The health and well-being of Canadians could be greatly improved by adopting some of the environmental health approaches taken in Australia, Sweden and California, according to a Conference Board of Canada report, Critical Steps for Canada: Environmental Health Lessons Across Borders.
"Canadians are concerned about the effects of the environment on their health, and calls for action to address environmental health in Canada have come from many individuals and groups," said Diana MacKay, Director, Education and Health. "Governments in Sweden, Australia and California have made environmental health a priority and use a variety of levers - including legislation and regulation, strategies and targets, and education - to address their environmental health challenges.
"The efforts in Australia, Sweden and California demonstrate that leadership and coordinated action are critical steps to address these concerns."
Environmental health issues are extremely complex and typically have not received sufficient attention in Canada, although positive steps have been taken in recent years, such as improvements in monitoring air and water quality. The current estimate of the environmental burden of disease in Canada (the portion of preventable disease attributable to the environment) is 13 per cent - significant enough to warrant action.
Canada can learn the following lessons from each of the three jurisdictions studied in this report: