Rome, 18 February 2022 (TDI): According to a recent report from the United Nations Environment Program, deadly wildfires, noise pollution, and other environmental issues have a big impact on the environment and must be taken care of right away (UNEP).
Frontiers 2022: Noise, Blazes, and Mismatches (unep.org)
According to UNEP Executive Director Inger Andersen, governments and the public should be aware of and solve three environmental concerns. The Frontiers Report is aware of and responds to these concerns.
Noisy blazes and mismatched pieces Emerging Environmental Challenges, which is the sixth study, talks about environmental issues that could cause a disaster if they aren’t taken care of quickly.
Our 🆕 #Frontiers2022 report highlights emerging issues for people and for planet.
It identifies
🔴 urban noise pollution
🔴 phenological shifts
+
🔴 wildfires
as areas that need urgent attention, and provides solutions to address them: https://t.co/PnBm1pzu5F pic.twitter.com/843z95yzoI— UN Environment Programme (@UNEP) February 17, 2022
Natural life cycles are being thrown off balance.
The United Nations Environment Assembly (UNEA) is set to meet again soon, and a new study shows how public health threats disrupt natural life cycles and receive a big impact on the world’s environment.
The three Frontiers Report topics of noise pollution, wildfires, and phenological shifts show how important it is to deal with the triple global disaster of climate change, pollution, and biodiversity loss.
Noise pollution remains a savage killer in the background.
According to the report, unwanted, persistent, and high-level sounds from road traffic, trains, or recreational activities are detrimental to human health and well-being.
Chronic aggravation and sleep disturbance caused by traffic can lead to heart disease and metabolic problems in the young, especially in the elderly and vulnerable people who live near major roads.
Noise pollution endangers animals by interfering with their communication and behavior. This includes birds, insects, and amphibians.
The research says that city planners should make noise reduction a priority by investing in urban infrastructure that supports good soundscapes, like tree belts, green walls, and more green space in cities. All of these things enjoy a range of health benefits.
A lot of good ideas could be used as the world recovers from COVID. London’s Ultralow Emission Zone, Berlin’s new bike lanes on major motorways, and Egypt’s national noise policy are all good examples.
Rhythms of animals and plants
In phenology, the timing of life cycle stages that happen again and how organisms living in an ecosystem react to changes in the environment are evaluated.
They use temperature, day length, and rainfall as signals to decide when to produce fruit, migrate or do other things. This is true for plants and animals in terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems as well as in marine ecosystems.
The new #Frontiers2022 report from @UNEP highlights emerging issues for people and planet. It identifies urban noise pollution, phenological shifts and wildfires as areas that need urgent attention, and provides solutions to address them: https://t.co/WYaCwCdpPL pic.twitter.com/lD1tvG49fL
— UN Library (@UNLibrary) February 17, 2022
Climate change, on the other hand, disrupts these natural rhythms by displacing plants and animals from their usual cycles, resulting in mismatches, such as when plants transition through their life cycle phases faster than herbivores, the report states.
Simultaneously, the local meteorological conditions that induce migration may be impossible to predict the weather at the birds’ destination and rest stops along the journey. Phenological variations associated with seasonal oscillations are a hindrance to food production in crops.
The article emphasizes the importance of conservation goals like preserving habitats and ecological connectivity, conserving biological diversity, and working with other countries to protect migratory corridors. It emphasizes, above all, how important it is to halve CO2 emissions in order to slow down the rate of warming.
Wildfires are raging
Between 2002 and 2016, an average of 423 million hectares of Earth’s land surface – about the size of the European Union – burnt, meaning that uncertain wildfires will certainly become more frequent, intense, and longer-lasting, even in previously unaffected places.
Climate change can produce wildfires worse by making lightning, which can commence recent fires far away from the forefront. This creates a dangerous feedback loop.
Long-term health consequences extend beyond those fighting wildfires, those evacuated, and those who have lost their homes, amplifying the effects on people with preexisting illnesses, women, children, the elderly, and the poor.
Black carbon and other pollutants that are released by wildfires can contaminate drinking water, speed up glacier melt, cause landslides, and turn rainforests into carbon sinks at the same time.
To fight this, the study says that more money should be spent on reducing wildfire risks, developing strategies for prevention and response, and improving remote sensing equipment like satellites and radar.
