Infectious Diseases Land Use and Land Cover Change
Zoonosis emergence linked to agricultural intensification and environmental change. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America.
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WHAT IS PLANETARY HEALTH?
Land Use and Land Cover Change
The conversion of natural habitat to land used for agriculture and industry is occurring rapidly on a global scale, with dire consequences for the structure and function of ecosystems.
Demographic shifts and increased demand for food, animal products, biofuel, and even cosmetics continue to drive the destruction of ecosystems and their services. This extractive activity leads to negative environmental and human health impacts including:
90% Tropical deforestation driven by agriculture, according to the World Wildlife Fund's 2024 Living Planet Report
- Substantial reduction of biological diversity
- Increased local air pollution and greenhouse gas emissions from land clearing by burning, which is particularly problematic in tropical and subtropical regions where oil palm cultivation is rapidly increasing
- Soil degradation, which reduces soil ecosystem services such as carbon storage, and increases the risk of desertification
- Nitrogen and phosphorus deposition from agricultural field runoff
- Decreased water quality and quantity
- Increased exposure to water-borne, zoonotic, and vector-borne diseases
The complex interactions between changes in land use, land cover, ecosystem services, and the attendant impacts on human health require longitudinal study across geographic regions in addition to urgent action to re-wild and restore many of the planet’s natural habitats.
Land Use and Land Cover Change Resources
Noncommunicable Diseases Nutritional Diseases
Erratum: Effects of tropical deforestation on climate and agriculture. Nature Climate Change.
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Nutritional Diseases Land Use and Land Cover Change
Impact of Amazonian deforestation on precipitation reverses between seasons. Nature.
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Infectious Diseases Land Use and Land Cover Change
Urbanisation and infectious diseases in a globalised world. The Lancet Infectious Diseases.
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Life Stage and Reproductive Health Land Use and Land Cover Change
Deforestation and vector-borne disease: Forest conversion favors important mosquito vectors of human pathogens. Basic and Applied Ecology.
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News Related to Land Use and Land Cover Change
Cultural Performance as Ecological Healing in Kenya
