COVID-19 prevention, air pollution and transportation patterns in the absence of a lockdown

JOURNAL OF ENVIRONMENTAL MANAGEMENT

卷:298

Article

Chang, Hung-Hao¹  Meyerhoefer, Chad D.²  Yang, Feng-An¹ 

[1] Natl Taiwan Univ, Dept Agr Econ, 1 Roosevelt Rd,Sec 4, Taipei 10617, Taiwan

[2] Lehigh Univ, Coll Business, Rauch Business Ctr, 621 Taylor St, Bethlehem, PA 18015 USA

关键词: COVID-19;    Disease prevention;    Anthropogenic air pollution;    Transportation demand;   

DOI  :  10.1016/j.jenvman.2021.113522

来源: Elsevier

【 摘 要 】

Recent studies demonstrate that air quality improved during the coronavirus pandemic due to the imposition of social lockdowns. We investigate the impact of COVID-19 on air pollution in the two largest cities in Taiwan, which were not subject to economic or mobility restrictions. Using a difference-in-differences approach and real-time data on air quality and transportation, we estimate that anthropogenic air pollution from local sources increased during working days and decreased during non-working days during the COVID-19 pandemic. This led to a 3-7 percent increase in CO, O-3, SO2, PM10 and PM2.5. We demonstrate that the increase in air pollution resulted from a shift in preferred mode of travel away from public transportation and towards personal motor vehicles during working days. In particular, metro and shared bicycle usage decreased between 8 and 18 percent, on average, while automobile and scooter use increased between 11 and 21 percent during working days. Similar COVID-19 prevention behaviors in regions or countries emerging from lockdowns could likewise result in an increase in air pollution. Taking action to reduce the transmissibility of COVID-19 on metro cars, trains and buses could help policymakers limit the substitution of personal motor vehicles for public transit, and mitigate in-creases in air pollution when lifting mobility restrictions.

【 授权许可】

Free