A/HRC/35/13 groundwater resources in most dry subtropical regions. 14 Droughts are expected to intensify, reducing access to water for personal consumption, agriculture and economic activities. Acidification and increasing water temperatures further threaten the fisheries upon which many coastal communities rely for subsistence. 13. Shortages of safe drinking water and food staples will have disproportionate impacts on children, particularly the poor. Children’s consumption needs per body weight are higher than those of adults and food and water scarcity undermines their physical and cognitive growth. 15 Globally, undernutrition is responsible for nearly half of all under-5 deaths and is a major factor exacerbating the frequency and severity of other diseases and infections.16 Inadequate responses to malnourishment during the first two years of life result in irreversible stunting with lifelong consequences for children’s cognitive capacity, school performance and economic productivity. 17 It is estimated that, by 2030, climate change will result in an additional 7.5 million children under the age of 5 who are moderately or severely stunted.18 14. Food and water crises pose additional risks, such as increased incidences of school dropout, child labour and domestic violence. Crop and income loss has been linked to significant increases in the level of child labour used for household chores such as fetching water and searching for firewood. 19 When extreme weather affects the security of household incomes and families increase their reliance on child labour, children have less time and energy to dedicate to school activities. C. Air pollution 15. In 2012, indoor and outdoor air pollution combined were linked to approximately 700,000 deaths among children under 5 years of age. 20 Although air pollution is not caused by climate change, some forms of air pollution cause climate change. Further, climate change can exacerbate some forms of air pollution, for example, by intensifying the toxicity of pollutants, such as ozone, a trigger of childhood asthma. 21 The heightened risk of wildfires associated with heat waves and drought affects air quality and children’s respiratory systems, and warmer temperatures are also linked with the release of airborne allergens that can exacerbate asthma and allergic respiratory diseases.22 Thus, air pollution and climate change contribute to a vicious cycle that disproportionately affects children, who, due to their higher breathing rate, are more susceptible to respiratory problems and infections related to air pollution.23 D. Vector-borne and infectious diseases 16. Children are more susceptible than adults to many vector-borne and infectious diseases. Waterborne diseases typically spread in the aftermath of climate change-related floods and storms, especially when water and sanitation infrastructure is damaged. Poor hygiene and consumption of contaminated water can contribute to increased incidence of diarrhoea and cholera, among other illnesses. Diarrhoea is the second leading cause of 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 Field and others, Climate Change 2014, p. 232. Landrigan and Garg, “Children”, pp. 3-4. UNICEF, “Undernutrition contributes to nearly half of all deaths in children under 5 and is widespread in Asia and Africa”, available at https://data.unicef.org/topic/nutrition/malnutrition/. Cesar G. Victora, and others, “Maternal and child undernutrition: consequences for adult health and human capital”, Lancet, vol. 371, No. 9609 (2008). WHO, Quantitative Risk Assessment of the Effects of Climate Change on Selected Causes of Death, 2030s and 2050s (Geneva, 2014), p. 80. Kathleen Beegle, Rajeev H. Dehejia and Roberta Gatti, “Child labor and agricultural shocks”, Journal of Development Economics, vol. 81, No. 1 (October 2006). WHO, Inheriting a Sustainable World?, p. 16. UNICEF, Unless We Act Now, p. 44. Field and others, Climate Change 2014, p. 729. Landrigan and Garg, “Children”. 5