Climate change, including global warming, has become a less and less questionable reality over time. Even if the cycles of pathogenic agents are generally very complex, it is easy to see that they can be affected by changes in climate. This is particularly true for diseases whose agent passes through a phase in the environment, vector or ambient medium. Without attributing any unusual event to climate change, the possible impacts should not be overlooked when assessing the risks.
This is why, in September 2003, the Ministry of Agriculture asked the Agency to proceed with the identification of the various animal diseases, in particular zoonotic, whose evolution on the territory of metropolitan France in the next years could be modified by possible global warming, and to prioritize them according to the risks they could present for public health, the livestock economy, as well as according to the degree of probability of their occurrence.
Six diseases to observe in priority
Although it would be illusory to claim to predict with precision what repercussions climate change will have on the development of animal diseases already known, the Agency’s experts, following a risk ranking process, nevertheless identified six diseases as being most likely to be affected by climate change: Rift Valley fever, West Nile virus infection, visceral leishmaniasis, leptospirosis, bluetongue and African horse sickness.
For each of them, the Agency has issued, in addition to the general measures, specific measures relating to a better understanding of the reservoirs and vectors of these diseases.
Developing research and strengthening collaborations
A gradation of measurements to be recommended in the fields of health monitoring, ecological monitoring, alert and active surveillance is also proposed depending on the existence of these diseases on the territory or the risk of their introduction, their establishment and of their dissemination.
The Agency also advises networking of research actions for better consideration of diseases, in particular those which do not exist in France but which present a significant risk of introduction (for example, Rift Valley fever). It would also allow the establishment of consultation between European countries and third countries on health problems related to the environment.
There are many areas of research to be developed. However, the highest priorities are in the fields of infectiology, eco-epidemiologyin particular the study of vectors and Humanities and Social Sciencesin particular the study of the behavior of human populations (cultural resistance during health education to reduce the risk of infection, for example).
The lack of skills in the field of ecology, and especially entomology, was also deplored by the experts, who underlined the need to strengthen them.
Better inform about the risks
All these actions must be accompanied bydevelopment of health education both for the general public than health professionals. Information on the disease(s) that are progressing or appearing on French territory must be disseminated. This must provide all the objective elements allowing risk control when it is correctly assessed. It will also present the control measures, their effectiveness and their possible limits.