Climate change, environmental pollution and biodiversity loss affect people’s health and generate multi-billion-euro economic losses, as a briefing produced by HEAL Poland under the patronage of the Institute of Water Economy and Meteorology of the National Research Institute and the Polish Federation of Asthma, Allergy, and COPD Patients Associations highlights.
On World Cancer Day, representatives from the Health and Environment Alliance (HEAL) Poland attended the meeting of the Parliamentary Group "Rodzice dla Klimatu" (Parents for Climate). Experts from non-governmental organisations, the scientific community, and the healthcare sector discussed the impact of pollution on cancer and prevention. Olga Wdowiczak, environmental health policy specialist at HEAL, presented findings on how exposure to hazardous chemicals increases the cancer risk, particularly for children.
To address growing concern about harmful chemicals in Poland and to raise awareness about the impacts of chemicals on health in Poland, HEAL in November 2024 has started publishing materials and articles on the matter and engage the Polish health sector.
Opinion by HEAL Poland Director Weronika Michalak: as the urgency to act on the triple crisis - climate change, pollution, and biodiversity loss - becomes increasingly clear, I hope that the Polish Presidency of the European Union, which began on 1st January this year, will set the course for decisive EU climate and environmental policies aimed at protecting people's health across Europe.
More than 40 non-governmental organisations, including HEAL, are calling on the Polish Prime Minister to enhance coordination among 12 ministries in preparing the National Energy and Climate Plan and implementing Poland's energy and climate transition.
Together with thirty non-governmental organisations, HEAL urged Poland’s Prime Minister Donald Tusk to immediately resume Poland's successful and much needed Clean Air Programme. The programme saves an estimated 21,000 lives annually through its approach of replacing outdated heating systems and improving home insulation.
HEAL in Poland welcomed the first position (in Polish) of the Public Health Council on the steps necessary to reduce the exposure of people in Poland air pollution and the effects of climate change. The Public Health Council is an advisory body to the Minister of Health. Their positioning is particularly important in the context of the revised Ambient Air Quality Directive (AAQD) which entered into force on 10 December 2024.
While the health impacts of air pollution are well-documented in scientific studies, this factor has not been recognized in Polish medical diagnoses as a primary cause of health issues until a breakthrough case last year. As highlighted by HEAL in Poland in May 2023, an eleven-year-old boy, Maciek (name changed), suffered for most of his life from a persistent cough, shortness of breath, and frequent infections, all of which worsened during the heating season. After a prolonged struggle by Maciek’s parents to find the true cause of his health issues, a conclusive opinion was finally issued, stating: “suspected bronchial hyperreactivity/allergy due to air pollution.”
Every year, air pollution in Poland reaches its highest levels during the smog season in winter. In view of the unacceptably high health burden and health costs from poor air quality, the Health and Environment Alliance (HEAL) and health experts urge the Polish government to increase efforts to reduce pollution in the energy sector. This includes setting a swift date for phasing out coal combustion in Poland, as well as accelerating the Just Transition in the energy sector.
HEAL has opened a new chapter in its work in Poland - launching an initiative to address the growing concerns about harmful chemicals; as a recent Eurobarometer survey shows that 84% of Poles are worried about the effects of harmful chemicals on their health.
HEAL Poland recently launched briefings for Warsaw, Kraków, Poznań, and Wrocław, which highlight the health harm from air pollution, especially from transport, and present recommendations for local authorities on how to improve air quality.
HEAL, together with Bundesärztekammer and Deutsche Allianz Klimawandel und Gesundheit (KLUG), has sent a letter calling on EU environment ministers to confirm the revision of EU’s clean air standards (Ambient Air Quality Directives).
As floods in Europe increase due to climate change, HEAL Poland analyses the health impacts of floods and calls for policy action to protect health.
In September, as children in Poland return to school, a HEAL initiative focuses on raising awareness with parents on the importance of clean air around schools, and on encouraging healthy school mobility and school streets.
As part of the conference “The role of green hospitals in tackling climate change", HEAL Poland organised a debate on the role of health experts in climate action and the health sector's preparedness, bringing together Polish and international health representatives.
The threat pollution and climate change pose to human health took center stage at the expert-led "Climate for Health" debate held at the headquarters of the Polish Academy of Sciences in Warsaw. The event was co-organized by the think tank Medical Ration of State and "Rzeczpospolita" newspaper in April, bringing together prominent health experts, representatives of the Polish Parliament, Ministries and civil society. HEAL Poland took an active role in the exchange.
Help us influence policymakers in Poland HEAL has been active in Poland for the past ten years, to engage the Polish health and medical sector, to communicate the latest science…
Das Europäische Parlament hat heute mit großer Mehrheit (381 Stimmen) die vorläufige Trilog-Vereinbarung zur Überarbeitung der EU-Luftqualitätsrichtlinie angenommen. Damit ist eine wesentliche Hürde genommen, um die veralteten EU-Luftqualitätsstandards aus dem Jahr 2008…
HEAL, together with Bundesärztekammer and Deutsche Allianz Klimawandel und Gesundheit (KLUG), has sent a letter to all MEPs from Germany on the upcoming vote on the agreement reached in trilogue concerning the Ambient Air Quality DIrective (AAQD).
This afternoon, the HEAL Poland team, together with 25+ health experts, health organisations and civil society representatives, met Ministry of Climate and Environment Secretary of State Bolesta, to discuss the ongoing revision of the Ambient Air Quality Directive (AAQD), on which negotiators reached a deal last week. Participants included HEAL partners Prof. Michał Krzyżanowski, Prof. Tadeusz Zielonka, Prof. Bolesław Samoliński, Dr Piotr Dąbrowiecki.
