In total, Covid-19 has resulted in more than 3 million deaths worldwide. Sparingly, this count does not even include those deaths which remained unseen fearing disruption of community ties.
“Taking into account rolling Covid curbs, if the current restrictions remain in place until the end of May, we estimate that the cumulative loss of activity could amount to around $10.5 billion, or around 0.34 percentage point (pp) of annual nominal gross domestic product (GDP),” explains the chief economist at Barclays India.
For the entire country facing crisis, its GVA is projected to contract by only 6.5% and GDP contraction to be 8% for ongoing fiscal year.
Covid even disrupted the steady path of government’s fiscal deficit (both at Centre and state levels) to bent out of shape for a few years to come.
It makes us even gloomier if we begin to consider the social disasters shattering people’s lives all around.
But one can pacify if the natural world, at least, is enjoying a bit of a break and rejuvenating itself.
The world in which Humans for now have much less to interrupt as the Pandemic and induced lockdowns have made it difficult to celebrate life.
It can be a silver-lining but is wildlife and the climate really benefitting from the continued pandemic?
Pandemic For Nature: the Good
According to a study that collected and analyzed roadkill data from 11 countries, it came to light that roadkill rates decreased during the first few weeks of the pandemic restrictions in countries like Spain, Israel, Estonia, and the Czech Republic, by more than 40%.
Fewer ships surfing the World waters, made Experts estimate a 10% decline in container trade for 2020 alone.
A noted reduction in water and road travel may probably reduce the risk of injuring or killing of defenseless marine animals or the threats from noise pollution and Oil spills.
One study found that pollution levels dropped by a significant 16% in India’s longest freshwater lake during lockdown.
With almost no aeroplanes leaking fumes in atmosphere, the risk of bird strikes has gone down.
In India, reduced fishing and vehicular traffic around nesting beaches like Gahirmatha, may help sustain and create lives of critically endangered Olive Ridley Sea turtles.
Many of the rarest species were seen sneaking from the deepest of Jungles into the Urban settlements due to reduced pollution, lesser anthropogenic intervention. E.g., Civet cat seen in Kerala.
But not everything surfaced as a silver lining in dark clouds of this health-curse.
Pandemic For Nature: the bad
Well, a few studies have dared to introspect and highlight bad impacts of the pandemic on our serene Nature, using the unseen facets of influence.
Reduced human disturbances, according to a study, has given the Nature an opportunity to thrive but have been claimed to benefit invasive alien species. How, that’s interesting and demeaning too.
It happens because it has caused interruptions to the very actions formulated in order to control invasive species. The restrictions imposed on daily activities have limited the very work of conservationist and law enforcement organizations that protect wildlife and protected areas.
It has also come to forefront that reduced funding and ecotourism has influenced the local communities to shift to other means of livelihoods.
For this, a few NGOs and forest departments have worked hard to ensure alternative forms of livelihoods so that people may not take up poaching or dealings with wildlife trade, that flourished during Pandemic.
Illegal miners and loggers are taking their businesses more into the indigenous territories, which could further expose remote indigenous communities to the virus, killing millions.
But lesser economic means have led people to rely more and exploit Natural resources, already under stress, arising Deforestation, land-degradation etc.
Anyhow Pandemic’s protective gear has caused enough pollution as 3.4 billion single-use face masks and face shields are thrown every single day.
A life taken here is offered there:
With millions of human lives lost in a brief period, is a tragedy in disguise. Animal and plant kingdom has faced such unprecedented demise since long. It can be called as Nature’s will and wisdom to balance in its own way.
However, it has seemingly become a misperception that nature seems to be enjoying “a break” from humans during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Government has the time now, to maintain the balance between diseases and species. They need to guard the unprotected. Equally important is the country’s plan for rebuilding economies and fostering the green structural transformation.
Companies and conservationists can therefore, play a greater role in it too. It just depends on a perspective, what’s important to Human race and the planet in all.