Senior Obama administration officials will explore the effects of climate change on public health at the White House Monday afternoon.
“Climate change poses a significant threat to the health of the American people. As the climate continues to change, the risks to human health will grow, exacerbating existing health threats and creating new public health challenges,” the White House stated. “From children to the elderly, every American is vulnerable to the health impacts associated with climate change, now and in the future.”
The U.S. Global Change Research Program will release a report on climate and health, and Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Gina McCarthy and other senior administration officials will attend the afternoon event at the Old Executive Office Building on the White House grounds.
Many scientists blame the greenhouse gases created from the burning of fossil fuels for causing climate change and the warming of the planet.
President Obama has made fighting climate change a central theme of his remaining time in office, and the event is congruent with his Climate Action Plan. He is scheduled to sign the Paris climate change accord reached in December on April 22 at U.N. headquarters in New York. The Clean Power Plan, EPA rules for states to reduce emissions from power plants by 2030, is the centerpiece of his plan to meet the U.S. obligations under the deal.
According to the EPA, climate change can result in more frequent, more extreme and lengthier heat waves that can cause heat-related illnesses and even death. The agency also warns that climate change can act as a multiplier for severe weather, making storms worse and increasing the risk of flooding, high winds and other extreme weather.
The federal government warns that even a country with an advanced public health system such as the United States would see public health problems rise due to climate change.
A draft report of the U.S. Global Climate Change Response Program’s Climate and Health Assessment released last year mentioned worse air quality, disease being transmitted through food, water and insects, and increased stress as all possible health concerns related to climate change.
Many Democrats have sought to use public health as a way to push climate change policies both in the halls of the White House and in Congress.
During a call with reporters on Friday, Rhode Island Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse touted the Clean Power Plan because it would limit emissions from new and existing coal-fired power plants. He said those kind of power plants have a harmful effect on Rhode Islanders’ health.
“In Rhode Island, we are a downwind state that gets a lot of pollution from out-of-state sources, particularly coal power plants, that we can’t do anything about,” he said.
The Clean Power Plan is being challenged by 30 states and dozens of business groups in the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals, which has scheduled oral arguments for June. The Supreme Court has halted the regulation while the legal challenge is heard.
California Rep. Jared Huffman pointed to climate change as one of the causes for increased rates of asthma in children in his state. He also pointed to wildfires and drought as having a deleterious effect on health among Californians.
“We emphatically believe it’s necessary to protect public health and the environment,” he said.
