Associations between COVID-19 transmission rates, park use, and landscape structure

Abstract

The COVID-19 pandemic has had severe impacts on global public health. In the UK, social distancing measures and a nationwide lockdown were introduced to reduce the spread of the virus. Green space accessibility may have been particularly important during this lockdown, as it could have provided benefits for physical and mental wellbeing, while also limiting the risk of transmission. However, the effects of public green space use on the rate of COVID-19 transmission are yet to be quantified, and as the size and accessibility of green spaces vary within local authorities, the risks and benefits to the public of using green space may well be context-dependent. To evaluate how green space affected COVID-19 transmission across 98 local authorities in England, we first split case rates into two periods, the pre-peak rise and the post-peak decline in cases, and assessed how baseline health and mobility variables influenced these rates. Next, looking at the residual case rates, we investigated how landscape structure (e.g. area and patchiness of green space) and park use influenced transmission. We first show that pre- and post-peak case rates were significantly reduced when overall mobility was low, especially in areas with high population clustering, and high population density during the post-peak period only. After accounting for known mechanisms behind transmission rates, we found that park use (showing a preference for park mobility) decreased residual pre-peak case rates, especially when green space was low and contiguous (not patchy). Whilst in the post-peak period, park use and green landscape structure had no effect on residual case rates. Our results show that utilising green spaces rather than other activities (e.g. visiting shops and workplaces) can reduce the transmission rate of COVID-19, especially during an exponential phase of transmission.

Disentangling the rhythms of human activity in the built environment for airborne transmission risk: an analysis of large-scale mobility data

“…In particular, behavioral interventions or nudges that reduce occupancy are more impactful than reducing overall mobility as they reduce visitor density and the likelihood of density-dependent airborne transmission. Similarly, the availability of outdoor areas in urban settings, such as public parks, has been demonstrated to reduce case rates when population mobility becomes less restricted [35]. Our results suggest that such public health strategies should be implemented in a targeted manner, informed by real-time data and with clear communication of the goals.…”

Correlation between the Concentrations of Atmospheric Ions and Radon as Judged from Measurements at the Fonovaya Observatory

“…Since our data are for 2020, this may be a consequence of the lockdown associated with the coronavirus pandemic. There are publications reporting the change in the air composition due to the decrease in emissions [42][43][44][45]. However, the processes associated with the lockdown could affect only the annual variation in ions, while the features of the annual variation in radon are apparently explained by other causes.…”

Associations between greenness and predicted COVID-19–like illness incidence in the United States and the United Kingdom

“…27 In England, no associations of green space with COVID-19 incidence were found. 22 However, park use was associated with lower COVID-19 incidence. 22 In Wuhan, China, and Hong Kong, positive associations between green space metrics and COVID-19 cases were observed.…”

“…Several studies observed protective associations between greenness and risk of COVID-19 morbidity and mortality; 19–27 however, contradictory findings were reported in two studies. 28,29 A major limitation of these studies is that they relied on ecological data and can suffer from ecological fallacy.…”

“…In addition, green spaces may affect cardiovascular and respiratory health by mitigating air pollution exposure and reducing stress, [11][12][13][14][15] and in turn affect COVID-19 morbidity. [16][17][18] Several studies observed protective associations between greenness and risk of COVID-19 morbidity and mortality; [19][20][21][22][23][24][25][26][27] however, contradictory findings were reported in two studies. 28,29 A major limitation of these studies is that they relied on ecological data and can suffer from ecological fallacy.…”