Reducing pollution from the pharmaceutical and agricultural sectors is key to fighting the proliferation of drug-resistant superbugs, which could kill 10 million people a year by 2050, the UN warned last week.
There is increasing evidence that the environment plays a key role in the "development, transmission and spread" of antimicrobial resistance (AMR), the report by the UN Environment Department said.
This resistance occurs when microorganisms such as bacteria, viruses, parasites or fungi become resistant to antimicrobial treatments to which they were previously susceptible. Antibiotic resistance is seen as a threat by the World Health Organisation (WHO), which fears the world is heading towards an era in which common infections can start killing again.
A silent pandemic
An estimated 1.27 million deaths were directly attributed to drug-resistant infections in 2019, according to the UN. By 2050, up to 10 million additional direct deaths could occur each year.
This resistance is driven by the misuse of antibiotics but the UN blames other factors less frequently highlighted: it is "closely linked to the triple global crisis of climate change, loss of biodiversity and nature, as well as pollution and waste".
Pollution, particularly related to the pharmaceutical industry and agriculture, allows antimicrobials to enter the environment, specifically through rivers. "This is a real problem because rivers are often the source of our drinking water," microbiologist Jonathan Cox of Britain's Aston University, who was not involved in the UN report, told AFP.
"This is already a silent pandemic," he said. For its part, the United Nations is putting forward a set of solutions, targeted at the sectors that contribute to the problem.
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The pharmaceutical industry has been encouraged by the UN to "ensure adequate containment and treatment of waste and wastewater", with a general strengthening of the regulatory framework. Hospitals should also install specific wastewater treatment systems and ensure the disposal of medicines, experts say.
In agriculture, for example, it is suggested to "reassess antimicrobial limits" and "reduce discharges" to protect waterways.
