After two years of closing its borders, Australia has decided to allow the entry of visa holders into the country. The travellers would have to show proof of being fully vaccinated while those who have not yet received their vaccination are bound to provide a valid travel exemption.

Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison, in a press conference, announced that the borders will open from the 21^st of February 2022 for international visitors. Stressing on the vaccination requirement, Scott Morrison, said “Everyone is expected to abide by it. And it’s very important that people understand that requirement if they’re seeking to come to Australia,”. 

Earlier this year, Tennis star Novak Djokovic was not allowed to enter Australia for the covid prevention regulation. Morrison made a reference to the event in his statement to further emphasize the rule “Your visa is one thing, but your entry into Australia requires you also to be double vaccinated. And I think events earlier in the year should have sent a very clear message,”

Australian Minister of Home Affairs, Karen Andrews, expressed the hope of the revival of the tourism industry with the opening of the borders which “generated more than $60 billion for the Australian economy, with more than 660,000 jobs dependent on the industry” in the years 2018-2019.

The Australian borders were closed in March 2020 and were partially opened for students and skilled workers in November 2021. 

Alan Joyce, chief executive of Qantas, who earlier this month compared the Australian border restrictions to the “totalitarian state of North Korea” welcomed the decision by expressing the hope of opening of the businesses.

He said that the decision will help in bringing the economic growth with tourism “There are a lot of tourism operators in city centres and the regions that have been doing it really tough over the past couple of years and this will see more tourists come to their town, spend money and get local economies going again.”

Australia has faced a loss of around 72 billion dollars since March 2020. Peter Shelley, Australian Tourism Export Council Managing Director, called the decision an opportunity to rebuild “an industry that is in disrepair”.

Benchill, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons

• New Zealand will be reopening its borders after being shut down for nearly 2 years due to its tough Covid restrictions.
• Prime Minister Ardern announced a 5-phased plan to allow fully-vaccinated citizens back into the country.
• New Zealand has become one of  the most vaccinated country in the world, with 93% of eligible people fully-vaccinated. 

        New Zealand has finally signaled an end to its tough border rules after nearly 2 years of being shut down due to its strict Covid restrictions. 

        Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern explained the 5-step phased reopening which will allow fully vaccinated citizens and foreigners to finally enter the country. This plan will also allow citizens to skip the state mandatory hotel quarantine and be able to self-isolate at home for 10 days. 

        The plan first allows fully-vaccinated citizens residing in Australia to re-enter later this month. By July, fully-vaccinated people from visa-waived countries, such as the US and UK, can enter New Zealand. 

In 2020, the country had banned all foreign travelers from entering and had required any visitors to spend time in a state-run quarantine facility at their own expense. This system allowed New Zealand to keep Covid cases low; only 53 deaths have been reported to date. These strict rules also gave the country ample time to become one of the world’s most vaccinated country, with 93% of eligible people fully-vaccinated over the age of 12. 

        Although this approach was applauded by domestic citizens, around 1 million New Zealand citizens were stuck overseas and unable to be reunited with their loved ones for years. A large demand for hotel quarantine spots prevented many citizens from reentering and a quarantine lottery system had to be put in place for reserving a spot. 

        Ardern stated that opening back in this manner allows them to control the influx of travelers, fill workforce shortages, and allow the healthcare system to manage an increase in cases. Ms. Ardern has switched from a Covid elimination strategy to treating the virus as endemic, especially after the emergence of the Omicron variant. 

Snowstorms are blazing through the United States, and the most reliable method of clearing out the roads is salt. However, although dumping tons of salt onto the asphalt makes driving in snowy and icy conditions much safer, it comes with a cost – the environment and human health. The United States has been using de-icing salt since the 1930s and over the past fifty or so years, its use across the country has tripled. The Cary Institute of Ecosystem Studies in New York estimates that more than 20 million metric tons of salt are poured on US roads each winter, and the environmental costs are growing.

    About 70% of the US population lives in regions that experience snow and ice. Surely, many people are familiar with the flashing trucks on the highway signaling “SALTING IN PROGRESS.” Road deicing salts reduce vehicular accident rates in these regions by more than 78% but have led to dramatic increases in freshwater salinity. Road salt or de-icing salt is halite, the mineral form of sodium chloride. It is a form of table salt and a naturally mined mineral used to melt ice. Table salt, unlike road salt, is purified for the daily use of human consumption. In contrast, road salt still contains impure minerals. Its color is typically gray or brownish. 

Research conducted by the Environmental Protection Agency has found that “As snow and ice melt on roads, the salt washes into soil, lakes and streams, in some cases contaminating drinking water reservoirs and wells. It has killed or endangered wildlife in freshwater ecosystems, with high chloride levels toxic to fish, bugs and amphibians.” 

The salty runoff contaminates groundwater affecting human health, vegetation, crops, and much more. The chlorides from the salt are infiltrating lakes, streams, and groundwater – harming local fauna, wildlife, and is also incredibly damaging to aquatic life and ecosystems. Unnatural materials when used in abundance can create something called dead zones in aquatic ecosystems which essentially suffocates all surrounding life. According to Wisconsin Salt Wise, one teaspoon of salt is all it takes to make five gallons of water toxic for freshwater organisms. 

Furthermore, rock salts cause rusting and damage to various materials and infrastructures. Long-term exposure to the salt causes rust damage to vehicles and transportation systems. Cracking and separation of concrete and roads also occurs from salt infiltration. These salts erode masonry and stone therefore, using salt to remove snow and ice from concrete pathways or patios will likely lead to signs of damage. 

It is clear that salting roads has caused and is continuing to cause a substantial amount of damage to the environment. That being said, there are several non-toxic alternatives available to de-icing salts. 

Researchers at Washington State University published a study in 2019 indicating that grapes are an excellent sustainable alternative for road salt. After a two-year lab study, the de-icing compound made of grape skin extract surpassed conventional de-icing methods, including road salt. Not only does this grape skin substance generate better results, it also produces zero waste. It is said that this method even outperforms the runner-up environmentally friendly blend of salt brine and beet juice. 

Cities in New Jersey, Minnesota, and Canada have been using beet juice in their de-icing practices. Beet juice requires salt brine to melt the ice. But when mixed with salt, beet juice helps the salt mixture in melting ice at lower temperatures. Regular salt works up until the temperatures reach 25 °F, whereas beet juice works well until 5 °F. This mixture uses less salt, which means less corrosiveness on the road and surrounding environment.

Electric and gas-powered snow blowers are also commonly mentioned alternatives to melting ice with salt. Electric and gas-powered snow blowers can help remove snow entirely from walkways, driveways, and more. However, the drawback with this method is that it is mainly only suitable for smaller properties and common areas; they also are not as effective for big patches of snow.

Another notable alternative is brine from pickling foods. According to the National Geographic, pickle brine is better for the environment (than salt) because it prevents ice from sticking to the road, making it easier to remove. Pickle brine would also dramatically reduce the amount of chloride permeating water systems – a reduction of up to 29%. It is used as a pre-treatment before snowfall since it prevents snow and ice from bonding to the pavement. The ice is then easily chipped off and removed, which is something that rock salt is not able to do on its own.

Several options exist for an eco-friendlier way of melting snow and ice off our roads. Just one switch would not only make driving and walking safer, but it would also protect wildlife and prevent the negative human health impacts. Many states and local cities have taken it upon themselves to implement better de-icing methods however a stronger push needs to be made in this direction – especially since twelve states currently use a salt and sand mixture with a rate that typically falls within a range of 250 to 300 pounds per lane mile during snow and ice conditions. 

Ryanair flight FR4978 made an unexpected journey to Belarus instead of directly heading to its destination in Lithuania, despite being closer to it on 23rd May 2021. The plane had been diverted under a supposed bomb threat. The crew on board were under the impression that a bomb could be detonated closer to it’s destination of landing and hence advised to divert to Minsk, Belarus. With a bomb threat looming at large, the crew were coerced to land in Belarus where two passengers, Roman Protasevich and Sofia Sapega renowned journalists were arrested. It had also been noted that shortly after the plane landed the Belarusian military scrambled a MiG-29 fighter jet to encourage the crew to follow flight official orders. 

Investigations of this claim hailed inconclusive evidence, suggesting that Belarusian government was the mastermind behind this act of air piracy. Amongst other terror groups, the Palestenian terrorist organisation Hamas was accused of placing the bomb on the plane. This was denied by Hamas and no evidence was found. Regardless, Belarusian officials and media portrayed this incident as a matter of security and protection of human life. However, Roman & Sofia’s arrest and difficult history with the current Belursian government states otherwise. President Alexander Lukashenko, also referred to as ‘Europe’s last dictator’ was the subject of Roman Protasevich’s accusations of fraud and corruption during elections. Roman had been in exile in Lithuania over charges relating to organisation of mass protests and his role as the editor of dissident media channel known as Nexta. It appears his flight after a quick tour of Greece was enough for the Belarusian government to snatch an opponent out of the air. It appears both Roman and Sofia are facing jail terms of an unknown duration with charges of terrorism and icitement of riots. US Prosecutors have hence charged four Belarusian officials with aircraft piracy for claiming that there was no bomb onboard the aircraft but a ploy to capture the opposing journalists on board. The US attorney, who has jurisdiction on the case as US citizens were on board, stated, “Since the dawn of powered flight, countries around the world have cooperated to keep passenger airplanes safe. The defendants shattered those standards by diverting an airplane to further the improper purpose of suppressing dissent and free speech.” Despite charges against Belarus, the notion of ‘free speech’ has suffered a great strike and the future of dissidents like Roman and Sofia appear bleak.

As new cases of the Covid-19 variant, Omicron keeps on surging, flights for thousands of people in Australia and the US were cancelled or delayed on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day. Although the new strain is said to be milder compared to previous ones, it is spreading at an alarming rate. 

According to a website that tracks flights, Flightaware.com, more than 4,500 flights were cancelled worldwide on Saturday. Moreover, on Christmas day, around 2000 flights were delayed out of which 700 were headed to or returning from the US. Some flights were cancelled, according to the Transportation Safety Administration, because of the increased number of people travelling. Another reason for flight cancellation was because of staff and pilots being infected with the virus and not being able to come to work. 

United, Delta, Lufthansa, and many other airlines have cancelled or delayed their flights so far. A United Airlines spokesman stated on Friday “the nationwide spike in Omicron cases this week has had a direct impact on our flight crews and the people who run our operation,” adding “as a result, we’ve unfortunately had to cancel some flights and are notifying impacted customers in advance of them coming to the airport.” In addition to that, Delta Airline released a statement on Thursday that said “Delta teams have exhausted all options and resources — including rerouting and substitutions of aircraft and crews to cover scheduled flying.” The Flightaware website also showed that on Saturday, Delta had 284 flight cancellations, United had 238, and American Airlines had 88 cancellations. 

Not only that, with an increase in cases, Italy, Spain, and Greece have all now made masks mandatory. In addition to that, the Netherlands is under strict lockdown while many European countries will expect strict lockdown after the holiday season. Pope Francis, in his Christmas Day sermon, prayed “grant health to the infirm and inspire all men and women of good will to seek the best ways possible to overcome the current health crisis and its effects.” Furthermore, Kenya has also decided to start giving booster shots of vaccination amid the fear of the new variant spreading again. 

The cancellation and delay of flights have of course dampened the holiday spirit. However, more care is necessary to prevent the spread of the highly contagious strain of Covid-19 as well. Hopefully, next time things will be better planned so people don’t have to wait at airports due to sudden cancellations or delays.