COVID & THE ENVIRONMENT

COVID-19 has brought about a new normal for us all. We are learning to adjust to wearing masks, social distancing, and using Zoom to communicate to those closest to us and unfortunately for some, our coworkers. But, what has this new way of life meant for the world around us? How has our environment responded to this new and crazy series of events?

What’s going on?

Well, first of all, satellite images have shown significant decreases in air pollution. This drop is due in large part to areas in the world that have placed restrictions preventing travel in certain regions and limiting unnecessary trips outside of the home.

Transportation, particularly in cars and planes, is a significant contributor to carbon emissions, so with less to do and fewer places to go right now, our CO2 output is experiencing a bit of a decline. With this decline, air pollution has gone way down, waters are clearing up, and some forms of wildlife are taking this opportunity to enjoy the quiet.

What’s wrong?

Here is the issue. Although we are seeing worldwide dips in pollution now, as our economies reopen, we could be looking at emission increases to pre-pandemic levels or even higher. This is a pattern we have seen before with massive worldwide events. For example, CO2 levels experienced a measurable drop after the financial crisis in 2008, only to rise as the economy began to recover. According to the BBC, our atmosphere has also seen dips in greenhouse gases during World War II, the Spanish Flu, the Great Depression, and oil shocks. However, none of these events resulted in the establishment of long-term downward trends for carbon emissions. Our contributions to the climate crisis have consistently been climbing. So, while we are seeing good news right now, we shouldn’t hang our hats just yet.

Also, 2020 was supposed to be a year for world leaders to strategize on how to combat the climate crisis. At the UN’s annual climate summit, just under 200 leaders were set to announce new plans to reach goals set forth by the Paris Agreement. However, this meeting and many others surrounding environmental impacts planned for this year have been canceled. While sea-levels rise, melting ice, pollution, and rising global temperatures are more pressing concerns than ever before, this pandemic has both captured world leaders’ attention and made it more difficult than ever for them to come together on solutions to environmental issues.

Global leaders have also recently been under pressure to end or postpone climate change initiatives in light of recent events. For instance, the EPA has already begun to roll back regulations that would reduce carbon emissions and monitor emissions from businesses if their issues can be attributed to the crisis. The U.S. has also been accompanied by China, Brazil, and other countries in these kinds of actions. And, according to Human Rights Watch, even though it is easy to see why countries would be less stringent with environmental regulations in a time of a global health crisis, these sorts of rollbacks can have both unintentional and disastrous impacts if these measures continue too far into the future.

What’s right?

Here is the good news. People are more open to retaining new habits when going through periods of momentous change. So, it may be possible for us to develop habits such as traveling less and creating less waste due to shortages that could positively impact our carbon footprints in a more sustainable way.

In addition, this time could potentially mark a movement toward cleaner energy. Given the current economic circumstances, some governments have the capability to provide more money in stimulus packages to solar and wind companies and incentivize businesses to cut down emissions. If these sorts of changes are put in place, we could reduce our reliance on fossil fuels for decades to come.

And, we have seen countries promise to ensure environmental quality even during this trying time. Notably, a spokesperson for the European Union confirmed that, even though the virus tops the priority list at the moment, the EU is still very much committed to implementing the European Green Deal, and the climate crisis will still be receiving the attention it deserves.

So, what does this all mean?

If we continue some of these patterns of behavior that we are establishing during this pandemic and are vigilant in our pursuits, we may be able to combat the rise that typically follows moments of international crisis. Keep in mind that we also need to check up on our leadership. Elections are coming up fast, so let your local and state leaders know that you care about our climate. And, make sure to vote. Focus on what you can do. Remember that wasting less and walking more might just be able to lead us into a brighter future.