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?:abstract
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A novel infectious disease was identified in Wuhan, China, in December 2019, and later named as COVID-19 In a few weeks, the epidemic became a pandemic and by the end of March 2020, half of the world was under some form of lockdown The main goal of this work is to discuss the COVID-19 pandemic as a consequence of the main characteristics of Anthropocene, as well as the evidences of the human impact on the environment after the outbreak of the new coronavirus and the adoption of restrictive measures in many countries around the world Urbanization, industrialization, globalization, climate change, deforestation and also social inequalities, mainly in middle- and low-income countries, which in general have weaker health systems and limited capacity to handle a rapid rise in cases, are contributing to an emerging global health crisis Several examples of the environmental impacts are presented Some examples of the decrease of primary atmospheric pollutants (mainly fine particulate matter and NO2) are discussed as well as other negative impacts, such as the increase in ozone tropospheric concentrations and medical waste As a global phenomenon in the \'Age of Humans\', the COVID-19 pandemic requires the urgent and coordinated effort of all countries to overcome the crisis The pandemic is an opportunity to take advantage of the spirit of cooperation, to embrace the socio-environmental diversity and arrive at a necessary common global agreement to manage the future of Earth collectively
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