{"id":106180,"date":"2020-11-05T22:14:04","date_gmt":"2020-11-05T19:14:04","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/en.buradabiliyorum.com\/air-pollution-fell-plastic-use-soared-during-europe-lockdowns\/"},"modified":"2020-11-05T22:14:04","modified_gmt":"2020-11-05T19:14:04","slug":"air-pollution-fell-plastic-use-soared-during-europe-lockdowns","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/air-pollution-fell-plastic-use-soared-during-europe-lockdowns\/","title":{"rendered":"#Air pollution fell, plastic use soared during Europe lockdowns"},"content":{"rendered":"

“#Air pollution fell, plastic use soared during Europe lockdowns<\/strong>”<\/p>\n

\n Coronavirus lockdowns in Europe have led to some environmental improvements such as better air quality and lower carbon emissions, but they are temporary and coupled with a surge in single-use plastic, the European Environment Agency (EEA) said Thursday.<\/p>\n

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The pandemic is ravaging Europe, which has now become the global region with the most COVID-19 infections, and governments in Britain, France, Italy and elsewhere are ramping up measures to stop the spread.<\/p>\n

The Copenhagen-based EEA said in a statement that lockdowns in European countries “may have some direct, short-term, positive impacts on our environment, especially in terms of emissions and air quality, although these are likely to be temporary.”<\/p>\n

The EU agency said its data showed that the concentration of nitrogen dioxide (NO2<\/sub>), a gas emitted mainly from vehicles which can cause inflammation of the respiratory system, fell sharply in countries where lockdowns were imposed in the spring of 2020.<\/p>\n

The concentration of NO2<\/sub> fell by 61 percent in Spain, 52 in France and 48 percent in Italy, all countries which had strict lockdowns, the EEA said.<\/p>\n

Noise pollution also fell significantly.<\/p>\n

But the pandemic has also brought about a significant spike in plastic consumption, as demand for protective gear like masks, gloves and hand sanitiser soared.<\/p>\n

Restaurants forced to only offer takeaway have used single-use plastic containers, while increased online shopping has also contributed to the problem.<\/p>\n

“The upsurge in demand for these items may challenge EU efforts to curb plastic pollution and move towards a more sustainable and circular plastics system,” the statement said.<\/p>\n

The pandemic has also led to a sharp drop in oil prices, making it cheaper for manufacturers to use oil rather than recycled material to make plastic, it added.<\/p>\n\n

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Coronavirus and its impact on carbon emissions\n <\/p><\/div>\n

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\n \u00a9 2020 AFP<\/p>\n

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Citation<\/strong>:
\n Air pollution fell, plastic use soared during Europe lockdowns (2020, November 5)
\n retrieved 6 November 2020
\n from https:\/\/phys.org\/news<\/a>\/2020-11-air-pollution-fell-plastic-soared.html<\/p>\n

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