Public Health Impacts of Climate Change in Toronto: A Path Forward for Responding to the Climate Crisis

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The decision

2023-11-27 · Board of Health · amended

As filed

The Board of Health: 1. Requested the Medical Officer of Health: a. Develop a dedicated surveillance framework for systematically and routinely monitoring climate change health impacts for Toronto; b. Collaborate with Public Health Ontario, public health units and other partners to identify consistent climate change health indicators for use across the province; c. Use new and improved data and evidence to inform future priority actions for climate change and health for the City of Toronto; and d.

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Consider both the outdoor and indoor contexts of areas of impact, such as air quality, extreme heat, extreme cold and others as outlined in Attachment 2 to the report (November 13, 2023) from the Medical Officer of Health, when developing the dedicated surveillance framework. 2. Requested the Medical Officer of Health actively champion the application of a public health perspective to climate-related projects and decisions through collaborating with relevant City Divisions, including Environment and Climate and Social Development, Finance and Administration. 3. Requested the Medical Officer of Health engage with partners outside the City, including academic partners, the provincial and federal governments and community stakeholders, and contribute to action addressing emerging climate change and public health issues. 4. Requested the Medical Officer of Health report back on progress on the surveillance framework, collaboration efforts and climate change health indicators in the first quarter of 2025.

On the agenda

As the city filed it

Climate change is not only an environmental problem - it is one of the most pressing health issues of the 21st century 1 . In 2021, the United Nations Secretary-General called the International Panel on Climate Change report a "code red for humanity". In Toronto, each of the last four decades has been increasingly warmer than any decade that preceded it since 1850 2 . Toronto is susceptible to the impacts of national climate events as experienced by the 2023 Canadian wildfires that had smoke and particulate matter crossing municipal, provincial, and national boundaries.

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Residents are increasingly feeling these effects, with 89 percent of Torontonians believing climate change threatens their personal health and well-being 3 . Direct and indirect health impacts of climate change include: - Increased incidence of heat-related illness and premature death - Increases in cardiovascular and respiratory illness from poor air quality - Health effects from severe weather events such as injuries - Increased incidence of water-borne diseases from contaminated water sources - Food system impacts, including risks to food access and security, and increased food-borne illness - Increases in vector-borne diseases from expanded vector habitats, and - Worsening mental health. Toronto Public Health (TPH) is an important partner in the City of Toronto's (the "City") work on climate change by incorporating human health impacts into the City's climate mitigation, adaptation, and resilience actions. Understanding current and future climate change health impacts for Toronto residents relies on timely monitoring of surveillance data. This information is required to identify and drive priority actions for the City. A surveillance framework can help the City better monitor and assess how resident health is affected by climate change, including any changes or developments of inequities. This evidence can inform actions taken by the City of Toronto and partners to promote climate change mitigation, adaptation, and resilience.

Staff recommended

The Medical Officer of Health recommends that: 1. The Board of Health request the Medical Officer of Health: a. Develop a dedicated surveillance framework for systematically and routinely monitoring climate change health impacts for Toronto; b. Collaborate with Public Health Ontario, public health units and other partners to identify consistent climate change health indicators for use across the province; and c. Use new and improved data and evidence to inform future priority actions for climate change and health for the City of Toronto.

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2. The Board of Health request the Medical Officer of Health actively champion the application of a public health perspective to climate-related projects and decisions through collaborating with relevant City Divisions, including Environment and Climate and Social Development, Finance and Administration. 3. The Board of Health request the Medical Officer of Health engage with partners outside the City, including academic partners, the provincial and federal governments and community stakeholders, and contribute to action addressing emerging climate change and public health issues. 4. The Board of Health request the Medical Officer of Health report back on progress on the surveillance framework, collaboration efforts and climate change health indicators in the first quarter of 2025.

On the record

The item as the City filed it