The COVID-19 pandemic is changing how people everywhere interact with the natural environment. From outdoor enthusiasts to climate activists to garden and nature center employees, global stay-at-home orders and restricted travel and business are creating new challenges and opportunities for everyone with a soft spot for the great outdoors.
With reduced travel and business operations due to restrictions related to the coronavirus, greenhouse gas emissions and pollution are declining. Fossil fuel emissions are predicted to drop by 7.5% in 2020 and power plants are predicted to use 11% more renewable energy sources according to the U.S. Energy Department’s Energy Information Administration.
“These trends are temporary and they’ll go away as fast as the coronavirus goes away,” Jonathan Overpeck, University of Michigan’s environment dean, told the AP. Environmental activists and politicians are calling for sustainable plans to rebuild world economies after the public health crisis. “We need to turn the recovery into a real opportunity to do things right for the future,” the head of the United Nations, António Guterres, told the New York Times.
Locally, outdoor spaces that rely on revenue and donations from visitors to maintain natural habitats are being forced to find new ways to safely support themselves and their communities. The National Park Service is “modifying its operations on a park-by-park basis” to comply with state authorities and guidelines from the CDC, while places like the Georgia State Botanical Gardens have moved spring plant sales online and reduced visiting hours. The Chattahoochee Nature Center, a wildlife rehabilitation and outdoor education center, has reduced its operations to a few full-time staff members doing essential work while closed to the public, said Sebastian Hagan, a horticulturist and summer camp counselor at the center, in a Zoom interview.
Many people newly working or studying from home are turning to the outdoors for much-needed space, but with parks closed, some are finding fresh air in their backyards. UGA student, Emma Marvil said in a Facetime interview that in her transition to living at home and taking online classes, it is “important to see the sun at least once a day.” She and her family celebrated Earth Day on Wednesday at home by gardening and recycling. “I go for walks around my neighborhood when I need to get out of the house… it’s made me appreciate the small things in life.”
Sarah White 