Carbon Emissions in Europe and America Drop Due to COVID-19 Lockdowns

The BBC and the New York Times report that carbon emissions were suppressed due to the coronavirus lockdown (Amos 2020 and Crist 2020).

The satellite maps produced by the Royal Netherlands show that the amounts of nitrogen oxide (NO2), a gas pollutant produced by the use of fossil fuels, steeply declined as economic activity significantly slowed down.

The comparison is being made between the average concentration for March 2019 and the concentration for March 14-25, 2020. The 10-day average clears out some variabilities such as weather changes, wind direction and speed – that could contribute to the amounts of NO2 in the atmosphere.

Combining the data from the 10-day average allows scientists to see the impacts on emissions due to changes in human activities.  

The satellite maps show reductions of NO2 in the following European countries: Italy—particularly northern Italy, where the coronavirus outbreak is worst—France, Spain, and Portugal. Scientists also predict the same thing will happen in the UK.

The New York Times reports that something else is happening besides the decline in emissions worldwide.

It reports that China and Italy’s air is “strikingly clean,” Venice Grand Canal is running clean where before it was dirty with boat traffic, and the pollution fog has lifted in Seattle, New York, Los Angeles, Chica, and Atlanta.

However, this does not mean that the coronavirus is the solution to the climate problem because it is also a crisis itself.  

The fact is, coronavirus is temporary, but the threats of climate change, such as heatwaves, floods, and extreme storms, which also claim human lives, are ongoing.

According to the New York Times opinion article by Meehan Crist, emissions have also dropped in the United States across the Atlantic Ocean. However, whether this trend continues will depend on consumer behaviour and how the government responds to revive the economy as soon as the pandemic is over.

How the economic response plays out will impact the climate crises in the following decades and even up to the next millennium. The article also predicts a slowing down of clean energy projects like solar, battery, and electric vehicle markets.

The lockdown has already slowed climate research; research flights to the Arctic have halted, and COP 26, a climate change conference in Glasgow this November, has been delayed or would even be cancelled.

The article says that postponing this important conference can quell climate change efforts, such as the climate adaptation and mitigation strategies of all countries that pledged to reduce emissions.

Although China has reduced its emissions by 25%, its government has indicated that it will “relax environmental supervision of companies to stimulate its economy.” This could mean more emissions than ever before.  

Prime Minister Andrej Babis of the Czech Republic has echoed this sentiment, stating that the European Green Deal, a European climate policy to reach zero emissions by 2050, should be set aside for countries to focus on fighting the pandemic.

But this could also go the other way, especially when governments are willing to spend money urgently amid the COVID-19 pandemic. Some of these government investments could go to the development and integration of clean energy technologies instead.

Falling oil prices can provide an opportunity for governments to eliminate fossil fuel subsidies and redirect investments to clean energy projects instead.  

The 32-hour workweek touted recently to improve quality of life can be adopted. The timing cannot be more perfect, as the massive disruption caused by the coronavirus can make this suggestion a possibility. The result can be an effective climate mitigation strategy that could bring down emissions.

The article mentions that while the climate crisis has demonstrated how unsustainable our economy and society are, the pandemic, on the other hand, is a “gut-wrenching reality check.”

Climate change and coronavirus are not separate issues but surprisingly connected.

The climate crises tell us that nature is deteriorating because of the pollution we throw at it constantly. From our industries that spew heat-trapping and polluting gases 24-7 into the atmosphere to keep up with economic and consumer demands.

If urgent climate adaptation and mitigation policies and implementation are not taken, more extreme events will occur, which can affect thousands of lives and undermine economic progress.

COVID-19, on the other hand, shows us that humans are not invincible. We don’t have all the answers, and our actions affect one another. It is only when we cooperate and unite that we can efficiently surpass the problem.