title: [Trends in environmental risks in the context of the economic crisis. SESPAS report 2014].
abstract: This article aims to analyze the impact of the economic and financial crisis on environmental determinants of health. The World Health Organization estimates that between 13% and 27% of the disease burden in countries could be prevented by improving the environment. These effects are larger in vulnerable populations, especially among the poorest. In the last decade, outdoor air pollution (the most significant environmental health risk in most European countries) has declined, mostly due to the European policy of reducing emissions and to the decrease in activity following the economic crisis. During the last few years, this improvement in air quality has occurred simultaneously with a reduction in investment in environmental protection and could therefore be offset in the medium-term. The economic crisis has not reduced the trend for higher temperatures in Spain and Europe because climate change is a global phenomenon that is not directly related to local emissions. To reduce the risk of an increase in the health impact of environmental factors, certain key aspects should be considered, such as the need to maintain or develop adequate monitoring and control systems and the opportunity to implement policies that help improve the quality of the environment and reduce the vulnerability of different population groups in a cross-disciplinary framework of transparency and citizen participation.
authors.affiliation: Departamento de Enfermería, Universitat de València, València, España; Área de Investigación en Ambiente y Salud, Fundación para el Fomento de la Investigación Sanitaria y Biomédica de la Comunitat Valenciana (FISABIO)-Salud Pública, València, España; CIBER de Epidemiología y Salud Pública (CIBERESP), España. Electronic address: ballester_fer@gva.es.
authors.forename: Ferran
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Ballester
authors.affiliation: Área de Investigación en Ambiente y Salud, Fundación para el Fomento de la Investigación Sanitaria y Biomédica de la Comunitat Valenciana (FISABIO)-Salud Pública, València, España; CIBER de Epidemiología y Salud Pública (CIBERESP), España.
authors.forename: Sabrina
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Llop
authors.affiliation: Institute of Environmental Assessment and Water Research (IDÆA), Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas (CSIC), Barcelona, España.
authors.forename: Xavier
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Querol
authors.affiliation: Departamento de Enfermería, Universitat de València, València, España; Área de Investigación en Ambiente y Salud, Fundación para el Fomento de la Investigación Sanitaria y Biomédica de la Comunitat Valenciana (FISABIO)-Salud Pública, València, España; CIBER de Epidemiología y Salud Pública (CIBERESP), España.
authors.forename: Ana
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Esplugues
mesh_terms: D057172:Economic Recession; D004777:Environment; D005544:Forecasting; D006304:Health Status; D006801:Humans; D012307:Risk Factors; D013030:Spain
keywords: Air pollution; Ambiente; Cambio climático; Climate change; Contaminación atmosférica; Economics; Economía; Environment; España; Health; Salud; Spain