Thank you very much, Mr. Chair and members of the committee.
Good afternoon. My name is Stephen Samis. I'm director of health policy for the Heart and Stroke Foundation of Canada. I'm also chair of the Chronic Disease Prevention Alliance of Canada, although I'm here today in my capacity with the Heart and Stroke Foundation of Canada.
The Heart and Stroke Foundation of Canada, a volunteer-based health charity, leads in eliminating heart disease and stroke and reduces their impact through the advancement of research, its application, the promotion of healthy living, and advocacy. It was our fiftieth anniversary this year, and in our fifty years, just to note, we've funded about $1 billion in research in this country.
Today I would like to stress the importance of addressing the cardiovascular health effects brought about by air pollution and, by extension, climate change. By reducing air pollution, we can help significantly reduce the burden of death and disability stemming from cardiovascular diseases. The Heart and Stroke Foundation of Canada applauds the efforts by the federal government to address the health and economic burden posed by air pollution and climate change.
As you are no doubt aware, cardiovascular disease inflicts a terrible toll upon Canadians as the leading cause of death in our country. In total, approximately 72,000 Canadians die of heart disease and stroke annually, representing 32% of all deaths. Cardiovascular disease is also the leading cause of both hospitalizations and drug prescriptions, and is responsible for about $18.5 billion dollars annually in direct and indirect costs.
There is strong evidence to support the assertion that air pollution has a serious effect on cardiovascular disease and health. For example, Dr. Stephen Van Eeden, associate professor with the Faculty of Medicine at the University of British Columbia and a Heart and Stroke Foundation-funded researcher, has been conducting studies on how air pollution contributes to heart disease. Air pollution causes an inflammatory process in the lungs that activates blood vessels and ultimately leads to atherosclerosis, which causes plaque to build up in the arteries, increasing risk of heart attack and stroke.
A study by the air health effects division of Health Canada in 2004 estimated conservatively that 6,000 excess deaths in Canada occur each year due to air pollution. That includes both the short- and long-term exposure to air pollution. The American Heart Association estimates that long-term exposure to fine particulate matter in major U.S. cities causes 60,000 deaths each year in the United States. And a study on 65,000 post-menopausal women between 1994 and 1998 in 36 U.S. metropolitan areas was published in the New England Journal of Medicine. That study concluded that long-term exposure to fine particulate air pollution was directly associated with the incidence of cardiovascular disease and death among these women in the study.
High levels of pollution have also been associated with acute myocardial infarctions. In other words, pollution not only contributes to the development of underlying cardiovascular disease and other health problems over the long term; it has also been shown to lead to increases in the number of acute myocardial infarctions—or heart attacks—whenever pollution levels are particularly high.
Given the above evidence and the clear links between air pollution and cardiovascular disease, the Heart and Stroke Foundation of Canada is pleased that Bill C-30 is proposing to take a concerted approach to reducing air pollution in Canada. The foundation seeks to impress upon this legislative committee the immediate and ongoing effects of air pollution, specifically of fine particulate matter, on cardiovascular health.
In addition, the foundation would like to make several general recommendations to the committee. First, the Heart and Stroke Foundation of Canada would like to express its support for the amendments that make specific reference to health as affected by pollution. The requirement for the Minister of Health to conduct studies on the role of pollution in health is viewed very positively, as is the clause that recognizes that air pollutants and greenhouse gases represent risks to both health and the environment.
Second, it should be stressed that unlike climate change, which is a problem of mainly long-term scope, the effects of air pollution on health are immediate and costly. As a result, the Heart and Stroke Foundation of Canada supports the recommendation of the Canadian Lung Association, that the bill clearly separate air pollutants from greenhouse gases.
Third, the Heart and Stroke Foundation recommends the adoption of achievable and significant short-, medium-, and long-term goals to reduce air pollution.
Fourth, the Heart and Stoke Foundation supports several of the Canadian Lung Association's recommendations, specifically the following: targets for fixed caps on emissions, rather than intensity-based targets, with the timelines for these to be outlined and tightened as much as possible; that the federal government embrace aggressive goals that will result in early real reductions in both air pollutants and greenhouse gases, and that these goals be tailored to each separately; and with respect to accountability, that the bill designate clear responsibility for compliance and specify the details of when, where, and how monitoring will be conducted. The bill should specify reporting deadlines and the requirement for public engagement in the process.
Fifth, while not addressed specifically in Bill C-30, the Heart and Stroke Foundation would like to point out the importance of built environments with respect to pollution, climate change, and health. The topic of the built environment is one in which the foundation has been deeply involved and very active lately. Briefly, built environments that emphasize active transportation and public transit use have the potential to create extremely positive effects for both health and the environment simultaneously. For example, a recent study conducted in King County, Washington, which includes the city of Seattle, found that a 5% increase in the walkability of neighbourhoods was associated with a 6.5% decrease in driving and a 5.5% decrease in pollution. These relationships are inextricably linked. In short, reducing auto dependency helps to promote physical activity and, ultimately, reduced air pollution.
In sum, improvements to the built environment and increased federal funding for infrastructure that promotes healthy, active living will decrease air pollution and prevent deaths in Canada. Among the actions the federal government could take to address air pollution are enhancing federal investments in intra- and inter-city transportation—for example, providing funding for emissions-reduced public transit systems in our cities and for improved inter-city passenger rail service, particularly in busy corridors such as the Windsor–Quebec City corridor and Calgary–Edmonton.
In conclusion, the Heart and Stroke Foundation of Canada would like to stress the importance of taking a broad view with respect to Bill C-30 and of giving serious consideration to the health effects of air pollution, both short- and long-term. The regulations proposed in Bill C-30 have the potential to not only reduce air pollution in the interests of climate change, but also to have significant positive effects on the health of Canadians, including their cardiovascular health, and particularly those Canadians living in our largest metropolitan areas.
Thank you.