Impacts of COVID-19 on the Aquatic Environment and Implications on Aquatic Food Production

Fatimah Md Yusoff, Ahmad Fikri Abdullah, Ahmad Zaharin Aris and Wahidah Ahmad Dini Umi
Additional contact information
Fatimah Md Yusoff: Department of Aquaculture, Faculty of Agriculture, Universiti Putra Malaysia, Serdang 43400, Malaysia
Ahmad Fikri Abdullah: International Institute of Aquaculture and Aquatic Sciences, Universiti Putra Malaysia, Port Dickson 71050, Malaysia
Ahmad Zaharin Aris: International Institute of Aquaculture and Aquatic Sciences, Universiti Putra Malaysia, Port Dickson 71050, Malaysia
Wahidah Ahmad Dini Umi: Department of Aquaculture, Faculty of Agriculture, Universiti Putra Malaysia, Serdang 43400, Malaysia

Sustainability, 2021, vol. 13, issue 20, 1-27

Abstract: The COVID-19 pandemic, caused by the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), resulted in ecological changes of aquatic ecosystems, affected the aquatic food supply chain, and disrupted the socio-economy of global populations. Due to reduced human activities during the pandemic, the aquatic environment was reported to improve its water quality, wild fishery stocks, and biodiversity. However, the sudden surge of plastics and biomedical wastes during the COVID-19 pandemic masked the positive impacts and increased the risks of aquatic pollution, especially microplastics, pharmaceuticals, and disinfectants. The transmission of SARS-CoV-2 from wastewater treatment plants to natural water bodies could have serious impacts on the environment and human health, especially in developing countries with poor waste treatment facilities. The presence and persistence of SARS-CoV-2 in human excreta, wastewaters, and sludge and its transmission to aquatic ecosystems could have negative impacts on fisheries and aquaculture industries, which have direct implications on food safety and security. COVID-19 pandemic-related environmental pollution showed a high risk to aquatic food security and human health. This paper reviews the impacts of COVID-19, both positive and negative, and assesses the causes and consequences of anthropogenic activities that can be managed through effective regulation and management of eco-resources for the revival of biodiversity, ecosystem health, and sustainable aquatic food production.

Keywords: COVID-19; aquatic environment; risks; aquatic foods; fisheries; aquaculture (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2021
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (1)

Downloads: (external link)
https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/13/20/11281/pdf (application/pdf)
https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/13/20/11281/ (text/html)

Related works:
This item may be available elsewhere in EconPapers: Search for items with the same title.

Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text

Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:13:y:2021:i:20:p:11281-:d:655011

Access Statistics for this article

Sustainability is currently edited by Ms. Alexandra Wu

More articles in Sustainability from MDPI
Bibliographic data for series maintained by MDPI Indexing Manager ().