Climate risks related to CO2 and short-lived climate pollutants

Kolkata, Jul 3 (UNI) Housing practices influence the climate, which has an intimate relationship with health.
According to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (2014), the building sector (residential and commercial) accounted for about 32% of final global energy consumption, 19% of global greenhouse gas emissions. and one-third of global black carbon emissions.
Carbon dioxide is the long-lived greenhouse gas that contributes the most to climate emissions worldwide, while black carbon is a short-lived climate pollutant and the second largest contributor to climate change.
Black carbon persists in the environment from a few days to a few weeks, but it has hundreds to thousands of times more warming potential than carbon dioxide.
It is also a component of particulate matter, which is a major environmental cause of premature deaths from air pollution globally. In terms of housing, carbon black is produced by biomass, coal and diesel stoves or by heating systems.
A significant portion of climate-related emissions is attributable to the use of the electric grid for electric stoves and heaters, lighting, air conditioning and other electrical appliances.
The remaining household emissions are due to on-site combustion of fuels, eg. for fuel cookers and heating systems.
Household-related climate pollutants include not only CO2 and black carbon but also other short-lived pollutants such as methane (from incomplete combustion of coal) and hydrofluorocarbons used in wastewater systems. domestic cooling.
Methane, produced by the combustion of some household fuels, has a global warming potential 25 times more potent than carbon dioxide.
It is a precursor of tropospheric ozone, which is a risk factor for asthma and other lung diseases.
Hydrofluorocarbons are released by household appliances, such as refrigeration and air conditioning units, when they are damaged or leaking.
These chemicals can stay in the atmosphere for 15 years and are powerful contributors to global warming.
Poor urban design, including the design of residential neighborhoods, exacerbates the "urban heat island effect" of reflected sunlight over large paved surfaces, which can increase temperatures in environments from 5 to 12 degrees Celsius.
Increasing impacts on urban heat islands increase the risk of heat – related mortality, air quality and dependence on air conditioning – thus contributing more to climate change.
Climate change itself also exacerbates the health risks associated with housing.
For example, more frequent extreme weather events will increase the vulnerability of housing structures, particularly in coastal areas, to moisture, floods, extreme cold and heat. Increasing flood risk can affect the safety and security of household drinking water supplies and increase the spread of bacterial contamination and waterborne diseases associated with poor sanitation.

With climate change an increasingly critical problem, the mitigation of the necessary both to reduce health risks and to achieve related health benefits through the stability of the environment long-term.
UNI BM SJC