It’s crazy to think that it’s been a year since the COVID-19 pandemic took the world by storm. As we shifted to Zoom meetings and grew accustomed to the idea of staying home, it’s been a challenging year for everyone. But how has our change in behavior affected the environment? From a decrease in travel to an increase in mask consumption, we have a lot to account for over this past year. By exploring the positive and negative consequences of the pandemic, we can understand how to be more environmentally-conscious as normal life resumes.
- Decrease in Air Pollution
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In March 2020, as the world went into lockdown and people stopped travelling, the pollution produced by public transportation — namely cars, buses, trains, airplanes — decreased drastically. NASA researchers found that “since February, pandemic restrictions have reduced global nitrogen dioxide concentrations by nearly 20%.“
When emitted into the atmosphere, the mixing of NO2 and NOx with water forms acid rain. Furthermore, mixing NO2 and NOx with other chemicals in the air form ozone and particulate matter. Air with high NO2 concentration can contribute to “respiratory diseases, particularly asthma…coughing, wheezing, or difficulty breathing.”
Despite this significant decrease in air pollution and an overall improvement in air quality, in China, data from the Copernicus Sentinel-5P satellite shows the average level of air pollutants resurfacing. Offering a preview of what the rest of the world will look like, there is much cause for concern as we return to normalcy.
- Improved Water Quality amid COVID-19
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Though most likely short-lived and localized, the water quality in some areas improved during the pandemic. In a study from the journal Science of the Total Environment, the authors present satellite data to show the decrease of pollutants both in the Vembanad Lake (India) and in San Francisco Bay. This has been attributed to the reduction of traffic and travel. The degradation of water quality pre-COVID through overexposure to NO2 and other chemicals and nutrients “caused excessive algae growth. Algae decomposition consumes oxygen, leaving water without oxygen to consume life.”
- Increase of plastic waste from Personal Protection Equipment (PPE)
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To prevent the spread of COVID-19, masks, gloves, hand sanitizer and other PPE products quickly became must-haves. However, single-use PPE products and plastic have proven to be an environmental hazard if not disposed of correctly. Though the problem of plastic waste has been an ongoing issue, seeing PPE waste in the ocean and on the streets is disheartening because it is a danger to both humans and animals. Exposure to used masks can further spread the virus, and animals cannot differentiate food from waste so they consume PPEs and they then risk choking on them. While using washable face masks and multi-use PPE products are effective for reducing this environmental threat, it’s important to consistently wash masks and other multi-use PPE products to prevent the further spreading of the virus.
- COVID-19 highlights the link between disease and nature
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The pandemic has emphasized how human behavior influences disease outbreaks. Looking back to past viruses, we see how nature acts as a buffer between humans and disease. For example, in the Amazon, deforestation increases malaria rates because rainforests are inhabited by mosquitos. Exploiting wildlife through behaviors such as hunting, trade, deforestation and urbanization enable humans and animals to be in close contact. A study from the journal Proceedings of the Royal Society B (published April 8th, 2020) found that increased human and animal contact leads to declines in wildlife populations and virus spillover. Domestic and wild animals — bats, rodents, livestock, primates — are more likely to expose infectious viruses to us.
As we resume our normal lives post-COVID, our pre-COVID behaviors will likely resume as pollution emissions increase and businesses/factories open back up. So is that it? Are we just going to revert back to our old behaviors that destroy the environment?
We don’t have to go back to how things were; instead, we should rethink our daily routines. Whether it be changing your mode of transportation or using multi-use masks, there’s a lot we can do to be more environmentally-conscious. Remember that even the smallest of actions can have the biggest impact when it comes to keeping our world healthy.