Environmental impacts of coronavirus crisis, challenges ahead

As the number of coronavirus infections grew exponentially in Europe and North America in March, restrictive public health measures to stave off a worsening pandemic were put in place.

They included stay-at-home orders, which were first issued in Italy and then in rapid succession in most other countries around the world.

With their populations ordered to stay home, schools, offices and factories closed; road traffic circulation dwindled to a minimum, and airlines have reduced scheduled flights by 60% to 95%.

While these developments have inflicted substantial economic and social shocks as global production, consumption and employment levels dropped precipitously, they have also been associated with significant reductions in air pollution and greenhouse emissions.

As a result, air quality levels in the world’s major cities improved dramatically in March and April. Air quality improved largely due to emissions reductions of carbon dioxide (CO2), nitrogen oxides (NOx) and related ozone (O3) formation, and of particulate matter (PM) from factories and road traffic.

During the same period, global air traffic dropped by 60%. Taken together, these emissions reductions have led to a temporary dip in CO2 emissions from their pre-crisis levels, encouraging some to hope that our global society may indeed be able to reduce greenhouse gas emissions substantially over the long term to mitigate impending climate change.

So long as the coronavirus crisis keeps economic activities reduced, emissions will remain relatively low. However, it would be shortsighted to conclude this is a durable environmental improvement as emissions will certainly rise to previous levels when economic activity picks up as the crisis resolves.

Many environmental campaigners are thus demanding that bailout packages for transportation companies and industrial manufacturers include provisions for large emissions reduct

Not all positive

But not all the environmental consequences of the crisis have been positive. Volumes of unrecyclable waste have risen; severe cuts in agricultural and fishery export levels have led to the generation of large quantities of organic waste; maintenance and monitoring of natural ecosystems have been temporarily halted; and tourism activity to natural areas has ceased.

Local waste problems have emerged as many municipalities have suspended their recycling activities over fears of virus propagation in recycling centres.

Food retailers have resumed using plastic bags at checkout points citing health concerns over consumers’ reuse of paper bags. In addition, due to stay-at-home policies, many consumers have increased their consumption of take-away food delivered with single-use packaging.

All these developments have created acute challenges for the waste management industry at a time when they are operating with limited capacity due to the coronavirus crisis.

Many export-oriented producers produce volumes far too large for output to be absorbed in local markets, and thus organic waste levels have mounted substantially.

Because this waste is left to decay, levels of methane (CH4) emissions, a greenhouse gas, from decaying produce are expected to rise sharply in the crisis and immediate post-crisis months.

As exports of agricultural and fisheries products have declined, production levels have plummeted, causing unemployment levels in both sectors to grow substantially.

Attention must be given to threats on the environment and natural resource base as a result of the coronavirus pandemic and consequential social and economic impacts.

Helping rural and coastal producers to adapt to crisis market conditions and take actions for improved performance and market niches in post-crisis markets is a top priority.

UNCTAD’s Sustainable Trade and Environment Programme stands ready to assist stakeholders from governments, producer associations, SMEs, MSMEs, independent producers (including women entrepreneurs) and civil society to elaborate immediate coronavirus adaptation and resilience strategies.

Such strategies are expected to be based on enhanced collaboration by affected producers and public support entities in order to adjust to new market realities.

Original source: UNCTAD
Published on 20 April 2020