A new report traces the life cycle of fossil fuels — from exploration and extraction to combustion and decommissioning — and found stark consequences at each stage for the health of people and the planet alike.
“By examining fossil fuels’ health hazards across their entire life cycle, this report makes an important addition to our current understanding of fossil fuels’ health impacts,” Dr. Philip Landrigan, a pediatrician and epidemiologist at Boston College, U.S., not involved with the study, told Mongabay in an email.
The report, published by the Global Climate and Health Alliance, compiles roughly 650 studies, 20 personal testimonials and more than a dozen case studies to create a picture of the environmental and health consequences of fossil fuels.
The researchers first outline the human health harms associated with 20 pollutants commonly used in fossil fuels. They note, for example, that benzene, used in fossil fuel extraction and refining, is linked to cancer, including childhood cancer, and compromised immune functioning. Fine particulate matter PM2.5, commonly found in combusted fossil fuels, is associated with preterm birth, premature death, respiratory illness and certain cancers. Similarly, arsenic, released during coal mining, burning and found in oil and gas wastewater, is linked to various cancers, cardiovascular disease, diabetes and cognitive impairment.
A developing fetus in utero and children are among the most vulnerable to fossil fuels, the report finds. Prenatal exposure to coal mining, for example, is associated with low birth weight and premature births. Children who live near fossil fuel facilities are at heightened risks of diseases including leukemia. Those in low-income families are particularly vulnerable, since they often live closer to such facilities and may have the additional burden of reduced access to health care and adequate nutrition.
One of the personal testimonials included in the report is that from Prudence Masilela who lives near a mine in South Africa. “When they blast, the air blows our way and we are affected because our children are always sick,” she says. “If you look inside my fridge, it is full of medicine. I am a single parent with no money to always be taking my children to a doctor.”
The harms don’t stop with chemical exposure, the report notes. Fossil fuels are the leading driver of climate change, which is shifting patterns of diseases like malaria, intensifying deadly heat and worsening air quality. Rising greenhouse gas emissions also fuel wildfires and extreme weather events that pose immediate threats to people worldwide.
Every stage of fossil fuel production carries risk, the report concludes. Extraction processes release heavy metals and particulates; refining emits carcinogens; transport can bring spills and contamination; combustion increases rates of asthma, heart disease and cancers; and fuel waste, from coal ash to gas flaring, contaminates the environment and bodies. Even abandoned fossil fuel sites can leave a legacy of contamination.
Banner image: A poor air quality sign posted over a highway in Utah. AP Photo/Rick Bowmer
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