Poor energy, food and water security in rural and remote communities negatively impacts health and wellbeing for people living in these communities.
Energy security: Access to clean and sustainable energy in homes is essential to protect people’s health and to enable them to cool their homes, public places and businesses. Healthcare facilities need access to clean and reliable energy to ensure the delivery of essential healthcare services for disease prevention and treatment. However, rural and remote healthcare facilities have less access to reliable electricity than urban healthcare facilities.
Food security: Food insecurity has adverse health and social effects across the whole of life – from infancy through to old age, and is felt most significantly in rural and remote communities. The poorer health associated with food insecurity may worsen other health inequalities that are apparent in disadvantaged groups such as a higher mortality rate, and higher rates of coronary heart disease, type-2 diabetes and some cancers.
People living in rural and remote areas are particularly vulnerable to food insecurity arising from climate disruption and disasters. A very recent example is the flooding in Northern Queensland which has submerged agricultural land and forced residents to evacuate, causing physical damage and triggering a rise in waterborne diseases, mental health issues, and respiratory conditions.
Water security: Security in drinking water in terms of supply and quality is a priority to ensure health, social and economic outcomes for rural and remote communities. In relation to healthcare service delivery, the combination of poor water supply and poor climate control support means that hospitals and other healthcare facilities in rural and remote areas are at increased risk of renal failure epidemic.
The Alliance urges Governments and other support agencies to determine how best to ensure those members of society already disadvantaged by inequitable funding and access to healthcare are not further disadvantaged by the impacts of energy, food and water insecurity.
In regard to the impact of climate change on health more broadly, the Alliance advocates for funding of the National Health and Climate Strategy to mitigate climate impacts on rural populations.
Governments will need to address the implications of climate change in their healthcare and insurance planning in terms of prevention, early intervention, primary care, secondary care, tertiary
care, crisis and trauma management, mental health service provision, and health care workforce education and training.
The full submission can be downloaded below.