Environment and Health

Current Projects

• Climate Change and Public Health
  There has been an increase in droughts, floods, heat waves and violent storms, which could be the result of increased average global temperature.  Climate change can potentially have a serious impact on the health of Canadians. CPHA was contracted by the Climate Change Office, Health Canada, to conduct 30 key informant interviews with the public health community in Canada, primarily Medical Officers of Health and Deputy Medical Officers of Health, to understand the degree to which they consider climate change risks in their policies and planning and their ability to respond to potential impacts. The following documents are available:
• Snapshot of Adaptation and Response Capacity in Public Health (PDF: 190k)
• CPHA's brief to the Senate Standing Committee on Energy, the Environment and Natural Resources on CPHA's recommended changes to the Canadian Environmental Protection Act 1999 (PDF: 54k)
• Roundtable on Health and Climate Change: Final Report (2001) (PDF: 153k)
  
Contact: Sylvia Fanjoy at info@cpha.ca
Partner: Climate Change and Health Office, Health Canada
 
• Heat Alert and Response Systems
  CPHA is providing technical assistance to a Health Canada-funded initiative to develop and evaluate Heat Alert and Response Systems (HARS) in four pilot communities in Canada. This two-year project was initiated in spring 2009 by the Climate Change and Health Office, as part of Health Canada’s Developing Heat Resilient Communities and Individuals initiative. The project’s objective is to develop and demonstrate the effectiveness of Heat Alert and Response Systems (HARS) in four Canadian communities: Fredericton, NB; Winnipeg, MB; a rural area in southwest Manitoba; and Windsor, ON. The project will run until March 31, 2011.
  

Recent Projects

• Resource Development to Raise Public Awareness About the Health Effects of Air Pollution and Actions to Improve Current Conditions
  View a number of printable resources that cover a range of topics such as: how air pollution affects our health; ways in which exposure to air pollution can be reduced; and how to reduce air pollution in your community.

• Roundtable On Health and Climate Change
  The Roundtable on Health and Climate Change is a forum for representatives from health and environmental non-governmental organizations, the education and private sectors, industry, the Aboriginal community, academics and representatives of municipal, provincial and federal governments, to examine the health impacts of climate change and formulate how action can be taken to address them, for the benefit of all Canadians.

• Supporting Public Awareness Initiatives on the Health Effects of Climate Change and Air Pollution
  The project staff have administered a survey to determine the extent of public awareness initiatives in Canada which make the link between human health, climate change and air pollution.