第13回Online workshop報告(3月6日)

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《今回のworkshop 》
Has the pandemic done good for the environment?
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<Agenda>

Has the pandemic done good for the environment?

As the pandemic of the COVID-19 brought serious burden on people’s health and society, most of the countries closed their borders to avoid the import of pathogens. Geographical transportations were restricted and movement of goods and people decreased. As a result, airway and transport companies minimized their operations. Economic activities that grew big to fulfill the demand of the globalized world were also affected. Due to the decline of demand from international markets and preventive actions to avoid crowded working environments, many factories were closed. As a consequence, many companies suffered from the loss of profits and economic damage is severe in every part of the world, however, reduction on industrial activities had a silver lining. 

After lockdown, air pollution levels decreased in many cities such as New Delhi, Mumbai (India), Seoul (South Korea), and Wuhan (China) which all used to suffer from the world’s worst air pollution. Rivers such as the Ganges River were highly polluted over the years, however, the water quality dramatically improved during the lockdown. Due to reduction in consumption of fossil fuels by industries, global greenhouse gas emission was relatively low in 2020 compared to the previous year. These outcomes were welcomed by the public positively. 

However, this only enumerated the impact of the COVID-19 on the environment partially. Usage of disposable plastics increased during the pandemic, which led to increase in plastic waste in the wildlife. Also, as the industrial activities slowly recovered to their usual operations, the improved air quality quickly worsened to the previous level. Should human beings reduce their activities on behalf of the future generation, even though the current generation would suffer to some extent?

Question.

Q1.

It seems that minimized human activity during lock-down had some effect on the sanitation of the environment. Do you believe this fact? Or are we overlooking some important aspects?

Q2.

During this period, you noticed that some of the activities that were common in the pre-COVID-19 era are not that important anymore. In the world after the COVID-19, what activities can be reduced to decrease the environmental burden?

Q3.

Disposable plastics are indispensable to reduce contamination and infection during the pandemic, although it increases plastic waste. Is it ethical to take measures to support the current generation, but may have a significant negative impact on the future generation?

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