Restrictions due to a coronavirus epidemic reduce air pollution

To reduce the spread of the deadly disease, Italian Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte announced on Wednesday that the government will close commercial units in the country, with the exception of grocery stores and pharmaceutical factories.

As a result of the announcement, schools, restaurants, bars, museums and other venues were closed in Italy and mass events were curtailed. And with the solutions put in place to curb the virus, the number of air polluting activities has been reduced, if not intentionally.

Emissions have decreased due to less turnover and industrial activity

The European Space Agency (ESA) has presented an animation of changes between January and March, based on images from the Copernicus satellite, which show a significant reduction in air pollution in Italy, the Daily Mail reported.

The animation is based on data from a special instrument called Tropomi placed on a Copernicus Sentinel-5 satellite that maps traces of harmful gases in the atmosphere.

Claus Zehner, head of the Sentinel-5P mission, said the reduction in nitrogen dioxide emissions over the Po plain in northern Italy is particularly striking. “ While the data may differ slightly due to cloud cover and changing weather conditions, we are confident that the reduction in emissions will coincide with the shutdown in Italy, which will result in less traffic and industrial activity, ” said the ESA researcher.

Nitrogen dioxide is a gas formed during the high temperature combustion of fossil fuels such as coal, gas or diesel. It is emitted mainly by cars, power plants and industrial facilities and has a detrimental effect on the lungs.

Changes in air pollution levels were also confirmed by NASA researcher Santiago Gasso, who also studied Copernicus data. “ Within a month, the satellite sensor in northern Italy clearly showed a reduction in nitrogen dioxide levels, ” he said.

Flying dust was reduced by twenty to thirty percent

The data-recording satellite is the first mission under the Copernicus program to monitor the atmosphere. Tropomi’s instrument can map trace elements in a number of gases, such as nitrogen dioxide, ozone, formaldehyde, sulfur dioxide, methane, carbon monoxide, and aerosols. According to ESA, these gases affect the quality of the air we breathe and thus our health.

Copernicus Atmosphere Monitoring Service (CAMS) saw a decrease in particulate matter (PM2.5) in February, a 20-30 percent drop from the previous three years, they said in a statement.

According to the World Health Organization, particulate matter is one of the most important air pollutants in terms of harmful effects.

(Source: marmalade.co.hu; hirado.hu | Image: pixabay.com)