Showing posts with label health. Show all posts

Rapid loss of life on Earth

Turtle caught in plastic pollution in the Ocean.

Humanity's population explosion and massive overconsumption of natural resources is killing off wildlife at an unprecedented rate. In the 2018 Living Planet Report by the World Wildlife Foundation (WWF) we come to understand that there has been a 60% decline in species population sizes since 1970. Especially hard hit are the tropics in South and Central America, which have seen a 89% loss compared to 1970. And freshwater ecosystems, like rivers and lakes, have experienced the largest decline of 83%. We have killed off 83% of all mammals and 50% of all plants since the dawn of civilisation, and its irreversible on human timescales. It is truly a biological annihilation as coined in a scientific study published by Ceballos et al. in PNAS last year.



In 2017 the world lost an amount of forest area equivalent to the size of Italy, destroying habitats, causing biodiversity loss and polluting the environment. There is a growing number of scientists that are now calling for a global deal for nature, creating vast nature reserves to prevent biological armageddon.



The loss of biodiversity is a tragedy in itself but it also threatens the survival of civilisation says experts to the Guardian. People don't understand that biodiversity underpins ecosystem health and thus human health. We already see a dramatic rise in chronic diseases caused by unhealthy diets and pollution. Around 93% of the world's children under the age of 15 years, 1.8 billion children, breathe air so polluted it puts their health at risk and tragically about 600,000 children die from acute lower respiratory infections every year. Studies have also shown that it's not just seabirds that have plastic in their stomachs but we humans have it too. 

Can we turn this development around? We only have until the year 2020 to get our act together according to the WWF-report or it will be too late. Governments need to increase investments several fold into safeguarding biodiversity on land and in the oceans. Protected areas should be expanded to cover at least 20 percent of natural habitats on land and 30 percent of habitats in the ocean. But I'm having a hard time seeing that happening in a world of depleting resources and growing population. Do we have foresight enough to safeguard life on Earth for our own survival? It remains an open question I guess...
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Chronic illness major cause of premature deaths

The probability of dying from chronic illness between 30 and 70 years of age. Credit: NCD Countdown 2030


If you live in the US, China or UK you have a higher risk of dying early from chronic illnesses like cancer, cardiovascular disease, chronic respiratory disease and diabetes than people in Australia, Japan, Spain or Sweden. These are some of the findings in a detailed global analysis of deaths related to non-communicable diseases (NCD). The study is a collaboration between the Imperial College London, World Health Organisation and NCD alliance.

Chronic illnesses are the main cause of premature death for most countries and a larger danger to human health than traditional foes such as bacteria or viruses. Non-communicable diseases kill nearly 41 million people every year, about seven out of ten deaths globally, of which 17 million of these deaths are classed as premature (i.e. before the age of 70). 

Overall, women in Spain, South Korea, Japan and Switzerland were least likely to die prematurely from chronic illness while the lowest risk for men were Iceland, Sweden, Norway and Switzerland. 

According to the analysis, the situation is stagnating or deteriorating in 15 countries for women and 24 for men. A multitude of factors such as alcohol and tobacco use, pollution, stress and lack of sleep, diets and exercise, early treatment etc could be contributing to increases in chronic illnesses. 

In Europe, women in Moldova (17%) and Ukraine (16%) have the highest chance of dying from key NCD and the lowest chance in Spain (6%) and Switzerland (7%). For men i Europe, the highest chance is seen in Russia (37%) and Belarus (35%) and the lowest chance in Iceland (10%) and Switzerland (11%).

The chances for men and women in the US to die prematurely of NCD is worse than in Vietnam, Turkey, Panama, Liberia, Mexico and Angola. In other words, the highest risk among all high-income nations.
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Heat dome over Sweden pushing people to the limit

After a busy year I have finally found some time to write again. I also feel the need to portray the very unusually dry and hot summer that we have had here in Sweden.




I'm sure most readers have already heard about how Sweden have struggled with lots of wildfires this summer. This is due to a heat dome forming over Scandinavia because of a broken and “stuck” jet stream (as explained in the video above) leading to high pressure weather over most parts of the country for two months (May-July) straight with very little or no rainfall. Only 13 mm (0.51 in) of rain from the beginning of May to late July. And temperature soaring to >30C, which in some regions is 20C above the norm. This have also been the case where I live, in the south east, where many are suffering from the prolonged heat and drought. 

Many elderly are weakened and suffer heat strokes since buildings are not equipped with cooling air conditioning. Hospitals have had to cancel operations due to the heat and systems overheating. The death toll this summer will be above the norm.

Farmers have had a bad harvest due to lack of precipitation and don't have enough hay to feed their livestock. Many have had to slaughter their cattle. The government has promised 1.2 billion kronor (117 million euros, $137 million) in aid to help farmers hit hard by the drought. But many farmers think it's too little too late to keep them from going bankrupt and it doesn't help against the lack of rain. 

Lots of wildfires have been raging in the middle part of the country, forcing people to flee and emergency measure to be put in place. Approximately 20,000 hectares" of forests have burned up. Some counties have banned outdoor fires and put restriction on water use. The government has had to ask other EU countries for help to fight the many wildfires both from above and on the ground. Volunteers have also played a  major part in the effort to evacuate and put out fires. 

Groundwater levels in smaller lakes in the south east are below average and falling. It will take a lot of rain or snow to recover to normal levels.

Air conditioners, pools and fluid replacements are out of stock in every supermarket. Electricity use is way above normal and nuclear plants might have to be closed down due to the water that's used to cool reactors now being to warm.

Trains have malfunctioned and there has been lots of train cancellations all through the summer. 

Many animals suffer as well and people have put out water bowls in their gardens to provide relief.

The only good thing about this summer is that climate change now will be a part of the election campaigns for this fall. The question is, however, if people are willing to pay for the changes that are needed. Redesigning our infrastructure will not be cheap but its a must for the future.
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Ecosystem collapse in eastern Ukraine

Heavy artillery fire has started over 3000 forest fires in eastern Ukraine. But the biggest threat comes from flooded mines, according to Kyiv Post.

Seversky Donets River, Ukraine and Russian border in the Donbass Region. Source: Google Earth
It is not only humans that suffer in the ruins of a war-torn eastern Ukraine, entire ecosystems are about to collapse. The massive artillery fire that started this summer have burned down forests and poisoned the air.

Over 3000 forest fires have devastated the Donbass region. Two large nature reserves and 33 parks have been destroyed. More than 17% of the area has burned down, according to the environmental organisation Environmental People Law (EPL).

“The state of environment in eastern Ukraine constantly deteriorates. Water and soil pollution, degradation of natural reserves, destruction of forests and steppe by fires, transformation of landscapes, mines flooding became everyday reality” - Alla Voytsikhovska, spokesperson EPL 

The air is full of harmful substances from burnt-out ammunition, with high levels of sulphur-, nitrogen- and carbon dioxide, that can cause irritation and burning in eyes and airways as well as weaken the body’s immune system. The consequences of the devastation will be more fatal to humans than to nature itself. 

But the largest environmental threat comes from flooded mines. Around 100 mines located within separatist territory have been abandoned due to the war and are now contaminating groundwater and rivers. This could poison the Siverskij Donets river which is the regions largest drinking water source and that flows out in the Don and Azovska sea. The TV-station ukelife.tv reports that there are rising levels of radioactive mining water in the proximity of the Yunkom mine where the Soviet Union did nuclear tests in 1979. In the mine Oleksandr-Zakhid there is a layer with over 50 tonnes chlorinated hydrocarbons which have mixed with other toxic substances and now that the pumping of water has stopped risks rising up to ground level, creating a poisonous cloud. 

In order to start restoration of pre-war state of environment the scale of economic damage has to be assessed. But a full assessment of environmental damage and restoration costs is only possible after military actions in eastern Ukraine terminates. 
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