When a 1991 cholera outbreak that killed thousands in Peru was traced to plankton blooms fueled by warmer-than-usual coastal waters, linking disease outbreaks to epidemics was a new idea.

Now, scientists say, it is a near-certainty that global warming will drive significant increases in waterborne diseases around the world.

Rainfalls will be heavier, triggering sewage overflows, contaminating drinking water and endangering beachgoers. Higher lake and ocean temperatures will cause bacteria, parasites and algal blooms to flourish. Warmer weather and heavier rains also will mean more mosquitoes. Fresh produce and shellfish are more likely to become contaminated.

“It will be the next few years. This is not 20 years away.”

[Read](http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/10/19/AR2008101901533.html?nav=rss_nation/science “Read the Article”) (Washington Post)