In The New York Times: Pandemic’s Cleaner Air Could Reshape What We Know About the Atmosphere <https://www.nytimes.com/2020/06/25/climate/coronavirus-clean-air.html>:
Early studies appear to show that even as the coronavirus took more than 100,000 American lives, deaths related to more typical respiratory illnesses like asthma and lung disease fell in the clean air...
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Interesting!
ReplyDeleteif my employer decides to implement a policy that allows work from home half the time and saves the fossil fuel burn, i would be fine with it. I miss the in-person relationships at the office, but i do not miss the commute.
ReplyDeletePeople with respiratory illnesses, such as asthma and lung disease, are more likely die from Covid-19. The cause and time of death has changed, i.e. many are dying earlier than they would have done. I'd rather live longer in "dirtier" air than die early from Covid in "cleaner" air.
ReplyDeleteAnd yet the article has these contradictory statements.
ReplyDelete"Among the most surprising of Dr. Guttikunda’s observations: In some cities, as vehicle traffic and tailpipe pollution declined, levels of one major smog-causing pollutant, ozone, actually shot up.
"Dr. Guttikunda said the sharp rise was a real-life validation of a theory of atmospheric chemistry that says ozone — which is linked to asthma, heart disease and premature death — will increase, at least temporarily, as emissions of the tailpipe pollutants nitrogen oxide and sulfur dioxide go down."
Then there is this
"Public health scientists are studying another aspect of the pandemic’s cleaner air. A working paper published by the National Bureau of Economic Research calculated that the reduction in pollution has led to about 360 fewer deaths each month in the United States from illnesses like asthma, lung disease and heart disease — a drop of about 25 percent."
So who is right?
Wear a mask. Socially distance. Wash your hands. = No COVID 19.
ReplyDeleteWork from home. Drive less. Plants trees. = Less pollution/global warming.
Win. Win. Win.