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Climate change is not just a looming danger in terms of the environment and economy. It also poses a great deal of threat to public health.
A new study conducted by the Canadian Institute for Climate Choices (CICC) noted that climate change could likely add more than C$ 100 billion a year to Canada's healthcare costs by 2050.
The CICC also pointed that the climate change will have a more severe impact on people who are already vulnerable than others.
Ryan Ness, who is the co-author of this study, has stressed that environmental issues like air pollution and rising heatwaves affect people disproportionately. These environmental issues impact those, in particular, who don't have access to the resources of an average Canadian.
Air quality poses a severe threat
The researchers concluded that climate change is not only likely to cost billions of dollars to the country's healthcare system, but also reduce economic activity in the coming years. And poor air quality is expected to be the biggest contributor to this crisis.
As global temperatures rise, so will the concentrations of ground-level ozone, which is a major component of smog. And as smog level increases, human health will be affected. This, in turn, will automatically result in mounting healthcare costs in future.
Source: Pixabay
Researchers estimate that poor air quality alone will likely be responsible for costs of up to C$ 87 billion per year by 2050 and C$ 246 billion per year by 2100.
Heatwaves are also a cause of concern
The CICC study points that due to the rise of heatwaves, Canadian provinces of Ontario and Manitoba might experience 75 days in a year by 2050 when people may die due to heat-related issues. Hospitalizations, on the other hand, will likely increase by 21 per cent or more due to hot weather conditions.
The estimated costs of death and reduced quality of life due to heat waves would range from C$ 3 billion to C$ 3.9 billion. In terms of productivity, rising temperatures are likely to bring down hours of work to 128 million annually by 2100, which would be a loss of C$ 15 billion.
Climate change might increase psychological illness
Physical illnesses aside, climate change will also be a major threat to mental health. The psychological impacts of weather changes might erode the wellness of the mind and lead to reduction of productivity among Canadians, the study notes.
In Canada, productivity losses associated with depression are already at C$ 34 million, while losses caused by anxiety-related issues amount to C$ 17 billion every year. An increased rate of mental illnesses due to climate change can weigh down on this loss by each passing year by 2050. And that is an added thing to worry about regarding climate change.
