• About
    • Which Energy Mix is this?
  • Climate News Network Archive
  • Contact
The climate news that makes a difference.
No Result
View All Result
The Energy Mix
  • Canada
  • UK & Europe
  • Fossil Fuels
  • Ending Emissions
  • Community Climate Finance
  • Clean Electricity Grid
  • Cities & Communities
SUBSCRIBE
DONATE
  • Canada
  • UK & Europe
  • Fossil Fuels
  • Ending Emissions
  • Community Climate Finance
  • Clean Electricity Grid
  • Cities & Communities
SUBSCRIBE
DONATE
No Result
View All Result
The Energy Mix
No Result
View All Result
  • Canada
  • UK & Europe
  • Fossil Fuels
  • Ending Emissions
  • Community Climate Finance
  • Clean Electricity Grid
  • Cities & Communities
  FEATURED
BP Predicts Faster Oil and Gas Decline as Clean Energy Spending Hits $1.1T in 2022 January 31, 2023
Canada Needs Oil and Gas Emissions Cap to Hit 2030 Goal: NZAB January 31, 2023
Ecuador’s Amazon Drilling Plan Shows Need for Fossil Non-Proliferation Treaty January 31, 2023
Rainforest Carbon Credits from World’s Biggest Provider are ‘Largely Worthless’, Investigation Finds January 31, 2023
Danske Bank Quits New Fossil Fuel Financing January 23, 2023
Next
Prev

Warming set to raise the pollen count

September 4, 2016
Reading time: 3 minutes
Primary Author: Richard Sadler

 

Hay fever and asthma are likely to become a much greater health issue in Europe as warming stimulates plants producing allergenic pollen.

LONDON, 4 September, 2016 – Allergic diseases already cause misery for hundreds of millions of people, with serious implications for public health budgets in both developed and developing countries.

  • Concise headlines. Original content. Timely news and views from a select group of opinion leaders. Special extras.
  • Everything you need, nothing you don’t.
  • The Weekender: The climate news you need.
New!
Subscribe

But new research suggests their prevalence will reach epidemic proportions over the coming decades – because, in a changing climate, allergenic pollen-producing plants will thrive.

A study funded by the European Union focuses on common ragweed (Ambrosia artemisiifolia), a highly-invasive plant originally from North America that grows in fields, roadsides and gardens. It is one of the main triggers of seasonal allergies – close behind dust mites and rye grass – and is now spreading fast in Europe and Australia.

Once established, ragweed is quick to colonise, especially where ground has been newly disturbed. It is particularly harmful for public health because each plant can produce as many as a billion pollen grains per season, which can travel hundreds of miles on the wind.

Allergy rates

Researchers from the University of East Anglia, UK, and several European institutes have investigated the likely impact of climate change on ragweed distribution and resulting allergy rates for Europe’s population.

They created maps of estimated ragweed pollen counts over the pollen season and combined them with data on where people live and levels of allergy in the population.

Their findings suggest the number of Europeans sensitised to ragweed pollen will double in the next 35 years from 33 million to 77 million. Those sensitised will be at high risk of developing allergic rhinitis (hay fever) and asthma, as well as other allergic conditions such as conjunctivitis and eczema.

“Ragweed pollen allergy will become a major health problem across Europe, expanding into areas
where it is currently uncommon”

The study predicts that a warming climate will allow the plant to expand its range northward from hot spots in the Balkans, Austria and northern Italy into Germany, France and Poland. By 2041-2060, it is expected to spread across the whole of Europe, apart from Scandinavia, the Baltic states and most of Spain and Ireland.

To make matters worse, a longer summer growing season and increased atmospheric carbon dioxide concentrations will extend the pollen season and allow individual plants to grow more vigorously, producing still more pollen.

The most noticeable change will be felt in countries such as France, Germany and Poland, where at present few people have become sensitised to ragweed pollen. The UK and the Netherlands may also be affected.

Lead author Iain Lake, reader in the University of East Anglia’s School of Environmental Sciences, says: “Ragweed pollen allergy will become a major health problem across Europe, expanding into areas where it is currently uncommon.

“Control of ragweed is essential for public health, and as an adaptation strategy in response to climate change.”

But it may be possible to control it effectively with land management that minimises soil disturbance, combined with stricter controls on transport of crops and other goods that may be contaminated with ragweed seeds.

Extremely resilient

This may not be straightforward because, apart from its exceptional reproduction rates, ragweed is also extremely resilient.

Studies have shown it can become resistant to herbicide. It quickly re-sprouts after cutting, and its dormant seeds can survive a long time in the ground.The allergenic impacts of climate change will not be limited to ragweed. Previous research suggested that warmer conditions tend to boost the production and release of a wide range of allergenic pollens and fungal spores.

“Generally, when it is warmer plants tend to do better – they produce more pollen and so on,” Dr Lake says. – Climate News Network



in Climate News Network

The latest climate news and analysis, direct to your inbox

Subscribe

Related Posts

U.S. Geological Survey/wikimedia commons
Biodiversity & Habitat

Climate Change Amplifies Risk of ‘Insect Apocalypse’

December 1, 2022
43
Alaa Abd El-Fatah/wikimedia commons
COP Conferences

Rights Abuses, Intrusive Conference App Put Egypt Under Spotlight as COP 27 Host

November 14, 2022
26
Western Arctic National Parklands/wikimedia commons
Arctic & Antarctica

Arctic Wildfires Show Approach of New Climate Feedback Loop

January 2, 2023
28

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

I agree to the Terms & Conditions and Privacy Policy.

Trending Stories

Mike Mozart/Flickr

BP Predicts Faster Oil and Gas Decline as Clean Energy Spending Hits $1.1T in 2022

January 31, 2023
322
Ken Teegardin www.SeniorLiving.Org/flickr

Virtual Power Plants Hit an ‘Inflection Point’

January 31, 2023
125
Gina Dittmer/PublicDomainPictures

Canada Needs Oil and Gas Emissions Cap to Hit 2030 Goal: NZAB

January 31, 2023
196
RL0919/wikimedia commons

Danske Bank Quits New Fossil Fuel Financing

January 23, 2023
2.4k
Doc Searls/Twitter

Guilbeault Could Intervene on Ontario Greenbelt Development

January 31, 2023
132
/snappy goat

Rainforest Carbon Credits from World’s Biggest Provider are ‘Largely Worthless’, Investigation Finds

January 31, 2023
94

Recent Posts

CONFENIAE

Ecuador’s Amazon Drilling Plan Shows Need for Fossil Non-Proliferation Treaty

January 31, 2023
61
Victorgrigas/wikimedia commons

World Bank Climate Reforms Too ‘Timid and Slow,’ Critics Warn

January 31, 2023
42
United Nations

Salvage of $20B ‘Floating Time Bomb’ Delayed by Rising Cost of Oil Tankers

January 27, 2023
121
@tongbingxue/Twitter

Extreme Warming Ahead Even as Worst-Case Scenarios Grow ‘Obsolete’

January 23, 2023
341
Rachel Notley/Facebook

Notley Scorches Federal Just Transition Bill as Fossil CEO Calls for Oilsands Boom

January 23, 2023
313
EcoAnalytics

Albertans Want a Just Transition, Despite Premier’s Grumbling

January 23, 2023
323
Next Post

Airbus Aims for Airborne, Self-Driving Taxis

The Energy Mix - The climate news you need

Copyright 2023 © Energy Mix Productions Inc. All rights reserved.

  • About
  • Contact
  • Privacy Policy and Copyright
  • Cookie Policy

Proudly partnering with…

scf_withtagline
No Result
View All Result
  • Canada
  • UK & Europe
  • Fossil Fuels
  • Ending Emissions
  • Community Climate Finance
  • Clean Electricity Grid
  • Cities & Communities

Copyright 2022 © Smarter Shift Inc. and Energy Mix Productions Inc. All rights reserved.

Manage Cookie Consent
To provide the best experiences, we use technologies like cookies to store and/or access device information. Consenting to these technologies will allow us to process data such as browsing behaviour or unique IDs on this site. Not consenting or withdrawing consent, may adversely affect certain features and functions.
Functional Always active
The technical storage or access is strictly necessary for the legitimate purpose of enabling the use of a specific service explicitly requested by the subscriber or user, or for the sole purpose of carrying out the transmission of a communication over an electronic communications network.
Preferences
The technical storage or access is necessary for the legitimate purpose of storing preferences that are not requested by the subscriber or user.
Statistics
The technical storage or access that is used exclusively for statistical purposes. The technical storage or access that is used exclusively for anonymous statistical purposes. Without a subpoena, voluntary compliance on the part of your Internet Service Provider, or additional records from a third party, information stored or retrieved for this purpose alone cannot usually be used to identify you.
Marketing
The technical storage or access is required to create user profiles to send advertising, or to track the user on a website or across several websites for similar marketing purposes.
Manage options Manage services Manage vendors Read more about these purposes
View preferences
{title} {title} {title}