Climate Change Experts Warn of Health Risks from Increased Wildfire Activity and Poor Air Quality

More summer fog? Experts monitor climate-driven events and their effects on health.

MINNEAPOLIS, MN. Mike Moen

Wet weather this spring has improved drought conditions in Minnesota and southern Canada. However, experts are still warning of increased wildfire activity and other climate changes that will affect human health.

Poor air quality was a frequent theme last year in the upper Midwest, as smoke from Canadian wildfires descended. Researchers said climate change is causing hotter, drier summers, making forests more prone to wildfires.

Dr. Bruce Snyder, co-founder of Health Professionals for a Healthy Climate, is concerned that a summer of thick, hazy smog in the air will create unhealthy conditions.

“When that happens, people get more respiratory illnesses; “People with chronic lung diseases tend to get sicker,” Snyder explained.. “There are many downstream consequences for people all over the world, but certainly here in Minnesota.”

Snyder noted that the transition to cleaner energy sources is complex, but he admitted that pollution events put more emphasis on the need to rely less on fossil fuels, due to their contribution to global warming. The Minnesota Pollution Control Agency said the state has received 46 air quality alerts since 2015, 34 of which were due to smoke from wildfires.

Snyder emphasized that it’s not just air pollution caused by wildfire smoke to worry about. He noted that there are other ways that climate change could affect a person’s health.

“We have a lot more dangerous insects: ticks, mosquitoes, etc,” Snyder said. “This has a big impact on our wildlife. But we’re also seeing levels of Lyme disease, West Nile virus, continues to increase.”

Statistics can vary from year to year, but state health officials say the average number of Lyme disease cases has increased in the last ten years. Snyder said that the negative effects of climate change health risks can be much more severe for people without stable housing.

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