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– “Cradle to Grave” Report Links Fossil Fuels to Disease, Inequality & Environmental Harm
– Report Unmasks Up to $7 Trillion in Subsidy-Backed Damage & Persistent Health Impacts
– Experts Demand Phase-Out of Oil, Gas & Coal to Protect Vulnerable Communities
A new global report titled *“Cradle to Grave: The Health Toll of Fossil Fuels and the Imperative for a Just Transition”, released on 16 September 2025 by the Global Climate and Health Alliance (GCHA), reveals the comprehensive and severe health damages caused by fossil fuels—right from extraction through to disposal. The findings highlight impacts across all stages of life, from fetal development through old age, citing increased risks of miscarriages, childhood leukemia, asthma, cancer, strokes, and mental health issues. The report also stresses that these harms are not evenly distributed: marginalized, low-income, and frontline communities suffer most, both across and within nations.
One of the more alarming aspects is the scale of fossil fuel subsidies—estimated at around US $7 trillion when accounting for both explicit support (tax breaks, price caps) and implicit costs (health, environmental, and social damages) that are usually unpriced in national accounts. The report urges immediate policy shifts: stopping approvals for new oil, gas, and coal projects, phasing out existing ones, and redirecting subsidies into clean energy, public health systems, and aiding communities bearing the worst impact. Clean, affordable renewable energy is framed not just as a climate or environmental goal, but as a necessary public health intervention.