Moral of the story: The WHO and others are looking at how the different strategies will affect the health of the public. Overall, it is likely to improve health (and drive down health care costs).

Source: WHO, http://www.who.int/globalchange/news/2009/greenhouse_25112009/en/index.html

25 November 2009
London and Washington D.C.

Public health impact of strategies to reduce greenhouse gas emissions

Different mitigation strategies are likely to have different implications for health. For example, how much would a move to low carbon sources of power improve public health by reducing air pollution? What could be the health benefits of encouraging people to cycle and walk rather than take the car? Could improved biomass cook stoves in developing countries have impacts on child and maternal health as well as greenhouse gas emissions?

In the first major study of its kind, an international team of researchers in collaboration with WHO, have been modelling the health effects of different policies to reduce greenhouse gas emissions in high and low-income countries. Case studies focus on four key sectors: power generation, transport, household energy, and food and agriculture. The study findings will be published in a special issue in the Lancet in November 2009.

The results were launched at events in London and Washington on 25 November 2009.

Related links

- Dr Margaret Chan, editorial - Cutting Carbon, Improving Health [pdf 91kb]

- The Health benefits of tackling climate change
An executive summary for the Lancet series

- The Wellcome Trust

- The London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine