Impact of climate change on water-associated infectious diseases

Abstract

The relation between climate change and water-associated infectious diseases has become much more visible in recent times. Climatic changes are dealt with complex interactions among interconnected components of hydrological cycle such as atmosphere, biosphere, and geosphere. Extreme weather conditions such as storms may pollute the recreational coastal waters enhancing the risk of gastroenteritis and other water-associated infectious diseases. The contamination of drinking water is a prominent source of spreading water-associated infectious diseases during extreme water-related weather events. The water treatment plant system may get compromised due to heavy rainfalls insinuating infiltration of oocysts of cryptosporidium in drinking water reservoirs and remain persistent in water distribution system. Weather conditions influence the life cycle of arthropod vectors by affecting the survival rate, reproduction rates, habitat, abundance, and distribution; likewise it also affects the survival rate and proliferation rate of pathogen within the vector.