Cancer. Heart disease. Pregnancy and fertility problems.
Impaired learning. Mental illness. Debilitating infectious diseases.
or signup to continue reading It's a grim but incomplete list of the multitude of human health threats fossil fuels pose. But doctors fear Australians are yet to fully grasp what the ongoing use of coal, oil and gas could mean for them and the people they love. That's why Doctors for the Environment have released a new summary report that tells it like it is.
It will be launched on Wednesday by Assistant Health Minister Ged Kearney, whose government has continued to approve new fossil fuel projects around Australia. Efficiently titled Fossil Fuels Are a Health Hazard, the document covers some of the better-known health threats associated with climate change, which is caused by the burning of fossil fuels. They include deadly heatwaves, bushfires and other extreme weather events.
But it also delves into threats people might not know about such as the highly concerning evidence the harms being caused by exposure to toxic plastics, which are made from oil and gas. "Workers at plastic production plants have increased risks of haematological malignancies like lymphoma and leukaemia as well as brain and breast cancer," the report says. Then there's the threat posed by tiny particles that break off as larger plastic items degrade.
The smallest ones can enter almost all the body's organs, with scientists finding links to serious health issues including hormone.