EPA - Ireland's Environment, An Integrated Assessment - 2020

Ireland’s Environment – An Integrated Assessment 2020 WE NEED VISION AND IMPLEMENTATION TO PROTECT IRELAND’S ENVIRONMENT AND OUR HEALTH AND WELLBEING SOE 3: Health and Wellbeing Protecting the Environment is an Investment in our Health and Wellbeing Managing the environmental and radiological risks to health from chemicals and other pollutants is still a major part of environmental protection. Green and blue spaces as well as quiet areas also need to be protected as they provide social spaces for communities and enable a connection to nature, with evidence showing that spending time in such spaces is good for health. Many environmental issues are associated with our daily lives and where we live: the quality of the air we breathe, the state of our local riverside walks or how we manage our waste. Often, they are linked to our own consumption patterns and the amount of unnecessary waste that we generate – be it food or herbicides, energy wastage or car exhaust emissions. Our most pressing environmental concerns often relate to losing something that is important to us. There are many examples, including the loss of the use of the local beach for swimming due to a restriction because of pollution, the loss of a drinking water supply because of contamination, the demise of a local pristine river for fisheries and wildlife or the absence of the call of an iconic species of wildlife such as the curlew. We need to recognise and better promote the benefits of a good- quality environment for health and wellbeing (Chapter 14). The provision of clean, safe and nature-friendly green and blue spaces is important for improving our health and wellbeing. The inclusion and maintenance of health-promoting environments and protection of quiet areas in urban planning are now recognised as important considerations. The benefits of these recreational areas for local communities were clearly demonstrated during the initial stay-at-home restriction period of the coronavirus pandemic. There are emerging environmental and health risks that need to be considered. The risk that antimicrobials in the environment and antimicrobial resistance pose to health is now highlighted through Ireland’s National Action Plan on Antimicrobial Resistance 2017-2020 (Chapter 14). An emerging area that needs more attention is chemicals in the environment and the measures needed to deliver on the zero-pollution ambition for a toxin-free environment, as outlined in the European Green Deal. The EEA has reported in its 2020 report Healthy Environment, Healthy Lives: How the Environment Influences Health and Well- being in Europe that ‘a significant proportion of the burden of disease in Europe continues to be attributed to environmental pollution resulting from human activity’ (EEA, 2020a). The report highlights how the quality of Europe’s environment plays a key role in determining our health and wellbeing. There will, however, need to be a clear focus on implementing the various aspects of the European Green Deal to resolve the issues identified. In addition, we need to continue to make information more easily available to allow individuals to make informed decisions about protecting their health and the environment. Individual action is also important to protect citizens and households from avoidable health consequences linked to the environment (such as radon testing and building design, testing of private wells used for drinking water, septic tank maintenance and using cleaner choices of fuel for home heating). Exposure to radon results in an estimated 300 cases of lung cancer in Ireland each year; research has shown that better building practices have resulted in a 13 per cent reduction in the average radon concentration in Irish homes and that stronger regulation is the most effective way of protecting the population from radon exposure (Chapter 14). 436