The Covid-19 has a positive impact on environment”- Do you agree with this statement?

Why or
why not.
o Yes, I agree for these under mentioned statements-

Positive impacts/aspects of COVID-19 pandemic

Humanity retreats indoors and the non-human natural world rumbles out liberated. Notoriously dirty, the waterways
and rivers in the world look cleaner, the air fresher, the smog gone, the haze dispersed and the wildlife has filled the
open spaces, coronavirus lockdowns across the world seem to have a number of positive effects on the environment.
Millions of the people have been cooped up indoors but the natural world outside has continued to rumble on and
the natural world is benefiting from our absence. Here, we have discussed some important positive impacts of the
COVID-19-induced lockdown on environmental quality by compiling the recently published data from research
articles, NASA (National Aeronautics and Space Administration) and ESA (European Space Agency).

Air quality and climate

After the lockdown was put in place in many countries, there was lesser travelling done by people, whether it be by
their own cars, or by trains and flights. Even industries were closed down and not allowed to function. This in turn
led to the pollution in the air dropping significantly, as there was a marked decline in nitrous oxide emission. The
World Health Organization (WHO) estimated that the outdoor air pollution kills 7 million people each year
worldwide and more than 80% urban population is exposed to unhealthy air (WHO 2020). Nitrogen dioxide (NO2) is
a toxic gas that is emitted from the engines of automobiles and factories. Now, due to current lockdown the transport
is restricted and factories are closed, hence, in cities all over the world the concentration of NO 2 in air has dropped
drastically (from 5.6 µg/m3 to 0.2 µg/m3) (Otmani et al. 2020).

Surface Water quality and aquatic life

Since there were no boats, whether they be fishing or pleasure ones, plying on the rivers and waterways, the water
has cleared up. In areas like Venice, the water became so clear that the fish could be seen and there was better water
flow. No doubt, because of the lesser human footfall even the oceans are recovering and marine life is thriving.
Reports are indicating that during COVID-19-induced lockdown not only the air quality but water quality in rivers
and water bodies is also improving. The stoppage of discharging industrial effluents and other wastes into water led
to an apparent positive effect on water quality. According to the real-time water analysis of the Central Pollution
Control Board of India (CPCB) and reports of Dr. Mishra, an IIT professor in Banaras Hindu University, a 40–50%
improvement has been observed in the water qualityof the Ganga River (CPCB 2020).X

Traffic and Transport

Transport and mobility of the passenger are some of the major vulnerable of Covid-19 pandemic. In particular,
declines of commercial flight operation, demands of urban transport, public transport usage, and generally passenger
transport, were the adverse impacts of the COVID-19 period on transportation. Also, freightage transit has been
affected.  On the other hand, these events have led to positive effects on the environment because of less energy
demand in the transportation sector. Travel and economic activities have been drastically reduced because of
lockdown measures worldwide, leading to a significant decrease in traffic congestion in major cities.

Effect on Wildlife:

Again where fish is concerned, the lockdown has seen a decline in fishing, which means that the fish biomass will
increase after over-fishing almost depleted it. Apart from that, animals have been spotted moving about freely where
once they would not dare to go. Even sea turtles have been spotted returning to areas they once avoided to lay their
eggs, all due to the lack human interference.

Effect on Vegetation:

Plants are growing better because there is cleaner air and water, and because yet again there is no human
interference. With everything at a standstill, plants are allowed to thrive and grow and produce more coverage and
oxygen. Less litter also means lesser clogging of river systems, which is good in the long run for the environment.

Conclusion
though there has been a positive impact on the environment due to the lockdown, there is fear that once people start
travelling again or go back to doing what they have been doing, all the positive impact will also disappear.COVID-
19 has imparted many positive changes in the chemical composition of the environment worldwide. COVID-19
induced lockdowns have resulted in 20–77% reductions in emissions of nitrogen oxides, reducing by 16–60% in
different cities. Emissions of CO2 were also reduced between 5 and 10%.