The full The Health Benefits of Tackling
series of Climate Change
articles can
be In December 2009, a series of
downloaded studies was published in The Lancet
at examining the health implications,
climate- in both high-income and low-income
change countries, designed to reduce the
release of greenhouse gases, such
as methane, CO2 and NO2. The
following is a concise summary of
the studies that covered four
sectors in which greenhouse gases
can be reduced.
Household energy emissions
Household energy use is responsible
for a significant amount
greenhouse gas emissions in both
high-income and low-income
countries. In the UK, residential
buildings account for just over
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quarter of the total emission reading
of COan2. MSc in generation
The simple stoves used Hygiene
in theand Tropical
poorest half of the Economics.
world’s He canthe
households are low in energy
efficiency and produce many health-
damaging airborne particles which
induce acute respiratory infections
in young children and chronic
respiratory and heart diseases in
mature adults.
In the UK, a program that improves
household energy efficiency can
reduce CO2 emissions by a third
(encompassing more house
insulation, better ventilation and
heat recovery, a switch to electric
heating, a reduction in household
temperature of 1˚C). In India, a 10
year program to introduce 150
million low-emission cook stoves
may reduce the burden
respiratory and heart diseases by a
sixth.
Urban land transport
Transport accounts for almost a
quarter of all fossil fuel greenhouse-
gas emissions. Reducing motor
vehicle use by encouraging more
walking and cycling (potentially
through incentive programs), will
diminish emissions and reduce
obesity, lower the rate of chronic
diseases caused by physical
inactivity and lessen the impact of
health-damaging air pollutants while
also making the roads safer for
pedestrians and cyclists.
Scenario testing with more walking
and cycling and less vehicle use in
London generates a fall in heart
disease (10-20%), breast cancer
(12-13%), dementia (8%) and
depression (5%). Similar results are
generated for Delhi, with reductions
in heart diseases and diabetes (10-
25%, 6-17% respectively). Thus
major public health benefits will
depend on the introduction of
policies that combine reduced
of motor vehicle use, more walking
and cycling, and low-carbon-
emission motor vehicles.
a is a healthcare
Low-carbon electricity
actuary and is currently
Health Policy at London School of
ThisMedicine
study and London School
concentrates of
solely on
be contacted
health ateffects
yi- of emitted
airborne particles through electricity
generation. One emission control
scenario consists of full carbon
trading and only 50% of existing
targets imposed, with reduced
emission made wherever it is most
cost effective to do so. Projections
show that this scenario will lead to
reductions in airborne particle
emission which will save an extra
100 life-years per million in the EU
in 1 year (6000 life-years for the
UK), with results for China 5 times
better than the EU and India 10
times. The biggest health
improvements would be in
cardiopulmonary diseases followed
by lung cancer, two of the major
of burdens of disease.
Food and agriculture
Agriculture and food production
accounts for 10-12% of greenhouse-
gas emissions, with livestock
farming responsible for 80% of
these emissions. Increasing
affluence is set to push meat
consumption even higher.
The study identified four changes to
reduce emissions: greater efficiency
in livestock farming; more carbon
capture through changes in land-
use practices; better manure
management; and less dependence
on fossil fuels. However, these will
unlikely be sufficient to meet the
target, recommended by the
Committee on Climate Change, of a
30% reduction in greenhouse-gas
emission by 2030. Nevertheless, a
30% reduction in livestock
production and consumption will
reduce heart diseases by around
15% in the UK and Sao Paulo, Brazil.
The result would be even better if
second order effects such as
reduced obesity and diet-related
cancers were incorporated.
Important to note is that due to
global inequality in the availability
of food provision, only concerted
worldwide policies will generate the
desired impact.

Discussion
Climate change not only impacts
general insurance and investments,
but also morbidity and mortality
risks as well as workforce
productivity. Furthermore, as these
studies demonstrated, there can be
health benefits to tackling climate
change. These will translate into
lower healthcare costs, improved
productivity and quality of life and
less employee churn. In our
capacity as corporate advisors on
issues of employee benefit,
retirement and healthcare,
actuaries should highlight to clients
the importance of tackling climate
change and that concrete actions,
such as those suggested in these
studies, can translate into material
financial gains.