WHO Urged to Declare Climate Change a Global Health Emergency
European officials are urging the WHO to declare climate change a global health emergency, citing rising fossil fuel-related deaths and rapid warming. A new report highlights health threats and calls for urgent action, including phasing out fossil fuels and investing in greener initiatives. The EU's current progress is insufficient to meet climate targets.
European ministers and health officials have urged the WHO to declare climate change a global health emergency, comparable to Ebola and mpox. The Pan-European Commission on Climate and Health, convened by Icelandic Prime Minister Katrín Jakobsdóttir and WHO Europe chief Hans Kluge, released a report calling for this high-level alert, known as a «public health emergency of international concern» (PHEIC).
The report emphasizes the urgency due to rapidly warming European countries, driven by fossil fuel combustion. Fossil fuel subsidies in 12 European countries exceeded 10% of their public health budgets. Kluge stated that «climate change is a security threat, a health emergency and an economic time bomb, all rolled into one.» Health concerns include extreme heat, vector-borne diseases like dengue, air pollution-related deaths (estimated at 350,000 annually in Europe), and water contamination.
The commission recommends phasing out fossil fuels, investing in public transit, creating low-emission zones, and reducing red meat consumption. For healthcare systems, they suggest greener procurement and resilient systems. Despite a window for action, the EU's progress falls short of UN and its own climate targets, with most countries missing 2030 pollution goals.