This week’s question from the Georgia Climate Project’s Roadmap deals with the threats we are likely to see from a warmer climate in the future. A timely topic this week as heat warnings are being issued for many parts of the eastern US this week as a dome of high pressure and hot, sunny conditions will drive temperatures well above normal, although the Southeast will be less affected than places farther north. See the full list of 40 questions at https://roadmap.georgiaclimateproject.org/.

26. What are the most significant climate-related health threats for communities in Georgia?

Why this question is important: Climate change will lead to alterations in the patterns (intensity, frequency, spatial distribution) of many climate-sensitive environmental health exposures (temperature, precipitation, extreme events, etc.). These exposures, individually or in combination, will impact a range of health outcomes through direct and indirect pathways (McMichael and Woodruff 2005; Portier et al. 2010; Crimmins et al. 2016). While excess deaths and illness during a heat wave is an example of a direct health impact (Stone et al. 2014; Beard et al. 2016), changing patterns in seasonal temperature and precipitation can alter habitats for certain ticks (e.g., Ixodes scapularis, linked to Lyme disease) thus indirectly spreading vector-borne diseases (Ostfeld and Brunner 2015). Different methodologies exist to link climate and health data to assess the range of epidemiological risk associated with climate change (World Health Organization 2014) but specific research is needed to assess threats in Georgia.

Source: Yinan Chen, Commons Wikimedia