COVID-19 is a reminder that human
health and environmental health is closely linked. The pandemic has
been a painful wake-up call to our fractured relationship with nature. The
virus was most likely transmitted from wild animals to humans, also known as a
zoonotic disease. Alarmingly, this phenomenon is on the rise. According to
World Wildlife Fund (WWF) Nature in All Goals 2020 Report, it stated that the
new diseases that have emerged in human beings in the past 30 years, 60-70
percent have a zoonotic origin. Zoonotic diseases are driven by the same
activities that are causing nature loss: illegal wildlife trade, the trade and
consumption of high-risk live wild animals, deforestation, habitat loss, and
large-scale land conversion for food and livestock production.
According
to United Nation Environment Program (UNEP), zoonoses that emerged or
re-emerged recently are Ebola, bird flu, Middle East respiratory syndrome
(MERS), the Nipah virus, Rift Valley fever, sudden acute respiratory syndrome
(SARS), West Nile virus, Zika virus disease, and, now, the coronavirus. They
are all linked to human activity. The Ebola outbreak in West Africa was the
result of forest losses leading to closer contacts between wildlife and human
settlements; the emergence of avian influenza was linked to intensive poultry
farming; and the Nipah virus was linked to the intensification of pig farming
and fruit production in Malaysia.
There are about 8 million species
of life on the Earth, of which humans are just one. These include an estimated
1.7 million unidentified viruses, recognized as the type that may infect
people, existing in mammals and water birds. Any one of these could be
transferred to humans, if we don’t take preventative measures now.
Environmental degradation increases
the risk of future pandemics and weakens our resilience against climate change
and other disasters. The pandemic has also highlighted the crushing weight of
inequality in our societies. The global economic system, underpinned by
extractive business and financial models and weak labour rights, has left
millions of formal and informal workers unable to meet their basic needs.
Unequal access to essential services such as healthcare, nutritious food, clean
water, sanitation, hygiene, and safe housing, has exacerbated the impact of the
pandemic and left public authorities unable to effectively respond. The
pandemic is a reminder that everything is connected. Our health, our economies,
and the natural environment are all interlinked. Tackling problems in siloes is
no longer an option. We must create solutions that respond to these
interconnections, and we need those solutions fast.
The most fundamental way to protect
ourselves from zoonotic diseases is to prevent destruction of nature. Where ecosystems
are healthy and biodiverse, they are resilient, adaptable and help to regulate
diseases. Greater biodiversity and ecosystem integrity can help regulate
diseases by supporting a diversity of species, so that it is more difficult for
one pathogen to spread rapidly or dominate. Pathogens, that are passed around
among reservoirs in animals is more likely to meet an example of effective
resilience–where there is greater diversity.
Humanity's broken relationship with
nature comes with a cost. That cost has revealed itself in terrible ways. Loss
of lives, loss of jobs, and a shock to our global economy. This pandemic joins
a long list of emerging diseases that will continue to undermine global
stability unless we fix our relationship with nature. It is impossible to predict where
the next outbreak will come from or when it will be. Growing evidence suggests
that outbreaks or epidemic diseases may become more frequent as climate
continues to change and nature degradation at current pace. Together
we can ensure the response to this global emergency makes our planet and our
communities stronger.
Disclaimer: The views expressed in this article are from author’s
own research and views and does not relate to agency he works with.
