Covid-19 and climate change
Are there any ties between covid-19 and climate change? The data is talking, greenhouse gas emissions are going down thanks to coronavirus.
These last few weeks have shown that emissions are going down in China and in Italy since Coronavirus is spreading and confinement measures are put in place by the governments. We can expect that emissions in Europe and North America will follow a similar curve. By slowing down transportation and the industry that are big polluters, air quality is improved.
The European Spatial Agency has published satellite imagery showing how nitrogen dioxide (NO2) concentrations decrease. Even if NO2 is not a greenhouse gas, it is a great indicator of the rate at which transportation and the heavy industry are burning fossil fuels. Therefore a great indicator of carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions and other greenhouse gases that contribute to climate change.
Lockdown consequence in Italy
We can observe a great reduction in the concentration of NO2 at the end of February, beginning of March. ESA specialists talk about a “Dramatic drop off” never seen before, as a result of the intensity of activity in different sectors.
Emissions decrease in China after Covid-19 outbreak
Back in December 2019, as the coronavirus broke out in the Hubei province, China established strict measures. As a result, factories were closed, transport between cities banned and streets were cleared.
Both NASA and ESA experts confirm that these measures lead to a “dramatic reduction in nitrogen dioxide concentrations – those released by power plants, industrial facilities and vehicles – in all major Chinese cities between late-January and February”. Even though the drop coincided with the Lunar New Year festivities, causing a similar drop every year, the concentrations did not increase afterward. For more information go here.
Working from home, the new normal?
As the COVID-19 crisis spread, working from home is skyrocketing worldwide as a government and company response. More than one billion Indians went into lockdown this week, since the Chinese New Year, around 200 million people are working remotely in China alone.
This new normal has great benefits: avoiding long commutes, air quality of the city improving. But it comes with some challenges, as coordinating with a remote team or managing their kids. We can all learn from this experience and prove that it is possible in the long term.
In the United States, the bigger CO2 source is the transportation sector — which includes cars, trucks, planes, trains, and boats — now emit 1.9 billion tons of CO2 annually while the electric power sector emits 1.8 billion tons.
Remote work a few days per week could cut these emissions by more than 10%, avoiding almost 200 million tons of CO2 per year.
Be safe; stay well.
-Manuel
If you want to see what else you can do to reduce your carbon footprint.
