Inaugural conference on pollution and health highlights the need for interdisciplinary effort

By Bethel Alebel Bayrau

Pollution kills more than 9 million people prematurely each year. Recently, over 140 researchers, educators, industry professionals, policymakers, and community members gathered at Stanford to discuss the health impacts of some of the most dangerous forms of pollution and devise solutions. 

“[Sustainability] is arguably one of the defining challenges of the 21st century,” said Arun Majumdar, dean of the Stanford Doerr School of Sustainability,” during his opening remarks, emphasizing the need for an interdisciplinary approach to solving barriers to sustainability. 

The conference, chaired by Stanford Human and Planetary Health Initiative leaders Desiree LaBeaud, MD, and Steve Luby, MD, was a collaboration among Stanford’s Graduate School of Business, Doerr School of Sustainability, and School of Medicine. It centered around three major sources of pollution and their effects on health: wildfires, plastic, and the coal-fired industry. 

“Pollution is a particular area where we can improve both human and ecological health,” Luby emphasized, iterating the importance of the convening.

“While wildfires, plastic pollution, and air pollution from coal-fired power plants make headlines, we hear less about how they disproportionately affect vulnerable populations,” said Lloyd Minor, MD, dean of the School of Medicine and vice president of Medical Affairs for Stanford University. “We all recognize that addressing climate change is a daunting challenge, but as scientists, researchers, physicians, and academics – we do not shy away from formidable problems.”

The conference also merged art and science, showcasing artwork by Emmy Award-winning artist Chris Evans, which portrayed supply chains from the petroleum industry in Nigeria, lithium from the Congo, and coffee from Guatemala. 

Wildfires

Smoke from wildfires, increasing in frequency and magnitude due to climate change globally, is estimated to be 10 times more toxic than other forms of air pollution.

A panel of experts discussed what is known — and not yet known — about the wide-ranging impacts of wildfires on human health. Lisa Patel, MD, a clinical associate professor in pediatrics, emphasized the need to provide specific public health guidance for particularly vulnerable populations, such as children. She also recommended rethinking the Air Quality Index, a metric used to measure daily air quality, to better account for air pollution and associated health risks. 

The panelists called for research on the long-term effects of both episodic and chronic exposure to wildfire smoke on health. They also emphasized that current recommended health precautions, such as staying at home and wearing masks, can deepen health inequities — as not everyone has the ability to follow them. Therefore, it is vital to implement sustained changes and forest management practices, such as cultural burning from Indigenous and Tribal traditions, to limit wildfires. 

Plastics

Humans produce about 400 million tons of plastic waste every year and are on track to triple that by 2060. About 40% of this comes from single-use plastics and, contrary to popular belief, only 2% of plastic waste is recycled for reuse. Experts emphasized that microplastics can cause harm to almost every organ in the body and can even cross the placenta, causing babies to be born “pre-polluted.”

Margaret Spring, chief conservation and science officer at the Monterey Bay Aquarium, identified the need to reduce plastic production, with single-use plastics as a target for immediate intervention. She stressed the need for a systemic approach to combating plastic pollution that addresses the whole life cycle of plastics. Institutions, including the healthcare industry, have a responsibility to promote a culture of reducing plastic use, invest in technologies that produce truly recyclable materials, and add sustainability metrics to their criteria for success, Spring said. Panelist Fred Briones, CEO of the Native American Fiber Program, offered a perspective from Tribal communities on the economic opportunities of innovative policies and practices that combat plastic waste. 

“We understand a world before plastic,” Briones said, discussing natural alternatives to plastics, such as hemp fiber. “Focusing on human health is going to drive change within the plastic space.”

Coal-fired Industry

Despite its association with asthma, cancer, cardiovascular disease, and neurological problems, coal remains a significant power source worldwide. Speakers on this panel emphasized that exposure to pollutants from coal-fired emissions is associated with almost 2.1 times greater mortality risk than exposure to other sources of air pollution. 

Panelists highlighted the need to present evidence on coal’s health impact to inform policy. Keynote speaker Francesca Dominici, PhD, faculty director of the Harvard Data Science Initiative, called for open-access data platforms that allow researchers to study the health effects of short- and long-term exposures to coal pollution. Industries and companies also need to optimize energy grids and minimize emissions, Dominici said. Academic institutions, such as Stanford, are developing new technologies that help mitigate the harms of pollutants associated with coal-fire smoke, but it’s critical that these technologies are scaled up and made widely accessible. 

“Hopefully from here, we will bring people across disciplines to work together and help solve the pollution and health crisis,” LaBeaud said, concluding the conference.  

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To hear key conference takeaways from Luby and LaBeaud, along with Bill Barnett, PhD, from the Stanford Graduate School of Business, tune into the Pollution and Health Conference episode in the Stanford Initiative on Business and Environmental Sustainability podcast

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