Thinking of the Earth

Before the coronavirus pandemic started, there was a lot of concern about being environmentally friendly.  As countries went into lockdown,  the air became cleaner and wildlife experienced more freedom. 

In my neighborhood, we had started some waste management practices like segregation and composting. Unfortunately they stopped during lockdown and dont seem to have resumed.  People are using larger quantities of water with soda bicarb. So thats leading to water wastage and probably changed composition of sewage. 

Medical facilities are using non biodegradable materials for ppe and created a huge amount of waste.  Due to fear of infection people prefer to eat in disposable single use dishes using plastic cutlery. And everyone prefers bottled water to refillable RO.

The pandemic has taken a toll on the economy so that now environmental concerns are not going to be given due importance in planning businesses and development..all possible resources will be put at service of recovery and development. 

In the best of times people find it jarring to hear about environmental issues.  When safety from infection and recovery from poverty are of such concern, there is going to be little opportunity for the environmentalists to have their say. Environmental degradation and climate change have caused this series of misfortunes. But will we learn? And is there a way to be environment friendly in this pandemic?