Lockdowns Reduce Driving Needs
Most people would think of the COVID-19 lockdowns as far from beneficial. That excludes Dr. Venture and colleagues from the Norwegian Institute of Nature Research. The team decided to study air quality and pollution during this time of unusually low human activity. Air pollution heavily influences human health and climate change. Main causes of air pollution include power generation, manufacturing and gas-powered vehicles.
One important air pollutant is nitrogen dioxide (NO2), released by cars and trucks. Growing up in a city with high amounts of NO2 can damage a person’s lungs and lead to childhood asthma. NO2 also chemically reacts to thin the ozone layer. This layer of gas in the atmosphere is important to protect us from the sun’s harmful radiation.
Borders, schools and businesses closed during the pandemic, which greatly decreased the need to drive vehicles. Researchers observed a change in NO2 levels and ozone thickness during the pandemic.
Research Findings
Researchers used low-orbit satellites to measure changes in ozone content, based on upper atmosphere levels of gases and pollutants. Data showed an increase in ozone thickness and decrease in nitrogen dioxide. Thicker ozone layers can slow down the effects of climate change. Increased ozone is also not short-lived and would last for several weeks, even if lockdowns ended. Yet, satellite data can only analyze the pandemic’s impact on climate change at a global scale, not a local scale.
The air that surrounds satellites is not the same as air conditions nearer to the Earth’s surface. Certain pollutants are too heavy for winds to blow into the upper atmosphere. Thus, scientists must also measure air quality closer to the surface. The researchers achieved this using more than 10,000 ground stations across 34 countries. All ground stations detected deceased vehicle pollution on the first 62 days of lockdown, compared to 2017 to 2019 levels. The countries showed an overall trend of improved air quality.
The Potential for a Better Future
Air pollution exposure can increase a population’s susceptibility to respiratory disease. Decades of poor air quality in heavily polluted cities can increase the number of “at-risk for COVID-19″’ population.
The global lockdown is not a sustainable way of life. Nonetheless, this research study can encourage governments to implement policies that encourage less car use. This can include simple actions like encouraging remote or hybrid work arrangements, or making delivery services more accessible. The study also affirms the connection between daily human activity and the severe air pollution experienced in urban cities. All in all, decreased dependency on cars can combat climate change, improve local air quality and improve human health.
References
Venter, Z. S., Aunan, K., Chowdhury, S., & Lelieveld, J. (2020). COVID-19 lockdowns cause global air pollution declines. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 117(32), 18984–18990. https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.2006853117
About the Author
Written by Aishwini Alexander, Parshawn Amini and Eric Santos
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