This paper takes the cue from recent empirical evidence concerning the link between atmospheric pollution and virus propagation (so called "level 2 transmission"), and derives ecological insights and policy prescriptions, linked to selective shutdowns of the activities that take into account their impact on pollution. In this way the scope of the response to pandemic is opened up, strengthening the foundations of an ecology of health that relies on the interdependences between the functioning of ecosystems, socio-economic dynamics and the health of plants, animals and human beings.
Keywords: Pandemic, pollution, contagiousness, selective restrictions, ecosystem.