Environmental disasters are increasing in prevalence and severity, and as a result, seriously impact the public’s mental health. What do organizations need to know to address this issue? Weather and climate, among other things, can cause environmental disasters such as wildfires, floods, earthquakes, landslides and droughts. A disaster occurs when a serious disruption to a community’s functioning is due to a cause that exceeds the community’s capacity to cope, Patrick Baillie, Ph.D., LL.B., psychologist and lawyer with the Calgary Police Service said during a virtual conference session on environmental disasters and mental health. Learn more about the relationship between mental health and environmental disasters including who is impacted, how people react, impact on the workforce and what employers can do to support communities and individuals.

Environmental disasters are often associated with trauma. Baillie explained the difference between primary and secondary traumas as follows.

• Primary trauma refers to direct, personal experience of a traumatic event.
• Secondary trauma or vicarious trauma refers to indirect experience of a traumatic event (e.g., learning about the event from a survivor or the media, being involved in the event after it has concluded) and may include first responders, family and friends, and broader communities.

Primary and secondary trauma reactions can vary. The five-step stress response in the article Natural Disasters and Mental Health published by Sy Atezaz Saeed and Steven P. Gargano in the International Review of Psychiatry (February 2022) is helpful to begin to understand the potential short and long term impact on individuals.

1. Immediate stress is fear about one’s own health, job, support systems and about the well-being of others
2. Symptomatic stress is difficulty with sleep and/or changes in diet that lead to to health challenges.
3. The external stressor (i.e, disaster) leads to a recurrence of an existing mental health problem.
4. The external stressor brings on a first-time mental health episode (in those who are genetically predisposed)
5. Ongoing stress-related problems (e.g., post-traumatic stress disorder, anxiety, depression)

The most common mental health consequences of environmental disasters are PTSD depression, anxiety, substance use problems, suicide, grief, guilt, fatigue and stress, according to Baillie’s presentation. PTSD is linked to suicide, substance misuse, depression, anxiety, aggression, interpersonal conflicts and job-related difficulties, Baillie added.

Besides mental health issues, the increased frequency and severity of extreme weather events impact the workforce directly in other ways.

• Immediate direct impacts include physical injury, loss of life, loss and damage to infrastructure, homes or nature, damage to agricultural land and air pollution.
• Longer term direct impacts include conflict and violence, forced migration, community breakdown, worsened physical health, loss of livelihood, disruption to health systems, food and water supplies.

How to Support Those Affected by Environmental Disasters

Highlights of supports at the community and individual level include the following.

Interventions to support the community:

• Supporting Indigenous-led information and the sharing of lived experiences.
• Supporting vulnerable populations by providing evidence based culturally sensitive mental health resources. (Note, what makes populations more vulnerable is poverty, low socioeconomic status, being non-White, and ages 40-60.)
• Preparing for and ensuring equitable distribution of support resources after a disaster.
• Enhancing access to green spaces.

Interventions to support the individual:

• Conducting assessments of individual needs (e.g., what does that individual want, what resources they have already accessed, what’s working and what’s not working for them)
• Encouraging the development of a safety plan including evacuation, plans to communicate without internet/phone service and preparing a go-bag.
• Having access to trauma-specific mental health treatments provided by people who are trained in evidence-based treatments (e.g., cognitive behavioral therapy, eye movement desensitization and reprocessing (EMDR), accelerated resolution therapy (ART))
• Developing peer support networks

What Employers Can Do as Environmental Stewards

• Model climate conscious behaviors
  • Consider the volume of printing, temperature regulation in the offices, use of AC and heat appropriately
  • Engage employees and stakeholders to promote sustainability and collective action.
• Consider sustainable transportation and logistics (e.g., converting to electric)
• Design for energy efficiency and alternative energies on any new construction projects.
• Consider online meetings to reduce travel
• Promote getting outdoors and enjoying green spaces. More and more doctors are prescribing get outdoors.
• “More and more benefits providers are identifying the value in allowing time and some resources to get outside and enjoy the green space,” Baillie said.
  • Learn more on nature as a source of numerous health and wellness benefits, including increased immune function and cardiovascular health, improved mood and sleep quality, and lower symptoms of depression and anxiety.

Climate Anxiety and Mental Health

Pre-traumatic stress or eco anxiety refers to worry about what may happen in the future because of the changing climate. “We are seeing increasing referrals of folks who are getting the message about climate change and who wish to be able to do something to address it and are struggling when they see the forces that are resisting some of those changes,” Baillie said. When asked how to support employees experiencing eco anxiety, Baillie recommended that employers provide mental health resources so employees can to learn how to deal with anxiety in the moment. Coping skills include positive self-talk, focusing on what’s in their control, imagery, goal setting and breathing.

Final Thoughts

Employers want their employees to be healthy, engaged and working, Baille concluded, and suggested that employers think about accommodations to allow impacted employees to engage in meaningful work (e.g., hybrid work) in the aftermath of an environmental disaster.