Superheated storms set us up for sickness

Embargoed until: Publicly released: 2023-04-14 00:01

New Zealand

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Storms like Cyclone Gabrielle will increasingly affect people's health in Aotearoa as the climate changes, write climate and health experts in an editorial for the NZMJ. Floodwaters from Cyclone Gabrielle are causing an increase in cases of leptospirosis in Hawke's Bay, and other heavy rains in Aotearoa tend to lead to a spike in cases of gastroenteritis in children. The authors write that kaimoana can be poisoned by silt and wastewater runoff into the sea, flooded housing can become contaminated and mouldy, and the mental health impacts of storms are often hidden and underestimated. They say the damage caused by storms this year are a "pale version of what's to come" if the planet continues warming, making climate action a health issue as well as an environmental one.

Media release

From: Pasifika Medical Association Group

Superheated storms: climate drivers, health effects and responses

The recent floods and storms affecting Aotearoa are a sign of worsening extreme weather events, which bring devastating health impacts. These health impacts particularly affect communities who already face disadvantage such as Māori, Pasifika, disabled people, low-income households and those living in poor quality housing. Climate pollution makes these weather events more frequent and severe, and our land use patterns make us more susceptible to their impacts. Every action to recover and adapt must also be an action to prevent further devastating events. This means tackling the root causes of climate change, with a focus on Indigenous knowledges and relationships with the environment.

Journal/
conference: NZMJ

Organisation/s: University of Auckland, University of Otago

Funder: N/A

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