HEAL together with representatives from the medical, scientific, and civil society sectors, is calling on policymakers in Poland to develop a national action plan to reduce the health impacts of harmful chemicals and to support the revision of EU regulations. The appeal was presented on 10 June in Warsaw during the International Conference Preventing Disease by Reducing Exposure to Harmful Chemicals, held under the patronage of the Polish Presidency of the Council of the EU, the Polish Minister of Health, and the President of the Polish Supreme Medical Council.
HEAL has sent a letter to EU environment ministers ahead of an Environment Council meeting on 17 June 2025, where ministers will be considering the EU’s 2040 climate ambition as well as preparedness and adaption needs. The letter calls on ministers to step up in placing health protection at the centre of EU climate policies.
Europe is already experiencing a health crisis driven by the climate crisis, with health impacts and costs set to further increase if decisive action is delayed. In the summer of 2023, more than 47,000 people lost their lives from the heat, the second highest mortality burden since 2015. Air pollution from wildfires keeps worsening air quality across the continent, impacting especially people with cardiovascular and respiratory disease. One in three Europeans suffers from allergies – climate change has already led to a prolonged and more intense allergy season, resulting in productivity losses. The burning of fossil fuels remains the major driver of climate change and air pollution, as well as a key contributor to non-communicable disease and early deaths.
HEAL’s science-based recommendations include:
- End fossil fuel subsidies
- Raise EU climate mitigation ambition to protect health and prevent irreversible harm
- Consider health in climate risk assessment and adaptation policies
Read HEAL’s letter Health at the centre of EU climate mitigation and adaptation measures
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