PARIS: The extraction, transportation and burning of fossil fuels severely impact human health from before birth until old age, according to a new comprehensive report.
Pollution from oil, coal and gas links to numerous health issues including miscarriages, asthma, cancer, strokes and heart disease.
“Fossil fuels are a direct assault on health, harming us at every stage of their lifecycle and every stage of our lives, from the womb to old age,” said Shweta Narayan, author of the Global Climate and Health Alliance report.
The alliance represents over 200 organisations and 46 million health workers worldwide in this first global overview of fossil fuels’ lifelong health effects.
Living near coal mines or fracking sites associates with higher rates of premature births and pregnancy complications based on peer-reviewed research.
Childhood exposure to fossil fuel air pollution correlates with increased asthma and leukaemia rates.
Older adults face higher risks of heart disease, stroke, dementia and premature death from air pollution exposure.
Transporting fossil fuels also poses threats through gas pipeline leaks into water systems or major oil spills.
Chemicals like lead, mercury and persistent PFAS remain in soil, water and food chains long after combustion.
Extreme weather events intensified by fossil fuel-driven warming compound health impacts by damaging medical facilities and causing respiratory issues from wildfire smoke.
Marginalised communities in poorer nations bear the heaviest health burdens from fossil fuel operations.
“Coal doesn’t just generate electricity – it generates suffering,” reported local health worker Neha Mahant from India’s Korba district where residents suffer respiratory and waterborne illnesses.
Former UN climate chief Christiana Figueres described the fossil fuel era as poisoning air, breaking health and fracturing human dignity.
The alliance urges governments to halt new fossil fuel projects at November’s COP30 climate conference in Brazil.
Executive director Jeni Miller called for banning fossil fuel lobbying and disinformation similar to tobacco industry restrictions.
Governments must also stop subsidising fossil fuels which totalled $7 trillion in 2022 according to IMF data.
Global carbon emissions from fossil fuels reached another record high last year despite repeated climate warnings. – AFP
