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A Lockdown for Planet Earth: COVID-19 and Climate Change 

By Mrudul Nagapurkar

Everyone knows of the novel coronavirus and its immense economic and social effects. However, there is another phenomenon more pressing than the ongoing pandemic that has rapidly progressed over the past decade: climate change. And surprisingly enough, these two phenomena are more interrelated than ever before.

Within weeks of the worldwide shutdown, factors that worsened climate change, such as air pollution and greenhouse gasses, temporarily decreased. This occurrence allowed environmental scientists to investigate the harm caused by these factors and propose new solutions to combat climate change. Satellite data from multiple space agencies, such as NASA, showed drastic reductions in greenhouse gasses, specifically carbon dioxide and methane, once the shutdown began and how the environment responded to these reductions. Carbon dioxide emissions were reduced by approximately 5.4%, and as a result,  the ocean absorbed less CO2 than it did over the past five decades. This was an unexpectedly rapid response to reduced CO2 pressure in the air above the ocean’s surface. Nitrous oxide levels, which are known to play a vital role in the production of ozone, a well-known pollutant, also dropped.

However, NASA’s satellite measurements also discovered that this decrease in nitrous oxide resulted in decreased production of the hydroxyl radical.The hydroxyl radical is a major oxidant in the troposphere and a key catalyst for ozone decay in the stratosphere and mesosphere. In other words, the hydroxyl radical is essentially the atmosphere's auto-cleansing system. This molecule works to break down more abundant gasses in the atmosphere, such as methane. So, while the decrease in pollutants like carbon dioxide and nitrous oxide was temporarily beneficial, the reduced  production of the hydroxyl radical resulted in long-term effects that were far more harmful.

Several other agencies have researched this ambiguous negative relationship between air pollution, COVID-19, and climate change. A research group in Thailand performed an observational study that describes how air pollution - and through that, climate change - impacts COVID-19 and vice versa. For example, they mentioned that one of the many air pollutants present in the atmosphere, PM2.5, results in “a substantial 11% increased risk of cardiovascular death and hospital admissions” when exposed to the substance over long periods of time.

This trend is also applicable to COVID-19 cases, revealing that COVID-19 indirectly improves air pollution - and consequently, climate change. For example, in various countries, many reductions in NO2 and CO were linked to fewer COVID-19 cases. A potential reason for this observation could be the lack of toxic atmospheric particles, such as PM2.5, that can cause immunocompromising conditions which are known to make individuals more susceptible to COVID-19. Scientists hypothesize a proportional relationship between the climate and COVID-19. The next step would be to ask: can anything be done to improve the impacts of both the climate and COVID-19?

The World Health Organization (WHO) seems to have an answer through a series of ten actions that are included in the UN Climate Change Conference (COP26) report. This report, created at COP26, resulted in the Glasgow Climate Pact, which outlines a series of compromises made between nations to map out the past and future of climate change. These recommendations build on each other to create a solution that helps both COVID-19 and climate change.

The first recommendation is to “commit to a healthy recovery,” meaning that people should recover from the pandemic in ways that are environmentally sustainable. An example of this would be recycling medical waste to reduce the amounts of plastic and glass that are used by the medical field. The overwhelming amount of “healthcare waste from personal protective equipment (PPE) has overwhelmed many hospital waste-management systems, posing significant threats to human health and the environment”, thus worsening pollution in the environment. By recycling medical waste properly, at least a fraction of greenhouse gas emissions would be prevented from entering the environment. 

The WHO also recommends that people develop the understanding that health is non-negotiable, and should focus on the health benefits (for themselves) of climate change. For example, the increase of toxins in the air results in an increase of serious conditions, such as severe asthma and even malaria, since vector-borne diseases that thrive in humid environments will increase. Universally, climate change has a negative correlation with health; an increase in harmful gasses will have a detrimental effect on public health. 

Many of the other recommendations involve creating energy systems (for the public’s use). The goal of these energy systems is to improve both the climate and public health by helping to build health resilience for the population over time. Energy systems will allow for protection against the toxic effects of greenhouse gasses on both climate change and health. For example, burning coal releases toxins that contribute to air pollution, and in places of low socioeconomic status, this could amplify health issues such as cardiovascular disease or respiratory ailments like chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). To combat this issue, the WHO is implementing more country-level and subnational risk assessment tools, with the goal of covering more regions of the world to get more accurate data. This approach is helpful to identify populations that are especially vulnerable to climate change and outbreaks such as COVID. These systems can also help environmentalists and politicians collaborate and develop sustainable plans to improve global health.

The WHO also recognizes that the contact-tracing technologies used for COVID-19 are not environmentally friendly. The virus-detecting cartridges used for reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (PCR) devices contain substances dangerous to the environment, especially with the increased amount of single-use plastics that are not biodegradable. The WHO suggests creating rapid tests that do not contribute to a worsening climate.

Overall, the remaining recommendations focus on building sustainable futures to urge climate action and, through that, save the lives of future generations. Many of these measures will contribute to improving health deficits caused by worsening climate change, especially by reducing toxins and contaminants that lead to pulmonary disorders. Further, it will continue to limit the spread of communicable diseases, such as COVID-19 and perhaps others, by advocating public health efforts that have helped reduce transmission thus far. Climate change is not yet where it needs to be to create a vital ecosystem, but if the recommendations and changes proposed by organizations like the WHO are implemented, the world can continue to thrive in conjunction with humankind.