Air Quality Improvement Due to Covid-19

Holly Mosher - Staff Writer

The students of MRHS have been out of school since March 13th due to the Covid-19 pandemic. Now, even though this time may seem never-ending, do not fret. There is some positive news coming your way!

In places such as the United States and China, the air quality has not been good as of late due to the fact everyone is always out and about nowadays. People commonly use fossil fuel-guzzling cars, trucks, and using public transportation in their everyday lives. However, due to Covid-19 forcing people to stay at home via government rules and regulations, things are starting to look brighter for hard-hit places. According to the Washington Post, “one unintended upside to this crisis has been improved air quality, particularly in the hardest-hit areas where the most draconian measures have gone into force. This has been evident in Asia, including China’s Hubei province, where this virus began spreading among humans”.

This shows that even though things may look bad, there is always some unexpected news that can be quite positive.

Over the past few months, even a bit before the pandemic became a wide world event, the world’s air quality was still not good, but scientists have recently been testing and recording air quality and have found a drastic increase in healthy, better air quality. Graphs that scientists have been using to keep track of the important data show that “[t]here is a subtle decrease in NO2 in much of the country, including the Mid-Atlantic, Northeast, Ohio Valley and Southwest,” said the Washington Post.

Major cities like Los Angeles have been struggling with poor air quality for decades, but now with the stay-at-home orders in place, the air appears to be much more breathable than in previous years. Aside from Los Angeles, nine other US cities are experiencing better air quality. “Places typically choked with worse air pollution saw the most extreme drops in fine particulate matter, or soot,” said Justine Calma, a news writer for The Verge.

Not only is this happening within US borders, but it's also affecting places internationally. Places such as India are stunned by the fact that their air quality rates have plummeted due to sudden closures. According to theguardian.com, “Delhi is one of many capitals enjoying improved air quality since restrictions were introduced due to the coronavirus”.

Overall, the environment seems to be benefitting from the shutdowns and closures in place to slow down the virus. “Major cities that suffer from the world's worst air pollution have seen reductions of deadly particulate matter by up to 60% from the previous year, during a three-week lockdowns period,” said CNN News.

This shows that even in the most difficult of times, there is always something positive; you may not see it, but it is happening. One day we will be able to see our friends, family members, and staff who do so much for us. We are all in this together and will get through this together.