By John Hartman
Pandemics like the coronavirus may occur more often when climate change is unabated. Warming and changing weather patterns shift the vectors and spread of disease.
Heavily polluting industries also contribute to disease transmission. Studies have linked factory farming — one of the largest sources of methane emissions — to faster mutating, more virulent pathogens.
Similarly, the same populations that are bearing the brunt of the health and economic effects of the coronavirus are the same populations that bear the brunt of fossil fuel pollution — which in turn makes them more vulnerable to serious complications.
Dealing with the impacts of coronavirus while addressing climate change doesn’t have to slow down the economic recovery. Outside of war, climate change is the only issue large enough to provide the economic recovery needed to help employ the millions of people out of work. A climate-focused economic recovery.