China's smog fight continues as economic pressures mount

Record ID: 1362535

  • Title: China's smog fight continues as economic pressures mount
  • Date: 1st November 2018
  • Summary: TANGSHAN, HEBEI PROVINCE, CHINA (OCTOBER 29, 2018) (REUTERS) VARIOUS OF STEEL PLANT FIELDS IN FRONT OF STEEL PLANT VARIOUS OF 65-YEAR-OLD FARMER FROM TANGSHAN, DONG YINGBAN, GUTTING FISH (SOUNDBITE) (Mandarin) 65-YEAR-OLD FARMER FROM TANGSHAN, DONG YINGBAN, SAYING: "Right now (the steel mills) aren't allowed to operate anymore. Now we raise pigs and we even have to build a
  • Embargoed: 15th November 2018 03:22
  • Keywords: employment economy World Health Organisation Baoding Beijing Greenpeace Hebei China Tagshan pollution steel smog coal
  • Location: TANGSHAN AND BAODING, HEBEI PROVINCE / BEIJING, CHINA
  • City: TANGSHAN AND BAODING, HEBEI PROVINCE / BEIJING, CHINA
  • Country: China
  • Topics: Pollution,Environment
  • Reuters ID: LVA00194O9OHX
  • Aspect Ratio: 16:9
  • Story Text: Once regarded as one of the world's worst-polluted cities, China's steelmaking hub of Tangshan now frequently experiences blue skies.
    The Chinese government's declared "war on pollution" has resulted in the closure of many of the smog-prone city's steel mills, but for some, the experience hasn't been so rosy.
    "There have been a lot of layoffs," said former steel mill worker Wang Xinyu, 28, just before departing for a contract housing renovation job. "The economy nowadays really isn't that good."
    Dong Yingban, a local farmer, said pollution regulations are so strict he has to build manure pits for his own pigs to keep his business going.
    Despite the efforts by local governments across northern Hebei province to curb slowing heavy industries over the past few years, the government's pollution battle appears far from over.
    Four cities in Hebei - Handan, Shijiazhuang, Baoding, Xingtai - are on the World Health Organisation's list of the world's top 20 most polluted cities, according to data collected since 2016.
    Beijing-based Greenpeace campaigner Huang Wei said local governments need to restructure their economies, otherwise the current measures will grow "less and less effective".
    Environmental groups have also warned that China has been "backsliding" on its environmental commitments amid measures to fight its economic slowdown, allowing coal consumption and climate-warming greenhouse gas emissions to creep back up.
    While the government has set more pragmatic targets based on actual economic conditions, Liu Youbin, a spokesman for the environmental ministry, said it is "one-sided" and "inaccurate" to say China will relax pollution-cutting measures.
    In Bejiing, which is surrounded by northern Hebei province, the number of smoggy days has been dropping. While some residents say authorities aren't doing enough, others question whether the push for bluer skies is really worth it.
    "This sort of change regarding blue skies is good, but I hope the price we pay for it won't be a major sacrifice for the speed of our economic development," said Scarlet Zuo, a 24-year-old business development manager.
    The country's environmental ministry has warned that poor weather conditions are expected to make pollution-prone northern regions even more vulnerable to smog this winter.
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