June 15th marks the first day back to “normal” for California–
As we head out of the COVID restrictions put in place last year, its important to look back and take lessons from the experiences that have rocked our global community. One of the unforeseen positive impacts of COVID-19 has been the environmental changes scientists have noted in the time since work from home became the norm and social events went digital.
In places like New York and China, air pollution fell by as much as 50% when the stay-at-home orders were implemented. NO2, a pollutant most associated with global economic activities, is most commonly created by vehicles and airplanes. Due to tight travel restrictions grounding most domestic and nearly all international flights, and with commuting to work becoming less of a necessity, the need for fossil fuels fell, taking Green House Gas emissions with them.
Now that we’re going back to “normal” how can we keep these trends? And what do words like “back” and “normal” mean?
Researchers Tanjena Rume and S.M. Didar-Ul Islam suggest in their study of the pandemic’s environmental effects, that to make term environmental changes we can use the COVID shut down as a model moving forward. We can drive industries towards green policies, such as focusing on more efficient business practices, using renewable energy, and being aware of where industrial buildings are built in consideration of the surrounding environment. Similarly, moving towards greener modes of transportation, such as bicycles and shared public transit can help. By lowering the number of cars on the road, the emissions also drop. Becoming less dependent on cars also has physical health benefits with increased daily steps and exercise!
Unsurprisingly, green energy options are key in helping to lower emissions permanently. By removing ourselves from depending on fossil fuels, pollutants like NO2 become a thing of the past. Solar is clean energy that is becoming more and more accessible. This gives us the opportunity to bring real environmental change into our own homes.
With our homes, businesses, and ultimately our economy, running on green energy, we can maintain the ecological benefits we’ve seen from the COVID global shut down without having to stay shut down. By all doing our part we can guarantee a cleaner future and a healthy economy! If you’re ready to take the plunge into solar energy, Bright Solar Power California is ready to help! Give us a call or fill out our form to get the ball rolling!