This germ situation is far worse that smog. All the countries are polluted. With germs. If you don’t like Smog you can just move. If society in general doesn’t like dirty air in the future they should mandate 1 to 2 acre for residential housing developments, and no more sky scrapers.
There is PLENTY of land to spread out the population. Probably even in Europe. Big cities multi story buildings, imo are barbarous relics. Even 5 acre zoning would be perfect. Why have all that unused wasted land? People have to make up their mind, what they want. Can’t have both.
I remember years ago TPTB rep, ago Al Gore HATED urban Sprawl they called it. Wanted to keep us on “reservations” to respect animal habitat rights. Even to this day, villages and towns are MINDLESLY promoting denser population in suburbs.
TOD they call it. Transit Oriented Development. Putting up 4 story apartment monstrosities near rail road tracks. To glean more property tax per square mile. So they can pay the middle class cops and teachers etc. While the under class taxpayers are not middle class, so they need more lower paid bodies’ to pay the tax absorbers.
But these days? The US Gov’t itself is not bringing in enough tax money, and the “credit card” is still working.