Planning Healthy Communities
Climate Change
In September 2004, the Western Australian Government published the Western Australian Greenhouse Strategy [PDF], which focuses on reducing greenhouse gas emissions and conducting further research into potential impacts of climate change in WA.
The Greenhouse Strategy has numerous generic actions for government agencies to implement. In its response to Climate Change, the Department of Health (DOH) is involved in two linked actions:
Action 5.5: “An integrated global climate change impact and assessment strategy for the South-West of Western Australia will be prepared through collaborative actions by the Australian Greenhouse Office, State Government entities, Local Government, Stakeholders and the public.”
Action 5.6: “The DOH will aim to investigate the potential impacts of projected climate change conditions in Western Australia.”
DOH has applied the Health Impact Assessment process to the consideration of potential health impacts that may arise in Western Australia from Climate Change. The outcomes of this process have been published as: Health impacts of climate change: Adaptation strategies for Western Australia [PDF / 783KB].
The information will be used to inform Government and community policy and decision making for community adaptations.
The document has been released for public comment to:
- Inform the public about the potential health impacts of climate change in WA.
- Obtain further information on components that were not identified during the study.
- Identify stakeholder individuals and groups interested in future involvement in actions to address the proposed adaptations.
If you have further information or are interested in further involvement please contact hia@health.wa.gov.au by 30 October 2007.
Climate Change and Health
Climate change can have both potential direct and indirect impacts on health. Publications by the World Health Organisation, Australian Greenhouse Office and DOH studies have identified numerous health impacts including:
- Temperature Health Impacts
- Extreme Weather Related Health Effects
- Air Pollution Related Health Effects
- Water and Food Borne Disease Health Impacts
- Vector Borne Disease Health Impacts
- Indirect Health Impacts
For further information please contact the Environmental Health Directorate on (08) 9388 4999.
Related Websites
- Australian Greenhouse Office
- Bureau of Meteorology
- Commonwealth Scientific and Research Organisation (CSIRO)
- Department of Agriculture
- Department of Environment and Conservation
- Indian Ocean Climate Initiative (IOCI)
- Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC)
- World Health Organisation (WHO)
File Formats
Some documents for download on this website are in a Portable Document Format (PDF). To read these files you might need to download Adobe® Acrobat Reader.