NOAA: Climate Projections Show Human Health Impacts Possible Within 30 Years

[OKIsItJustMe]

http://www.noaanews.noaa.gov/stories2011/20110219_aaas_oceansandhealth.html

Climate Projections Show Human Health Impacts Possible Within 30 Years

New studies demonstrate potential increases in waterborne toxins and microbes harmful to human health

February 19, 2011

American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) Annual Meeting:
Feb. 19 Symposium 10:00 a.m. – 11:30 a.m. (EST)

A panel of scientists speaking today at the annual meeting of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) unveiled new research and models demonstrating how climate change could increase exposure and risk of human illness originating from ocean, coastal and Great Lakes ecosystems, with some studies projecting impacts to be felt within 30 years.

“With 2010 the wettest year on record and third warmest for sea surface temperatures, NOAA and our partners are working to uncover how a changing climate can affect our health and our prosperity,” said Jane Lubchenco, Ph.D., under secretary of commerce for oceans and atmosphere and NOAA administrator. “These studies and others like it will better equip officials with the necessary information and tools they need to prepare for and prevent risks associated with changing oceans and coasts.”

In several studies funded by NOAA’s Oceans and Human Health Initiative, findings shed light on how complex interactions and climate change alterations in sea, land and sky make ocean and freshwater environments more susceptible to toxic algal blooms and proliferation of harmful microbes and bacteria.

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[kestrel91316]

1. Crop failures leading to famines will impact us long before that.