'There's no vaccine for the climate crisis': WHO's warning on cross-country wildfires

Following wildfires in a number of countries, WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said that "devastating flames" have taken many lives in recent weeks. He stated on Twitter, "if we continue business as usual, the risks posed by climate change could dwarf those of any single disease. We will end the COVID-19 pandemic, but there's no vaccine for the climate crisis."

90% of people inhale unhealthy air

The WHO claims that over 90% of people inhale unhealthy amounts polluted air, which is mostly due to the combustion of fossil fuels and contributes to climate change. Stopping the use of fossil fuels cuts pollution and provides immediate advantages to society and the economy. According to WHO's assessment, transportation accounts for about 20% of global carbon emissions. WHO suggested that the emissions can be cut out by walking and cycling more for our own health and the health of the planet. The worldwide cost of implementing carbon mitigation measures would be roughly double the value of health improvements from lowering carbon emissions.

Climate change is anticipated to result in an additional 250,000 fatalities per year between 2030 and 2050 due to heatstroke in the elderly, increases in diarrheal disease, malaria, dengue fever, coastal flooding and childhood malnutrition. Reduced food availability and quality are expected to result in over 500,000 more adult deaths annually by 2050. Air and water quality are two more key health problems linked to climate change which is the greatest threat to world health in the 21st century, according to the World Health Organization.

Wildfires in 2021

Record-breaking wildfires sparked by similarly historic heatwaves have ravaged swaths of land on three continents this year. The Dixie Fire in California has become the state's largest wildfire, destroying more than 1,811 square kilometres of land. Greece, Turkey, Italy and some Mediterranean countries have been compelled to evacuate residents and visitors from a number of their normally idyllic vacation spots. Out-of-control wildfires in Siberia, Russia's sparsely populated northeast region, have already shattered annual records for fire-related greenhouse gas emissions. 

Siberian fire may get less coverage and airtime but they are the ones that scientists are most concerned about. Satellites have been sending images of enormous expanses of taiga around the Arctic circle being consumed by flames since late April.

Image- @RaviRanchi2/Twitter & AP