COVID-19 began in December 2019, and till today, it is still running rampant. The coronavirus has caused many countries and governments to restrict unnecessary activities, be it business or leisure. Governments implemented social distancing and lockdowns of entire cities, all to prevent the spread of the virus. New vaccines were also developed to counter the virus, with the State encouraging all citizens to take the shot if possible. Wearing of masks were also made mandatory in some countries, such as Singapore.
There are many articles, both online and offline, that has talked about how COVID-19 has helped to “heal” the Earth. This is because of how there is less air travel, and also because of how anthropogenic activities are restricted. However, is COVID-19 really a panacea to surmount the obstacles that Man has caused? Or is it just a placebo? This blog post will evaluate how the COVID-19 pandemic is a solution or strategy to mitigate water pollution issues.
“Leisure and business activities on beaches and in ports have restricted direct and indirect contamination from, for example, plastics, hydrocarbon spillage, microbiological loads, and noise levels. This has led to temporarily improved environmental conditions, and … beaches having conditions closer to Marine Protected Areas” (Ormaza-Gonzaìlez et al., 2021). As can be seen from the statement, COVID-19 may be argued to have positive impacts on water pollution. In the same article by Ormaza-Gonzaìlez et al. (2021), in which coastal areas and beaches in Ecuador were studied, it was found out that due to the COVID-19 pandemic, many marine species returned and there were also reduction in noise levels and environmental pollution. Hence, it can be argued that COVID-19 has helped to alleviate water pollution as it reduced tourism activities, as can be seen from how “populations residing in Salinas, Manta, and Galapagos have clearly noticed a positive change in the quality of beaches due to the absence of tourists caused by COVID-19” (Ormaza-Gonzaìlez et al., 2021).
Other than the case of Ecuador, COVID-19 has also helped with water quality in the Damodar River, which is located in India. Not limited to India, “degradation of aquatic environment, river water quality, pollution and health [and] river ecosystem services … has been amplified due to rapid urbanisation, industrialisation and execution of various developmental activities” (Chakraborty et al., 2021). Also in general, “the majority of the large world rivers are polluted by anthropogenic activities such as non-degradable agriculture fertilisers and untreated industrial sewage discharge into rivers” (Chakraborty et al., 2021). As such, when the pandemic hit in India, the “complete stopping of activities of industries, mining [and] commercial sectors highly helped to improve water quality by [reducing] … waste effluents directly discharged [in]to the [Damodar River]” (Chakraborty et al., 2021). Hence, it can be seen how lockdowns and restriction of anthropogenic activities, both caused by the pandemic, helped to improve river water quality in India’s case.
Overall, COVID-19 has helped to “dilute” water pollution issues. However, is it really a panacea with no loopholes? In the next blog post, I will be covering how COVID-19 is nothing but a placebo. See you!
References:
Chakraborty, B., Bera, B., Adhikary, P. P., Bhattacharjee, S., Roy, S., Saha, S., Ghosh, A., Sengupta, D., & Shit, P. K. (2021). Positive effects of covid-19 lockdown on river water quality: Evidence from River Damodar, India. Scientific Reports, 11(1). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-021-99689-9
Ormaza-Gonzaìlez, F. I., Castro-Rodas, D., & Statham, P. J. (2021). Covid-19 impacts on beaches and coastal water pollution at selected sites in Ecuador, and management proposals post-pandemic. Frontiers in Marine Science, 8. https://doi.org/10.3389/fmars.2021.669374