COVID-19, Climate, and Environmental Change in Fiji
摘要
It is four years since reports of a mysterious disease from China were received first with interest, but soon with uncertainty and fear throughout the rest of the world. At the end of January 2020, the World Health Organization (WHO)World Health Organization (WHO) declared a "public healthPublic health emergencyHealth emergency of international concern". In mid-February 2020, the first person infected with the new SARS-CoV-2SARS-CoV-2 died in FranceFrance, the first death outside Asia. From March 2020, measures were taken worldwide to contain the spread of the novel disease. Strict quarantineQuarantine measures such as curfews, contact restrictions, school closures and travel restrictions, and associated severe restrictions on international travel were at the forefront of the measures introduced. Publications of various kinds have since appeared on the COVID-19Pandemic pandemicCOVID-19 pandemic. The search term "COVID-19" yields more than 5.3 million hits in a Google Scholar search. This chapter deals with the impact of COVID-19COVID-19 on FijiFiji, a Small Island Developing State in the Pacific IslandsPacific islands region. Fiji has had to cope with the impacts of natural hazards for as long as people remember. In recent years the dangers of worsening climate changeClimate change have made societal action indispensable. In early 2020 another threat was added, which pushed climate changeClimate change into the background for some time. The chapter also focuses on impacts of COVID-19 on Fiji’sFiji health system and has caused significant morbidityMorbidity and mortalityMortality in Fiji. Individuals deferred routine and non-urgent treatments due to lockdownsLockdown and fear of contracting the virus, leading to chronic illnesses and late diagnoses of serious conditions. At the beginning of the pandemicPandemic hospitals had shortages of essential supplies, such as ventilators, personal protective equipment (PPE), and ICU beds. COVID-19COVID-19 tests had to be sent to AustraliaAustralia. Despite many challenges COVID-19 led to the upgrade of health facilitiesHealth facilities,experience, and skills. Fiji might be better prepared to face future health challenges. The effects of the COVID-19Pandemic pandemicCOVID-19 pandemic on the environment have been highlighted from a wide variety of perspectives. Two of these perspectives stand out: (1) COVID-19 impacts on the global economy, global exchange of goods, and people. Among many negative impacts, it also had positive effects on the environment. (2) At the same time, several authors highlighted that environmental factorsEnvironmental factors influenced the transmission of SARS-CoV-2SARS-CoV-2 through various factors. For FijiFiji declining economic activities, significantly reduced mobility and a considerable reduction in tourismTourism led to lower energy consumption and therefore lower emissions of CO2 and other greenhouse gases (GHG) (Mishra et al. 2022).