Environmental and occupational health have been recognized in recent years as critical problems in developing nations (Ezzati 2006, Moe and Rheingans 2006). Among the most important environmental problems are air pollution (both indoor and outdoor)(Xianglu and Naeher 2006, Naeher et al. 2007, Martin et al. 2011) and water pollution (microbes, heavy metals, and pesticides) (Prüss et al. 2002, WHO 2011). The new challenges presented by global climate change are also increasingly becoming an environmental health priority (Confalonieri et al. 2007).
Chile, with just over 300,000 square miles, is twice the size of California, and has a population of roughly 16 million. About 85% of the population lives in urban areas, including six million in Santiago, the capital city. The work force is approximately eight million, of which one third works in the service sector and government, one third in industry and commerce, and smaller fractions in agriculture, forestry, fishing, construction, and mining. Chile is classified as a middle income country by the World Bank. It has one of South America’s healthier economies, with a gross domestic product per capitaof $14,000 and an annual real growth rate of 6% during the last decade.
Chile has one of the stronger economies in Latin America, providing a good infrastructure for environmental health research. However, its strong growth in the last two decades has been accompanied by uneven attention to the environment, so that there are important environmental problems to be addressed, Environmental health problems cover a broad spectrum of issues, including air and water pollution, agricultural health, pesticides, and occupational health. While we have expertise in all of these areas, and all of these subjects may be included as part of a future GeoHealth Hub, for the purposes of this planning grant we focus on three areas of environmental health in particular: outdoor/indoor air pollution, water contamination, and climate change.
