardest hit by air pollution. The projected economic benefits in 2030 alone amount to $49 billion. In the same year, IRA’s global climate benefits amounted to $137 billion.
This is not the first time the policy has been shown to have major benefits for health and the economy. that America’s Clean Air Act and Amendments Between 1970 and 2020, the country’s emissions of common air pollutants were reduced by an average of 78%. In 2020 alone, Clean Air Act programs delivered up to $3.8 trillion in net economic benefits to public health, including lives saved, hospital visits avoided, and school days maintained. , plus Over $21 billion Prevent climate-related economic damage.
that Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative In the northeastern United States, power plants have had to reduce carbon dioxide emissions, which has led to expected reductions in pollution. 830 premature deathsA total of 12,000 diseases occurred, including heart attacks and respiratory diseases. Preterm birth and low birth weightCases of asthma and autism spectrum disorder.
Government policies can protect our health and economy, and the biggest beneficiaries are our children. This election will impact the health of our children now and in the future.
This article is an opinion and analysis piece, and the views expressed by the author or authors do not necessarily reflect the views of the author. Scientific American.
