A week ago, India imposed a nationwide lockdown. All factories, markets, shops, and places of worship have been closed, and most public transport has been suspended. India’s 1.3 billion citizens have been asked to stay home and practice social distancing. Not only has the shutdown affected the spread of the virus, but it has also made a dramatic impact on pollution in India. In the capital of New Delhi, government data shows that the average concentration of PM 2.5, a harmful microscopic particulate matter, dropped by 71% in a week after the shutdown. Nitrogen dioxide levels also dropped from 52 per cubic meter to 15 - a 71% decline as well. "I have not seen such blue skies in Delhi for the past 10 years," said Jyoti Pande Lavakare, the co-founder of Indian environmental organization Care for Air, “It is a silver lining in terms of this awful crisis that we can step outside and breathe."
There have been similar impacts on Europe and China from the lockdowns, as industries and transportation has come to a halt.
With nations around the world having a similar problem with both the coronavirus and pollution, is a shutdown a viable solution to the pollution problem?
Even after the outbreak is contained, do you think that these nations will continue to reduce their emissions?
What policies/solutions can be enforced to continue to reduce the amount of pollution?
While the shutdowns that countries such as India and China have put into effect have proved to be extremely beneficial in fixing pollution levels and clearing up the air and atmosphere more and more, there is no way that this can be a long term solution as countries will eventually need to go back to production and industry once the virus can be contained, most likely even ramping up the production to made up for the time and money lost. I would hope that through observing the drastic changes to the air and environment that countries would realize how beneficial it is to lower emissions and focus on clean energy, but I think the immediate concern for most will be rebuilding the economy quickly. Some policies that may be able to help reduce emissions and control carbon output are clean energy cars being a requirement from now on. It may take some time but shifting cars into entirely electric or hybrid from now in the manufacturing industry would allow people only to buy these types of cars and not those reliant on gas. Also, factory shutdown can be investigated if alternative power sources could be provided instead.
ReplyDeleteI agree, the shutdown's effect on pollution levels is definitely not a possible long term solution. It is more of a "silver lining" to the situation, I think. Once countries go back to "normal" production after rebuilding the economy, I can imagine policies more likely to taking effect in reducing emissions and controlling carbon output, as people will have more of an idea of the effects the action will result in.
DeleteDespite the fact that the lock downs have been beneficial to reducing pollution, it is unsustainable in the long run. If states is used to combat pollution, the poor and struggling would struggle even more. This is especially true in the case of India, where two-thirds of the population lives in poverty. Instead, long term solutions need to be put in place in order to eliminate the carbon emissions that are causing pollution, all while keeping the economy healthy.
ReplyDeleteA complete shutdown should not be a viable solution to solving global warming. It is incredible how quickly the atmosphere is being affected positively by the shutdowns, but any solution that requires the loss of jobs and livelihoods should not be on the table. Hopefully countries can come back after this whole event passes, with a new understanding of both the environment and public safety and come together to cause real change for the future. If after all this everything just returns to "normal" then the us as people should take action calling out the actions that led us into this whole crisis in the first place.
ReplyDeleteWhile the shutdown is showing us how much of an impact human activity has on the environment, a shutdown wouldn't be the best option to combat it as it is immensely inconvenient for millions. I think that we now have a real life example of how much of an impact we can make by lowering our emissions, many nations will take action to try to reduce their carbon footprint.
ReplyDeleteI don' think shutdowns are the best method of shutdown in the long-term. They are veer good in the short-term and work very well but then unemployment will go up, people will not have enough money for essentials, and the economy will eventually completely crash. A better method is to have a shelter-in-place and implement social distancing, very similar to what we have done here in California. I feel like the countries will try to continue to reduce their carbon footprint but they will not be able to do so as well as before. In this case, everything has been shutdown and no pollution is being created. This is just not viable and will not occur after everyone goes back to the factories. However, there will definitely be a push for keeping the levels as low as we have them now.
ReplyDeleteWhile long-term shutdowns are obviously unsustainable, it's pretty incredible how quickly the environment changes after we make relatively simple changes to our lifestyles. I really hope that nations continue to reduce their emissions even after the crisis is over, but I honestly don't believe that'll be the case. Most countries will probably just focus on getting their economies back up, regardless of what harmful effects it might have. However, these global shutdowns have at least shown people how huge of an impact we have on our planet.
ReplyDeleteA complete shutdown would be a highly unsustainable solution for pollution problems. Everything comes with a price, and the decrease in pollution's consequence is that industries and such are ceasing. As a result, many people are unemployed right now; thus, the quality of life is declining as well. New problems, such as poverty, would arise in return. As social creatures, humans are meant to interact with each other, being confined for a long period of time would only make one miserable and discontent, hence causing uprisings. I think that after the outbreak nations would be inspired to try and continue reduce emissions, but at a steady decrease. Because they are aware that "clear skies" is possible, it can motivate them to sustain it in environmental friendly means.
ReplyDeleteHonestly, this is not a viable solution for pollution or climate change because during this shutdown many people are struggling and can't keep living like this. Although it is a bright side of what's happening, there is no way for us to stay as contained as we are right now. Hopefully, nations will continue to reduce their emissions, even if a complete shutdown is not possible
ReplyDeleteThe shutdown is definitely not a solution for pollution or climate change. For one, the economies of every country are taking huge hits and GDPs are crashing. After this corona virus blows over, they will increase their production and increase the amount of greenhouse gases emitted into the air. Shutdowns and social isolation shouldn't have to be a solution for anything but drastic times call for drastic measures. I hope that seeing the decrease in greenhouse gases will motivate countries to pursue more viable climate change solutions.
ReplyDeleteAfter the outbreak is contained, we'll probably go back to slightly reduced emissions levels. People will be used to generating less waste/carbon dioxide and will likely retain some of those processes, but the vast majority of vehicles and transportation will go back to normal. So after the outbreak is contained carbon emissions will become slightly reduced from the normal amount.
ReplyDeleteWith nations around the world having a similar problem with both the coronavirus and pollution, a shutdown is a viable solution to the pollution problem as emissions have dropped by continuously since quarantine. However, even after the outbreak is contained, I think that these nations will attempt to continue to reduce their emissions but it is unlikely as people will continue their daily routines prior to the outbreak so emissions will most likely rise again.
ReplyDeleteWhile greenhouse gas emissions have been lowered due to the coronavirus situation, this is only a temporary solution to the suffocating problem of global warming. Once the quarantine period is done and more cars are freely roaming, emissions will increase drastically -- nations will stop at no cost to industrialize more and more for their own sake. Policies that could be enforced would be airlines continuing to halve their emissions, renewable energy, regulations, etc.
ReplyDeleteA shutdown is not a sustainable solution to the pollution problem, as people are losing jobs, and the efficiency of work is going down. And while emissions may go down because of people realizing how the coronavirus helped with that, they will not stay down for long, as the economy has to continue, which will not be beneficial to the health of the environment.
ReplyDeleteI dont think these nations will continue their restriction on air pollution like this after this pandemic is over. This is causing a crash in the economy and a poor country like india depends on emissions like this to grow their economy. I think restrictions will be put in place but I dont think it will be like during this time or their economy couldn't handle that
ReplyDeleteOnce the outbreak is contained, businesses and industry will resume, and thus, the level of pollution will go up; it is not as profitable for these enterprises to respect the environment and restrict their emissions. Truly, the shutdown of industry is very telling of how much human beings are severely impacting the environment around them for the worse. After the pandemic, governments should place restrictions on businesses and industries through carbon taxes and such to aid in the reduction of air pollution.
ReplyDeleteUnless preventative measures are put into place immediately to help continue the reduced levels of pollution, I don’t think that it will continue. With the positive effect of on the climate comes the negative effect on the economy. Many people are suffering because of the shut down of industry. So, when the “all clear” is given to return to industrial jobs people will go out of necessity. Although I am sure the citizens of India see this very positive change, and many probably want to continue this improved style of living, I think providing for themselves and their family will take priority over the environment, especially after this financially challenging time. However, having said that, I think that seeing what it could be like, environmental organizations will start to work towards this goal. Experiencing such a big change shows that is possible to live a better quality of life and will make people want it more than before.
ReplyDeleteAlthough lockdowns across the world are decreasing pollution in those places, this does not seem like a viable solution to the pollution crisis as a whole. It is just not sustainable to maintain a national lockdown. However, this can be a proof of principle that it is possible to make quick and effective improvements and impacts on the pollution each country has, so this data on pollution and the lockdown should encourage countries to take extensive manners to limit pollution and create many regulations preventing pollution from continuing to get out of hand.
ReplyDeleteI do think that the shutdown is a viable solution to the pollution issue since everyone is staying at home and not going outside in their cars or using public transportation such as buses or trains less pollution is released into the air. This creates cleaner air for countries and the world.I do believe that even after this outbreak is contained that every country will compare their air to what it was like during quarantine, and will continue to reduce their emissions.
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ReplyDeleteAs we know obviously the shut down was because of COVID-19 and not because of pollution but I think that the fact that the shut down helped bring pollution down is the silver lining to the current Covid problem. I think these nations will not be able to reduce emissions after the shutdown is lifted and Covid is relatively gone because obviously it’s very hard to keep the whole country indoors and keep businesses closed when there is no reason for them to be closed or shut down.  I think some policies should be put in place that depict how important it actually is for the planet to be healthy and some policies that are similar to what we have now on the lockdown but less extreme
ReplyDeleteI believe that sars-cov-2 will have a long lasting impact on international pollution and the environment. Although industry will eventually return to pre-virus normals, it is unlikely that we will see such high levels of pollution as before. The lingering presence of the virus will ensure that society continues at a slow pace, with many employees and students working from home. It is also likely that travel will be affected for the next few years, greatly reducing greenhouse gas emissions on its own. I hope that these factors matched with the greater number of people enjoying nature will lead to more environmental awareness.
ReplyDeleteI think that shut down is definetley the best option for a country going thrrough any of these problems especially right now. The virus spreads like crazy so we want to insure that people are protected to the maximum ability. I think we see a big step in climate change too, as places are becoming clearer and clearer in the sky.
ReplyDeleteThe shutdown has definitely improved the air in many countries. This shutdown has helped lessen the amount of cases in the world. We can only hope that they will continue to lessen the amount of carbon dioxide released. I think that mass factories should be shut down for a few days during the month to help reduce the amount of carbon dioxide released.
ReplyDeleteI think that the science of climate change is now undeniable and countries will be motivated to improve their environmental impact for the better
ReplyDeleteI think that the pollution and the air quality getting better is not a desired outcome of lockdown, purely that it is a silver lining to this terrible pandemic. I think that most nations are trying to reduce their emissions and will continue to do so after lockdown. I don't think that the COVID-19 virus changed much in the way of trying to reduce our carbon emissions. If anything, it showed us how much better it is and that it is possible.
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