Impact of climate change on waterborne infections and intoxications

Abstract

Progressive climate change holds the potential for increasing human health risks from waterborne infections and intoxications, e. g. through an increase in pathogen concentrations in water bodies, through the establishment of new pathogens or through possible changes in pathogen properties. This paper presents some examples of potential impacts of climate change in Germany. Non-cholera Vibrio occur naturally in seawater, but can proliferate significantly in shallow water at elevated temperatures. In the case of Legionella, climate change could lead to temporary or longer-term increased incidences of legionellosis due to the combination of warm and wet weather. Higher temperatures in piped cold water or lower temperatures in piped hot water may also create conditions conducive to higher Legionella concentrations. In nutrient-rich water bodies, increased concentrations of toxigenic cyanobacteria may occur as temperatures rise. Heavy rainfall following storms or prolonged periods of heat and drought can lead to increased levels of human pathogenic viruses being washed into water bodies. Rising temperatures also pose a potential threat to human health through pathogens causing mycoses and facultatively pathogenic micro-organisms: increased infection rates with non-tuberculous mycobacteria or fungi have been documented after extreme weather events.

Keywords

• non-cholera vibrio
• legionellosis
• cyanobacteria
• environmental microbes
• viral infections