{"id":15704,"date":"2021-03-03T13:37:39","date_gmt":"2021-03-03T00:37:39","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/aotearoa\/?p=15704"},"modified":"2025-05-20T14:11:32","modified_gmt":"2025-05-20T02:11:32","slug":"nzs-climate-change-commission-needs-to-account-for-the-huge-potential-health-benefits-of-reducing-emissions","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/aotearoa\/story\/nzs-climate-change-commission-needs-to-account-for-the-huge-potential-health-benefits-of-reducing-emissions\/","title":{"rendered":"NZ’s Climate Change Commission needs to account for the huge potential health benefits of reducing emissions"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

The Climate Change Commission\u2019s recent draft report and recommendations<\/a> has helped to kick-start an extremely important process.<\/p>\n\n

But, as others have argued<\/a>, there remain serious questions about its narrow view and lack of ambition in key areas.<\/p>\n\n

In particular, the commission has not adequately considered the potential health benefits of climate change mitigation \u2014 that is, how reducing emissions involves changes in behaviour and environments that would significantly improve people\u2019s general health. <\/p>\n\n

The evidence for these co-benefits \u2014 dietary changes, increased physical activity and reductions in air pollution \u2014 is substantial<\/a>. <\/p>\n\n

Indeed, extrapolating recent international evidence<\/a> to the New Zealand setting suggests these could ultimately prevent thousands of premature deaths per year. Unfortunately, despite this evidence and the likely impact of those health co-benefits, the commission makes no such estimates. <\/p>\n\n

But there is still time to influence its final report. Submissions<\/a> to the commission close on March 28.<\/p>\n\n

In the table below we summarise our assessment of the draft report\u2019s attention to the co-benefits in key health areas.<\/p>\n\n