The COVID-19 pandemic has caused global disruption, with the emergence of this and other pandemics having been linked to habitat encroachment and/or wildlife exploitation. High impacts of COVID-19 are apparent in some countries with large tropical peatland areas, some of which are relatively poorly resourced to tackle disease pandemics. Despite this, no previous investigation has considered tropical peatlands in the context of emerging infectious diseases (EIDs). Here, we review: (i) the potential for future EIDs arising from tropical peatlands; (ii) potential threats to tropical peatland conservation and local communities from COVID-19; and (iii) potential steps to help mitigate these risks. We find that high biodiversity in tropical peat-swamp forests, including presence of many potential vertebrate and invertebrate vectors, combined, in places, with high levels of habitat disruption and wildlife harvesting represent suitable conditions for potential zoonotic EID (re-)emergence. Although impossible to predict precisely, we identify numerous potential threats to tropical peatland conservation and local communities from the COVID-19 pandemic. This includes impacts on public health, with the potential for haze pollution from peatland fires to increase COVID-19 susceptibility a noted concern; and on local economies, livelihoods and food security, where impacts will likely be greater in remote communities with limited/no medical facilities that depend heavily on external trade. Research, training, education, conservation and restoration activities are also being affected, particularly those involving physical groupings and international travel, some of which may result in increased habitat encroachment, wildlife harvesting or fire, and may therefore precipitate longer-term negative impacts, including those relating to disease pandemics. We conclude that sustainable management of tropical peatlands and their wildlife is important for mitigating impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic, and reducing the potential for future zoonotic EID emergence and severity, thus strengthening arguments for their conservation and restoration. To support this, we list seven specific recommendations relating to sustainable management of tropical peatlands in the context of COVID-19/disease pandemics, plus mitigating the current impacts of COVID-19 and reducing potential future zoonotic EID risk in these localities. Our discussion and many of the issues raised should also be relevant for non-tropical peatland areas and in relation to other (pandemic-related) sudden socio-economic shocks that may occur in future.

中文翻译：

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在 COVID-19 和未来潜在的（人畜共患病）疾病大流行的背景下，热带泥炭地及其保护非常重要

COVID-19 大流行已造成全球混乱，这种流行病和其他流行病的出现与栖息地侵占和/或野生动物剥削有关。在一些拥有大面积热带泥炭地的国家，COVID-19 的影响非常明显，其中一些国家应对疾病大流行的资源相对匮乏。尽管如此，之前的调查没有在新发传染病（EID）的背景下考虑过热带泥炭地。在此，我们回顾：(i) 热带泥炭地未来引发 EID 的潜力；(ii) COVID-19 对热带泥炭地保护和当地社区的潜在威胁；(iii) 帮助减轻这些风险的潜在措施。我们发现，热带泥炭沼泽森林的生物多样性丰富，包括许多潜在的脊椎动物和无脊椎动物媒介的存在，加上栖息地破坏程度高和野生动物捕捞的情况，为潜在的人畜共患新发传染病（重新）出现提供了合适的条件。尽管无法准确预测，但我们发现了 COVID-19 大流行对热带泥炭地保护和当地社区的许多潜在威胁。这包括对公共健康的影响，其中泥炭地火灾造成的雾霾污染可能会增加人们对 COVID-19 的易感性，这是一个值得关注的问题；以及对当地经济、生计和粮食安全的影响，对于那些严重依赖对外贸易、医疗设施有限/没有医疗设施的偏远社区，影响可能更大。研究、培训、教育、保护和恢复活动也受到影响，特别是那些涉及实体团体和国际旅行的活动，其中一些活动可能导致栖息地侵占、野生动物捕捞或火灾增加，因此可能会引发长期负面影响，包括那些与疾病流行有关的。我们的结论是，热带泥炭地及其野生动物的可持续管理对于减轻 COVID-19 大流行的影响、降低未来人畜共患 EID 出现和严重程度的可能性非常重要，从而加强了其保护和恢复的论据。为了支持这一点，我们列出了七项具体建议，涉及在 COVID-19/疾病大流行的背景下热带泥炭地的可持续管理，以及减轻 COVID-19 当前的影响并减少这些地区未来潜在的人畜共患 EID 风险。我们的讨论和提出的许多问题也应该与非热带泥炭地地区以及未来可能发生的其他（与流行病相关的）突发社会经济冲击相关。