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[[File:Logo Monografía.jpg||left|thumb|300px|Map: Evolution in the demand for electricity. 2019-2020. Spain. [//centrodedescargas.cnig.es/CentroDescargas/busquedaRedirigida.do?ruta=PUBLICACION_CNIG_DATOS_VARIOS/aneTematico/Europa_Densidad-de-poblacion-en-la-Union-Europea_2019_mapa_18193_spa.pdf PDF]. [//centrodedescargas.cnig.es/CentroDescargas/busquedaRedirigida.do?ruta=PUBLICACION_CNIG_DATOS_VARIOS/aneTematico/Europa_Densidad-de-poblacion-en-la-Union-Europea_2019_mapa_18193_spa.zip Datos].]]

[[File:Logo Monografía.jpg||right|thumb|300px|Map: Electricity production and year-on-year varation. 2019-2020. Spain. [//centrodedescargas.cnig.es/CentroDescargas/busquedaRedirigida.do?ruta=PUBLICACION_CNIG_DATOS_VARIOS/aneTematico/Europa_Densidad-de-poblacion-en-la-Union-Europea_2019_mapa_18193_spa.pdf PDF]. [//centrodedescargas.cnig.es/CentroDescargas/busquedaRedirigida.do?ruta=PUBLICACION_CNIG_DATOS_VARIOS/aneTematico/Europa_Densidad-de-poblacion-en-la-Union-Europea_2019_mapa_18193_spa.zip Datos].]]

Energy is an essential and strategic resource for the socio-economic development of a country. The COVID-19 pandemic altered social behaviour, especially during the initial phases of lockdown. These changes directly impacted energy production and energy consumption in Spain in line with the rest of the European Union.

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One of the effects of the restrictions on mobility and on economic activity during spring 2020 was the temporary reduction in greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions recorded worldwide. The Ministry for the Ecological Transition and the Demographic Challenge (2021) estimated gross emissions of 271.5 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalent (CO₂-eq) for 2020 in the ''Progress of the Greenhouse Gas Emission Inventory'' (''Avance del Inventario de Emisiones de Gases de Efecto Invernadero''), an overall 13.7% drop compared to 2019. Furthermore, total emissions were 6.4% lower than in 1990 and 38.6% lower than in 2005. This was the first time in the series (1990-2020) that emissions dipped below the figure for 1990. The graph on the ''[[:File:Evolution in greenhouse gas emissions by sector|Evolution in greenhouse gas emissions by sector]]'' shows the steady decline in emissions from 2000 to 2020 in several sectors, with three distinct turning points in 2008, 2013 and 2020, simultaneous to three economic downturns. Absorptions from the land-use sector, forestry and changes of use were estimated at 36.6 million tonnes of CO₂-eq (13.5% of the total gross emissions in the Inventory for 2020) and must be deducted from the gross amount. Therefore, net emissions in 2020 were estimated at 234.9 million tonnes of CO₂-eq, i.e. a drop of 15.2% compared to 2019.

The reduction in greenhouse gas emissions registered in 2020 shall be regarded as an exception; it had a transient and minor impact on the overall levels of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere and, therefore, on global climate. Given that what really matters from a global perspective is the cumulative effect of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere, the impact of a temporary reduction, such as the one registered during lockdown, is negligible. In fact, a detailed analysis of historical emission trends shows that emissions would have reduced even without COVID-19. Specifically, the study carried out by the Spanish Observatory of the Energy Transition and Climate Action (OTEA, 2020) found that whilst 71% of the reduction registered in 2020 may be attributed to the pandemic, the remaining 29% would have been achieved by simply keeping the decreasing trend recorded in recent years.

{{ANETextoEpigrafe|epigrafe=Air quality in Europe}}

Lockdown and restrictions on mobility slowed down economic activity during the first wave of the COVID-19 pandemic and led to a significant drop in road transport, as outlined in other chapters. To analyse the effects of this slowdown on air pollution, the European Environment Agency (EEA) monitored the average weekly and monthly concentrations of nitrogen dioxide (NO₂) and fine particles (PM 10 and PM 2.5), measured every hour or every day by nearly 3,000 gauging stations (EEA, 2020 and 2021). Exposure to air pollution may have adverse effects on health, and in particular people with respiratory diseases could be more vulnerable to COVID-19. Although the epidemiological research carried out to date is as yet inconclusive, all signs suggest that such exposure worsens the condition of people infected with coronavirus. What has been concluded is that a higher air quality prevented 2,190 early deaths in Europe ascribable to fine particles (PM 2.5) from 21 February to 17 May 2020 (Giani ''et al.,'' 2020).

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{{ANETextoEpigrafe|epigrafe=Noise pollution}}

[[File:Logo Monografía.jpg||right|thumb|300px|Map: Variation in noise levels in Madrid during lockdown. 2019-2020. Madrid. [//centrodedescargas.cnig.es/CentroDescargas/busquedaRedirigida.do?ruta=PUBLICACION_CNIG_DATOS_VARIOS/aneTematico/Europa_Densidad-de-poblacion-en-la-Union-Europea_2019_mapa_18193_spa.pdf PDF]. [//centrodedescargas.cnig.es/CentroDescargas/busquedaRedirigida.do?ruta=PUBLICACION_CNIG_DATOS_VARIOS/aneTematico/Europa_Densidad-de-poblacion-en-la-Union-Europea_2019_mapa_18193_spa.zip Datos].]]The spread of coronavirus was linked to air pollution, as mentioned above, but also to noise pollution, which raises stress levels and weakens the immune system. Thus, according to hospital and intensive care unit admission rates, the incidence of coronavirus infection and the severity of its symptoms are directly related to environmental noise levels. However, environmental noise does not influence mortality (Díaz ''et al.,'' 2021).

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</ul></div>In Barcelona, data from the City Council used for the graph on ''[[:File:Noise levels in Barcelona during the first wave of the pandemic|Noise levels in Barcelona during the first wave of the pandemic]]'' show minimum figures registered at the beginning of the state of alarm in gauging stations with heavy, moderate an light traffic (between 65-50 dB). These figures show a significant decrease from the equivalent average figures for 2019 (70-56 dB) and the virtual disappearance of noise pollution. However, noise pollution increased on data for 2020 with the return to work during phases 0, 1 and 2 of the downscaling process, with some exceptions at light traffic gauging stations. It is important to note that the figures recorded at the start of phase 2 were close to the baseline figures for 2019, especially in areas with heavy traffic, which means reductions were temporary. The graph on the ''[[:File:Noise levels due to nightlife in Barcelona during the first wave of the pandemic|Noise levels due to nightlife in Barcelona during the first wave of the pandemic]]'' shows how noise pollution from nightlife fell from over 60 dB, recorded for the March-June 2019 period, to 50 dB on most streets (pedestrian streets with nightlife venues, streets with traffic and nightlife venues and streets with bar terraces and people gathering) during the state of alarm, the return to work and the subsequent phases. A rapid increase in noise levels (55-57 dB) was, however, detected on streets with bar terraces during phases 1 and 2 of the downscaling process.

<div class="center" style="width:auto; margin-left:auto; margin-right:auto">{{ANETextoAsociado|titulo=Seismic noise|contenido= <div><ul style="text-align: left; float:right; margin-left:10px; margin-right:20px">

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</ul></div><ul style="text-align: left">The Geographic Institute of Spain [http://www.ign.es/web/resources/sismologia/acelerografos/acelerografos.html monitors accelerometers] placed in urban areas in the most seismically active Spanish regions. The primary purpose of these seismic stations is to record the intense ground movements caused by earthquakes. However, due to their urban locations, they may also provide accurate recordings of the cultural or anthropic seismic noise levels caused by human activity, such as traffic, industry and other causes of ground vibrations. <br>