A World Revitalised

Leanne Elliott and Jayme Zimmermann investigate how the pandemic lockdown has positively affected the environment globally.

With COVID-19 causing a global lockdown, mother nature has been rejuvenated. Water and air quality have drastically improved, and many species of animals are returning to local environments now that the human population is remaining indoors due to isolation. Could this pandemic just be what our environment needed for us to wake up and realise how we as people majorly damage our environment on a daily basis?

Due to tourism coming to a standstill and global lockdowns being rolled out, waterways across the globe have slowly become less polluted. From fewer people, boats and waste being around and in waterways it has allowed for cleaner conditions and more marine wildlife to return to habitats that were for years uninhabitable due to the high levels of pollution.

This was seen majorly in the Venice Canals in Italy.

According to ABC News ‘…since the drastic reduction of water traffic and tourism, residents have observed the usually muddy canals run with sparkling clear water with swarms of fishes and the canal bottom clearly visible. “There are no boats, there is no traffic. Definitely, it is cleaner,” Venice resident Serguei Michtchenko said.’

Italy was one of the major countries affected by COVID-19 with a current estimated 267,000 cases of the virus. The country going into lockdown has allowed nature to flourish, with jellyfish being spotted in the Venice canals for the first time in years.

Similarly, we have witnessed an improvement in air quality, in some cases, air pollution in some areas decreased so much it was detectable by satellite. There is also a suggestion that the lockdowns have reduced visible smog and atmospheric pollutants, such as carbon dioxide, nitrogen oxides, and sulphur dioxide. In India, a place renowned for its extreme air pollution, there are reports of people finally being able to see the Himalayas after years of poor visibility caused by extreme air pollution.

Air pollution has been attributed to millions of deaths each year, with the World Health Organisation (WHO) estimating over 90% of the world’s population breathes polluted air. Moreover, there has been some suggestion that poor air quality may actually be linked to higher COVID-19 cases in some areas, meaning this inadvertent side effect of the lockdowns is definitely one of the more positive things to come out of 2020.

Likewise, a study by the Centre for Research on Energy and Clean Air suggests cleaner air in the UK and parts of Europe as a result of lockdowns has resulted in 11,000 fewer deaths, as well as reducing cases of asthma, respiratory illness, and premature births.

“Air pollution has intensified the pandemic, but the pandemic has — temporarily — cleaned the skies,” says National Geographic’s, Beth Gardener. “[T]he cleaner pandemic skies do show how fast we can bring down pollution when we reduce our burning of fossil fuels.”

With regards to climate, some studies suggest we can expect a minor temperature increase over the next year or so due to the reduction of sulphur dioxide in the atmosphere, which will then be offset by a cooling effect caused by a reduction of nitrogen oxides. But for now, skywatchers from all over the globe are relishing the clearer and bluer skies.

So, this then begs the question. What will happen when restrictions ease and lockdown is over?

Will we try to maintain the current unpolluted environment, or, will things go back the way that they were?

In economic terms, prolonged lockdown is not sustainable, but if anything, it has definitely proven we need to reconsider our relationship with this planet which we call home.

Designs by Xavier Williams