We' re accustomed to thinking of environmental change, and its effects on our health, as Being measured in years. But researchers are now discovering how quickly and dramatically air quality can improve - and how big an impact those improvements can make.

For instance, when Atlanta hosted the 1996 Olympic Games, parts of the city were closed to cars for 17 days. In the following four weeks, kids' medical visits for lung diseases decreased by more than 40 percent. In 1990, when Hong Kong passed stricter regulations for the content of fuel oil used by power plants and cars, SO2 levels immediately fell by 45 percent on average and as much as 80 percent in the most polluted areas. Within six months, there was a significant decrease in the number of deaths from air related diseases.

In March 2020, when businesses shut down because of the coronavirus pandemic, NO2 levels were about 30 percent lower on average in the northeaster United States than they were in the same month for the years 2015 to 2019. Also, during the month that China was under quarantine(隔离) from February to April because of the pandemic, one study estimated that improved air quality helped to impede more than 12,000 pollution-related deaths. With a recent study showing that the higher PM2.5 is, the more people will die from the COVID-19, measures to improve air quality may be more important than ever before.

As Plastic Chokes the Ocean, Technology Can Help

Some 8 million tons of non-recyclable (不可回收的) plastic end up in the ocean each year. At an alarming rate, the seas may have more plastic than fish by the middle of the century. 【小题1】

Require a global solution to a global problem. 【小题2】 The developed countries and most of developing countries show their leadership in this process by setting goals, encouraging other member states, and offering support for poor countries.

【小题3】 Although they are helpful to protect clean water and air, as it is known, non-recyclable plastic is widely used in the markets. Therefore, non-recyclable plastic still can be bought in our daily life. Its disappearance needs much more time and efforts.

Pay more attention to the new studies on plastic and technologies. Some of researchers are aiming to make replacements for plastic. 【小题4】 For example, “interceptors” can remove river pollution before it reaches the ocean.

Expect more responsibility from manufacturers. 【小题5】 As a start, they should be encouraged to simplify complex packaging. And their working with world governments will support poorer nations to improve waste collection and landfill (垃圾场) management.

The world doesn’t have enough time in trying to solve the problem. The sooner these efforts start, the better.

The Monarch butterfly (帝王蝶) population has dropped to its second-lowest number on record in Mexican forests this winter. The forests are the insects’ winter home. The population decrease is worrying as the butterfly group is already considered at risk of disappearance.

Mexico’s government and the non-profit World Wildlife Fund (WWF) recently issued findings of their yearly joint study on the butterflies. The research shows that the Monarch butterfly presence has decreased to less than a hectare (公顷) of forest area. In the mid-1990s, Monarch butterflies could be found on around 18 hectares of the forests. The findings represent an almost 60 percent decrease in the Monarch butterfly population compared to last year’s study. It is also the second-lowest population finding since the first study took place more than thirty years ago.

Biologists blame the drop on higher-than-usual temperatures and dry conditions in the northwestern U. S. where the butterflies lay eggs. The weather conditions affect the growth of milkweed, the plant where the butterflies lay their eggs. When the young arrive, milkweed is their food for a time. In one of the planet’s famous wildlife migrations (迁徙), the butterflies travel south as many as 4,500 kilometers from places as far north as Canada. They spend the winter in warmer Mexico, where millions of the insects stay in trees that protect them from the rain and cold.

Monarch butterfly populations change year to year. As recently as 2021, the same study showed a 35 percent increase to cover around 2.8 hectares. Officials and activists called for more action to help the species. Such calls include the need to reduce threats of destroying milkweed and the need to protect forests. “We can’t lower our guard,” Jorge Rickards, head of WWF’s Mexico office, told reporters after releasing the latest data.