Coronavirus lockdown: What impact on the planet?
By France24
09 April 2020 |
9:37 am
Three and a half billion people are confined in some way around the planet. That's almost half of the world's population. The Covid-19 pandemic has drastically changed our daily lives. With travel halted and industries slowed or stopped, what does that mean for the environment? What effect could it have on efforts to fight climate change? Down to Earth's team takes a look at carbon emissions, pollution, recycling and the impact on agriculture in this special episode in the midst of the coronavirus pandem
In this article
Related
4 Jun 2021
The European Court of Justice said that German authorities did not take "appropriate measures" to limit air pollution caused by nitrogen dioxide.
4 Jun 2021
South Korea is boosting efforts to recycle plastics in the country. At special centres, used PET bottles are recycled and transformed into products such as clothes, food containers, and cosmetic bottles.
20 Jun 2021
But a series of new laws in effect since January 2020 aim to significantly reduce plastic pollution over five years by phasing out single-use plastic, encouraging research and development of plastic alternatives and improving waste management and recycling.
21 Jun 2021
Five hospitals in the United Kingdom have installed new machines from a Cardiff-based company which melts items made of polypropylene, such as face masks, separating out impurities to make plastic blocks recycled into chairs, buckets or 3D-printed items.
31 Jul 2021
A new playground prototype in central Warsaw uses algae which feast on pollutants and carbon dioxide to provide a bubble of clean oxygen in the city.
15 Aug 2021
China and India, among the world's worst offenders for emissions, have failed to submit updated target proposals to curb the release of carbon dioxide.
14 Aug 2021
Dolphins have returned to Lisbon's Tagus River, prompting a new wave of tourism to see them. The pandemic led to reduced pollution in the area thanks to a drop in maritime traffic, making it a more hospitable environment for the marine mammals.
26 Aug 2021
With untreated sewage in the water and rubbish piled on the sand, pollution on Tripoli's Mediterranean coast is denying many residents of the war-torn Libyan capital a much-needed escape.
24 Sep 2021
The UN health agency now ranks air pollution on a par with smoking or an unhealthy diet. As a result, it has issued new, stricter guidelines they claim could save millions of lives.
27 Oct 2021
Saudi Arabia, the world's top oil exporter, aims to achieve net zero carbon emissions by 2060, says Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, days before the COP26 global climate summit. In March, Saudi Arabia unveiled a sweeping campaign to tackle climate change and reduce carbon emissions, including a plan to plant billions of trees in the coming decades.
27 Oct 2021
Lake Victoria, the planet's second-largest freshwater lake and the largest in Africa, is in serious danger from pollution. Because lakeside communities from Uganda, Kenya and Tanzania have practically no access to sewage infrastructure, a constant flow of sewage, fertilisers, garbage and plastic waste is suffocating what has long been the main provider of food and livelihoods in this part of East Africa. Despite what seems like an uphill struggle, young activists are sounding the alarm in order to raise awareness. Our France 2 colleagues report, with FRANCE 24's James Vasina and Camille Nedelec.
20 Nov 2021
The yearly practice of "stubble burning" in Northern India has far-reaching effects. Delhi, some 250 kilometers away, once again faces dangerous levels of smog as farmers burn off their fields to prepare for the next crop. It's a major cause of air pollution in the country.
Latest
1 day ago
A review into Britain's largest police force has found "institutional racism, sexism and homophobia" and has called for "radical reform."
1 day ago
Albert Ho, a prominent pro-democracy figure in Hong Kong, has once again been arrested. He is already facing up to a decade in prison for other charges under the national security law.
1 day ago
Experts say the drop in oxygen levels in the water after the recent floods receded likely caused the mass death, as well as hot temperatures due to climate change.
1 day ago
The French government's decision to force through its pension reform has sparked angry demonstrations across the country, with many videos of chaos in Paris circulating online. However, as credible as they may seem, some of these videos have been taken out of context, as Emerald Maxwell explains.
1 day ago
On World Storytelling Day, we ask if this human art will be supplanted by articifial intelligence? Or do chatbots lack the human factor to recreate the drama and nuance of good storytelling?
1 day ago
European shares logged their steepest weekly drop in five months amid continued turbulence in the global banking sector. German Chancellor Olaf Scholz doesn't think Europe is heading for a new financial crisis.