Dolphins & Swans Return To Italy, As Air, Water Quality Improves During Lockdown

There is a piece of good news that’s become the silver lining at this time of misery.

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Today, Italy reached over 47 thousand confirmed COVID-19 cases. Over 4,032 of those have been fatal, while 4,440 have recovered. The pandemic, like many other nations, has brought the country to a standstill.

Italians have increasingly turned to social media to spread positivity in the weeks since lockdown measures were implemented. Videos of people singing in unison from their balconies have gone viral and even inspired U2 frontman Bono to release new music on his Instagram and Facebook pages.

Social isolation is now the norm, and the economy is on the brink of disaster, however there is a silver lining to all this misery.

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We’ve reported on the crystal clear waters now flowing through Venice, one of the biggest Italian tourist attractions in the nation. According to Venice’s mayor’s spokesperson, the waters are improved.

La bellezza salverà il mondo in una Burano deserta i cigni si riappropriano dei canali….

Posted by Marco Contessa on Monday, March 9, 2020

“The water now looks clearer because there is less traffic on the canals, allowing the sediment to stay at the bottom. It’s because there is less boat traffic that usually brings sediment to the top of the water’s surface.”

The spokesperson further added, “The air, however, is less polluted since there are less vaporetti and boat traffic than usual because of the restricted movement of residents.”

But it isn’t just the sediment stirring. The waterways across Italy have become so clean that the marine life has returned. Fish have been photographed swimming in Venice, swans have returned to the fountains of Rome and even dolphins have been seen swimming in the newly pristine waters of the Port of Cagliari.

Satellite imagery has also shown a significant drop in Italian air pollution, much like what was caught by NASA of China last month. The nitrogen dioxide emissions have significantly decreased since the lockdown.

While several pictures were posted showcasing the clean country, many highlighted how humans are responsible for ruining it in the first place:

Arguably, the planet might be rebalancing itself in what was becoming a critical environmental crisis. Now, it seems, the world has no choice but to stop and listen.

Although the pandemic is halting life as we know it, it’d be wrong to dismiss the blessings in disguise that actually give us some hope.

It would also be wrong to ignore the damage us humans have caused to the planet.

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