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. 2021 Apr:165:112124.
doi: 10.1016/j.marpolbul.2021.112124. Epub 2021 Feb 5.

COVID-19 lockdown improved the health of coastal environment and enhanced the population of reef-fish

J K Patterson Edward  1 , M Jayanthi  2 , H Malleshappa  3 , K Immaculate Jeyasanta  4 , R L Laju  4 , Jamila Patterson  4 , K Diraviya Raj  4 , G Mathews  4 , A S Marimuthu  5 , Gabriel Grimsditch  6
Affiliations

COVID-19 lockdown improved the health of coastal environment and enhanced the population of reef-fish

J K Patterson Edward et al. Mar Pollut Bull. 2021 Apr.

Abstract

Reduction in the impact of human-induced factors is capable of enhancing the environmental health. In view of COVID-19 pandemic, lockdowns were imposed in India. Travel, fishing, tourism and religious activities were halted, while domestic and industrial activities were restricted. Comparison of the pre- and post-lockdown data shows that water parameters such as turbidity, nutrient concentration and microbial levels have come down from pre- to post-lockdown period, and parameters such as dissolved oxygen levels, phytoplankton and fish densities have improved. The concentration of macroplastics has also dropped from the range of 138 ± 4.12 and 616 ± 12.48 items/100 m2 to 63 ± 3.92 and 347 ± 8.06 items/100 m2. Fish density in the reef areas has increased from 406 no. 250 m-2 to 510 no. 250 m-2. The study allows an insight into the benefits of effective enforcement of various eco-protection regulations and proper management of the marine ecosystems to revive their health for biodiversity conservation and sustainable utilization.

Keywords: COVID-19; Environmental health; Gulf of Mannar; Lockdown; Plastic pollution; Reef fish.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper.

Figures

Unlabelled Image
Graphical abstract
Fig. 1
Fig. 1
Map of Gulf of Mannar focusing on the 164 km long coast of Thoothukudi district.
Fig. 2
Fig. 2
Map showing the study sites.
Fig. 3
Fig. 3
Concentration of macroplastics before and after lockdown (PrLD = Pre-lockdown; PoLD = Postlockdown).
Fig. 4
Fig. 4
Weight of macroplastics before and after lockdown (PrLD = Pre-lockdown; PoLD = Postlockdown).
Fig. 5
Fig. 5
Clean coast index before and after lockdown (PrLD = Pre-lockdown; PoLD = Postlockdown).
Fig. 6
Fig. 6
Concentration of mesoplastics before and after lockdown (PrLD = Pre-lockdown; PoLD = Postlockdown).
Fig. 7
Fig. 7
Weight of mesoplastics before and after lockdown (PrLD = Pre-lockdown; PoLD = Postlockdown).
Fig. 8
Fig. 8
Concentration of microplastics before and after lockdown (PrLD = Pre-lockdown; PoLD = Postlockdown).
Fig. 9
Fig. 9
Average fish density before and after lockdown (PrLD = Pre-lockdown; PoLD = Postlockdown).
Fig. 10
Fig. 10
Average density of parrotfishes before and after lockdown (PrLD = Pre-lockdown; PoLD = Postlockdown).
Fig. 11
Fig. 11
Parrot fishes in the reefs of Gulf of Mannar; a. Scarus ghobban swimming freely; b. S. ghobban caught in a fish trap.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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