Scientists: Warming Climate Could Increase Risk Of Arctic ‘Virus Spillover'

story
Image copyright: AFB [via Aljazeera]

The Facts

  • According to research published on Wednesday, water from melting glaciers is bringing viruses into contact with new hosts, increasing the risk of "virus spillover" into new populations.

  • A group of Canadian researchers cleared snow and drilled through two meters of ice to sample soil from a riverbed of melted glacier water in the Arctic Circle.

Show more

The Spin

Narrative A

Climate change is generating a plethora of threats to our species and this study is one of the latest to confirm what we all know — global warming is creating more and more issues for every living thing on earth, including human beings. Viral spillover and the destruction of habitats are likely to increase the risk of a pandemic in the future — we need to take urgent action to tackle this crisis and curtail climate change related threats.

ScienceAlert

Narrative B

Climate and environmental disasters have been predicted by modern-day doomsayers for decades. None of the apocalyptic predictions have come true so far; why would this time be any different?

Competitive Enterprise Institute

Metaculus Prediction