Managing the global threat of COVID-19 has required the ongoing collaboration of politicians, scientists, medical practitioners and civilians.
This collaboration needs to be applied to addressing another health emergency - the global threat of climate change.
Disturbingly, this is not the case.
The Hunter was visited last week by the Prime Minister, Scott Morrison, who is pushing for a gas-fired power plant in the region, using a pipeline from Queensland to transport the gas.
He also announced an East Coast Gas Hub with Newcastle as an export port for more gas projects throughout the nation.
The announcements follow recent changes to the Clean Energy Finance Corporation, the government-owned clean energy bank. The aim of this seems to be a cynical attempt to define gas-fired power as a "low-emissions technology" and to use taxpayers' money to invest in polluting gas projects.
The federal government recently also pushed through a bill in the lower house to amend Australia's environment laws, clearing the path for the gas industry to fast-track a spate of fossil fuel projects.
With Australia already experiencing record rates of species extinction, it is imperative we toughen our environmental protection laws, not weaken them.
Without a healthy, bio-diverse environment, you cannot have healthy people.
All these developments are bad news for our chance of a healthy future.
We must act decisively and reduce our dependency on fossil fuels such as gas - quickly.
Gas is not a transition fuel. In fact, it's a known health hazard.
As a doctor in Newcastle, I'm aware of the impacts of gas mining on rural communities.
They experience an increase in adverse health effects, including stress and anxiety due to the deterioration in the environment.
There's also the impact on local environments, which has a knock-on effect on health.
Gas mining in the Great Artesian Basin, as proposed in the controversial Narrabri Gas Project, should be unacceptable as it risks precious groundwater supplies. Farmers near gas developments cannot get their property insured against the potential damage from coal seam gas.
The mining, transportation and storage of gas, which releases methane - a potent greenhouse gas 86 times worse than carbon dioxide over 20 years - is a major driver of climate change.
We know that the impacts of climate change - extreme heat, bushfires, air pollution and flooding - have a disastrous effect on human health.
Just this year we've seen more unnecessary deaths as a result of the catastrophic summer of bushfires. At least 33 people died from the bushfires, and more than 400 deaths may be attributable to the bushfire smoke.
In the Hunter, there were 624 emergency presentations for breathing and asthma related conditions in December, a 25 per cent rise on the five year average. The fires also resulted in a catastrophic loss of forest and billions of native animals.
There is no room for further expansion of the gas industry if we are to keep climate change in a safe range that is compatible with a healthy human existence.
There is no room for further expansion of the gas industry if we are to keep climate change in a safe range that is compatible with a healthy human existence.
On health grounds alone, any new gas projects should be rejected.
Solar and wind will give us a clean and secure energy supply, provide much needed employment in regional areas and build resilient communities, which will be crucial as the impact of global warming increases.
Mr Morrison says "renewables don't need investment, they need integration". Let's then pursue a vision powered by clean energy - and in our region.
Engineers at the University of Newcastle have pioneered a form of storing energy from renewables in thermal blocks that could then be used in power production.
Why use millions of taxpayers' money to prop up a failing fossil fuel industry, such as gas, which is damaging the environment and our health?
Like COVID-19, there is no "cure" for climate change.
Collaborative action to mitigate its effects needs to be our main priority.
Now is the time for each of us to let our government know that we want them to leave gas and other polluting fossil fuels in the ground and invest in clean energy for the sake of our health.
As the old saying goes, an ounce of protection is worth a pound of cure.
Dr Jane Morgan is a Newcastle GP and a member of Doctors for the Environment Australia
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