Editorial N° 04/2020 The emergence of coronavirus and contemporary socio-environmental challenges (original) (raw)
Related papers
Abasement of Biodiversity and Risk of Pandemic Diseases Article ID: 31136
2020
Now, the world is in the grips of a global pandemic, the like of which has never been seen before. The COVID-19 that has swept through countries and continents has caused untold human suffering, social upheaval and economic damage. But, while the spread of the current crisis is unprecedented, the new coronavirus follows a number of diseases that have emerged in recent decades, such as Ebola, AIDS, SARS, avian influenza and swine flu. All originated in animals and there is increasing evidence that humanity’s over exploitation of nature is one of the factors behind the spread of new diseases (Galaverni et. al., 2020). Human activities have significantly altered three-quarters of the land and two-thirds of the ocean, changing the planet to such an extent as to determine the birth of a new era: the “Anthropocene”. Changes in land uses that bring wildlife, livestock and humans into closer contact with each other and facilitate the spread of diseases, including new strains of bacteria and viruses (Kilpatrick and Randolph, 2012 and Morse et. al., 2012). Meanwhile, illegal and uncontrolled trade of live wild animals creates dangerous opportunities for contact between humans and the diseases these creatures carry. It is no coincidence that many recent outbreaks have originated in markets that sell a mix of wild and domestic mammals, birds and reptiles, creating the conditions for the development of old and new zoonoses: infectious diseases that can be transmitted from animals to humans (Galaverni et. al., 2020). This article illustrates the link between humanity’s impact on ecosystem and biodiversity and the spread of diseases.
The relation between the Environment and Pandemics
In late 2019, one of the biggest pandemics of our time, with the power to completely shut down cities, was revealed. This is Sars-cov-2, which spreads very quickly and is transmitted through the air. The Coronavirus is nothing new to the world and warnings about the risk of pandemics have existed for many years, such as that of the 2013 epidemic, made by the WHO (World Health Organization) at a time when there was already alarm about the potential of this virus to cause outbreaks. Pandemics are nothing new to humanity. They were present at different times in history, and this paper aims to present the link between pandemics and disturbances of the natural environment, with emphasis on zoonoses. Some pandemics and their consequences will be briefly exposed, pointing out parallels between them. The study was carried out through the analysis of scientific articles within the specified topic in journals with a high level of reliability, seeking to understand this phenomenon and how to face them. This paper was written while the world was going through the Sars-cov-19 pandemic and was evolving together with the discoveries made day by day by the scientific world. Goals were defined for this paper, such as studying zoonoses and their forms of transmission, analyzing the human factor and how it impacts the environment, and pointing out solutions to solve these problems. This literature review concludes that when humans invade the natural environment and destroy existing relationships in this place, diseases transmitted from animals or from the environment itself can arise, which may or may not cause new pandemics through zoonoses.
" Invasion of Coronavirus": An ecological overview
2020
The core aim of this study is to develop some hypotheses leading to different area of epidemiological study by investigating ecological factors of diseases breakout, in order to create some preventive procedures against pandemics, depending on ecological analysis , In general , this study hypothesize that there are an ecological elements playing pivot role in the outbreak of the COVID-19; and ecological outputs as well ( socioeconomic changes). To perform this investigation ,inductive reasoning method is mainly used in this study , supported with “Political ecology approach”, as methodology to frame the existence of COVID 19 with it`s front and back biological links .The stated problem in this study is an attempt to answer the question: “how information about COVID-19 has become paradoxical ,ranging from evolutionary analysis to conspiracy theory?” ; this controversy has laid some confusion about the origin of disease and it’s associating factors. Accordingly, this paper is an approach to pave the way for researchers to study if such confusions can be foreseen and prevented in the future through ecological analysis.
Journal of Hunan University, 2021
Pandemic interventions rarely contain clear statements about potentially conflicting interventions of ecological mitigation policy priorities. Ecological mitigation policies are not as popular as economic policies. Ecological Sustainability of Mitigation of handling the COVID-19 pandemic surge and other pandemics can be achieved using various interventions to reduce transmission. Interventions can reduce the impact of an outbreak and buy time until vaccines are developed. This paper aims to formulate an ecological sustainability index of mitigation Deal with the Surge of The Covid-19 Pandemic and Other Pandemics. We use the Driver-Pressure-State-Impact-Response (DPSIR) framework and Multidimensional Scaling (MDS). The DPSIR framework aims to inventory ecological components in mitigation. MDS method to calculate ecological sustainability index and generate leverage attributes. The results found an ecological sustainability index of 74.67%. The attribute of leverage are: (i) Improving Echo-Ethics (introducing complex ethical challenges) for Researchers, Lecturers, Governments introduces complex ecology ethical challenges with an RMS value of 2.98; (ii) The urgent need for COVID-19 research with an RMS value of 2.94; and (iii) One-Health with an RMS value of 2.90. Echo_Ethics and One-Health is an integrated health concept that upholds ecological ethics by paying attention to the sources of interrelated transmission between humans, animals, and plants. The interaction of living things and pathogens with their living environment (bio-ecology) can help explain the priorities of potentially conflicting interventions in society. The disease incidence is the result of interactions between virulent pathogens, living things as vulnerable hosts, and ecological factors.
The role of ecosystems in mitigation and management of Covid-19 and other zoonoses
Environmental Science & Policy, 2020
There is rising international concern about the zoonotic origins of many global pandemics. Increasing humananimal interactions are perceived as driving factors in pathogen transfer, emphasising the close relationships between human, animal and environmental health. Contemporary livelihood and market patterns tend to degrade ecosystems and their services, driving a cycle of degradation in increasingly tightly linked socio-ecological systems. This contributes to reductions in the natural regulating capacities of ecosystem services to limit disease transfer from animals to humans. It also undermines natural resource availability, compromising measures such as washing and sanitation that may be key to managing subsequent human-to-human disease transmission. Human activities driving this degrading cycle tend to convert beneficial ecosystem services into disservices, exacerbating risks related to zoonotic diseases. Conversely, measures to protect or restore ecosystems constitute investment in foundational capital, enhancing their capacities to provide for greater human security and opportunity. We use the DPSIR (Drivers-Pressures-State change-Impact-Response) framework to explore three aspects of zoonotic diseases: (1) the significance of disease regulation ecosystem services and their degradation in the emergence of Covid-19 and other zoonotic diseases; and of the protection of natural resources as mitigating contributions to both (2) regulating human-to-human disease transfer; and (3) treatment of disease outbreaks. From this analysis, we identify a set of appropriate response options, recognising the foundational roles of ecosystems and the services they provide in risk management. Zoonotic disease risks are ultimately interlinked with biodiversity crises and water insecurity. The need to respond to the Covid-19 pandemic ongoing at the time of writing creates an opportunity for systemic policy change, placing scientific knowledge of the value and services of ecosystems at the heart of societal concerns as a key foundation for a more secure future. Rapid political responses and unprecedented economic stimuli reacting to the pandemic demonstrate that systemic change is achievable at scale and pace, and is also therefore transferrable to other existential, global-scale threats including climate change and the 'biodiversity crisis'. This also highlights the need for concerted global action, and is also consistent with the duties, and ultimately the self-interests, of developed, donor nations.
The Pandemic and the Global Environment: Which Way Next
Global Policy, 2020
The COVID-19 pandemic has brought home the fact that humans do not exist outside of the Earth's ecological system. The SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus is zoonotic, meaning it has originated in animals and crossed over to humans. The causes of the increasing occurrence in zoonotic pandemics lie in the higher frequency of encounters between humans and animals (both wild and domesticated). This is exacerbated by how we exploit and abuse the natural environment, and how human influence has become ever more pervasive in the Anthropocene. The pandemic has revealed significant vulnerabilities even in the North, with severe economic consequences likely leading to an extended recession. Much will depend on how we respond to the crisis and how we approach the recovery. The crisis will present an opportunity to rethink what kind of development we as a society want to pursue. We should take this opportunity to reconsider how to restructure the economy towards more sustainability, respect for nature, equality and participation.
Proceedings of the MAAP-PAS-ANSO Hybrid Workshop on "Ecosystem Restoration: One-Health and Pandemics
Proceedings of the Pakistan Academy of Sciences: B. Life and Environmental Sciences
Humanity is currently dealing with a number of interlinked existential crises. Ecological degradation, climate change, and biodiversity loss have disastrous consequences for human health and well-being. Furthermore, the emergence and transmission of zoonotic diseases like COVID-19 are linked to ecosystem health. For example, zoonotic infections account for ~75% of new infectious diseases, and they are mainly caused by unsustainable resource usage, animal factory farming, and other large-scale anthropogenic influences. As these pandemics show, environmental destruction can play an important role in a worldwide public-health crisis. It is commonly agreed that COVID-19 will not be the last pandemic. We need holistic approaches like One Health (an area of research that recognizes human, animal, and ecological health as interconnected). One health seeks to increase communication and collaboration between humans, animals, and environmental health professionals to prevent the spread of dis...
Ecosystem Restoration: Only way for the Mitigation and Management of Pandemics
Academia Letters, 2021
Human activities have changed the planet and lead to the birth of a new era which is known as the "Anthropocene". Changes in land use have lead humans to closer contact with the pathogens of zoonotic diseases, including new strains of bacteria, viruses, and fungi. Zoonotic diseases are the infectious diseases that are caused by pathogens that migrate from wilds to human either through direct transmission or through hosts such as insects, which carries the pathogen without themselves getting infected. In addition to the present SARS-CoV-2 virus causing the global Covid-19 pandemic, several other zoonoses caused several deadly epidemics and pandemics in the past few decades, such as the Bubonic plague, H1N1 Influenza (Swine Flu); H5N1 Influenza (Avian Influenza or Bird flu); Zika Virus; Ebola Virus; Rift Valley fever (RVF); African sleeping sickness (sleeping sickness); Acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS); Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS) and the Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS). Zoonotic diseases can be classified according to the ecosystem in which they circulate. They are classified into synanthropic zoonoses and exoanthropic zoonoses. Synanthropic Zoonoses prevailed in the urban cycle and the sources of infection are domestic and synanthropic animals. Examples include rabies, zoonotic ringworm, etc. Exoanthropic zoonosis prevails both in feral and wild cycles and the source of infection is outside human habitats. Examples include Lyme disease, tularemia, etc. There is also another category of zoonoses that can prevail both in wild and urban cycles. The best example is that causing yellow fever. Another category of zoonoses is Sapronoses responsible for human diseases transmissible from an abiotic environment. Sapronotic agents carry on two lifecycles one is in the abiotic substrate which is known as saprophytic lifecycle and another parasitic lifecycle in the body of the homeotherm vertebrate host. Some important sapronoses, like cholera and anthrax are capable of causing epidemics.
Synthesizing the connections between environmental disturbances and zoonotic spillover
Anais da Academia Brasileira de Ciências
Zoonotic spillover is a phenomenon characterized by the transfer of pathogens between different animal species. Most human emerging infectious diseases originate from non-human animals, and human-related environmental disturbances are the driving forces of the emergence of new human pathogens. Synthesizing the sequence of basic events involved in the emergence of new human pathogens is important for guiding the understanding, identifi cation, and description of key aspects of human activities that can be changed to prevent new outbreaks, epidemics, and pandemics. This review synthesizes the connections between environmental disturbances and increased risk of spillover events based on the One Health perspective. Anthropogenic disturbances in the environment (e.g., deforestation, habitat fragmentation, biodiversity loss, wildlife exploitation) lead to changes in ecological niches, reduction of the dilution effect, increased contact between humans and other animals, changes in the incidence and load of pathogens in animal populations, and alterations in the abiotic factors of landscapes. These phenomena can increase the risk of spillover events and, potentially, facilitate new infectious disease outbreaks. Using Brazil as a study model, this review brings a discussion concerning anthropogenic activities in the Amazon region and their potential impacts on spillover risk and spread of emerging diseases in this region.