COVID-19 is affecting the climate, 2 students say

By Matthew Rutherford
December 9, 2020

The ongoing pandemic has affected more than just public health and the economy. COVID-19 has also had a pretty large impact on the climate and the environment, according to several public health and health science majors.

Screenshot from Nicole Barycki’s presentation. Photo by Matthew Rutherford.

“I chose to do my presentation on climate change and COVID-19 because while both are very important, climate change is one issue I feel particularly passionate about,” Nicole Barycki, junior health science major, said. “I wanted to look for a way to incorporate both of those urgent issues to hopefully inspire others to take interest and care more about them as well.”

Barycki knew a good amount of information on the topic beforehand. In her presentation, she explained the COVID-19 has had both positive and negative effects to the climate.

“Negative human contribution to our climate has seen improvement as a result of many individuals having to stay inside and avoid social interaction with the rest of the world,” Barycki said. “COVID-19 has been negatively affected by climate change as it has given humans no other option than to potentially risk their health.”

She also explained that infection rates will go up as the seasons are transitioning from fall to winter. “COVID-19 infection rates can worsen with the changing weather patterns, which can increase the necessity of sheltering and/or evacuation when danger occurs, which will hinder social distancing.”

Anousha Qureshi, junior public health major, presented a PowerPoint titled “COVID-19 & the Environment.” She gave this presentation as an extra credit assignment for several of her public health courses.

Screenshot from Anousha Qureshi’s presentation. Photo by Matthew Rutherford.

“I chose this topic because I believe that discussions and conversations related to environment and global warming are often minimal and overlooked,” Qureshi said. “I wanted to use this platform to inform people about the urgency of this issue and their responsibility towards reviving the planet’s health.”

It took Qureshi about a week and a half to gather all of her research. She found it difficult to get all the information into just a 15-minute presentation.

In her research, Qureshi discovered that studies have shown a direct link between COVID-19 transmission and pollutants. Cities with higher pollution rates had higher mortality rates as compared to cities with lower pollution rates. This included different areas around the world, specifically Lombardi, Italy; Xiaogan, China; Warsaw, Poland; Seoul, South Korea; and here in the United States, Chicago, Illinois and the entire state of California.

“In China, infected individuals who were living in polluted areas were 84 percent more likely to show signs of severity and an increase in infection,” said Qureshi. “They were 50 percent more likely to die than those who lived in less-polluted areas.”

COVID- 19 has led to an increase of plastic use and disposal. This is due to the large usage increase in disposable gloves, face masks, personal-protective equipment, food delivery and packaging. The World Health Organization predicts that there will be a rise in the production and the distribution of PPE equipment.

Many students gave presentations on Cabrini Day on Nov. 10.  The theme was COVID-19 and Human Dignity and two students, Anousha Qureshi and Nicole Barycki, spoke during the eighth and final time slot from 11:45-12:00 titled COVID-19 & Climate Change.

Both Barycki and Qureshi both advocated for change and how students can help. Political participation can help change thing as different law makers have different views on how to fix the climate crisis.

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Matthew Rutherford

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