- Title: CHINA: Residents continue to struggle in pollution-plagued Chinese capital
- Date: 31st January 2013
- Summary: PLEASE NOTE: THIS EDIT CONTAINS CONVERTED 4:3 MATERIAL BEIJING, CHINA (JANUARY 31, 2013) (REUTERS) VARIOUS OF BEIJING TRAFFIC VARIOUS OF STREET LIGHTS IN SMOG VARIOUS OF PEOPLE WEARING MASKS WALKING ON SIDEWALK (SOUNDBITE) (Mandarin) 33 YEAR-OLD FINANCIAL OFFICER FAN XING, SAYING" "I certainly have some worries. It might have an effect on decreasing the amount of tim
- Embargoed: 15th February 2013 12:00
- Keywords:
- Location: China
- Country: China
- Topics: Disasters
- Reuters ID: LVACYXHBVHFP4CZCR9FYNRGIHMBA
- Story Text: Beijing residents continue to struggle through the continually pollution-plagued northern Chinese capital.
Light sleet eased Beijing's notorious air pollution on Thursday (January 31), bringing the official daily average air quality index down to around 250, an improvement although still in the "unhealthy" range.
Air quality in the Chinese capital has mostly stayed been in "very unhealthy" and "hazardous" levels for about two weeks. On Tuesday (January 29), an index maintained by the U.S. Embassy in Beijing hit 517, and was described as "Beyond Index".
Pollution in Beijing regularly exceeds 500 on an index that measures particulate matter in the air with a diameter of 2.5 micrometers or PM 2.5. Above 300 is considered hazardous, while the World Health Organisation recommends a daily level of no more than 20.
Earlier this month pollution hit a record, 30-45 times above recommended safety levels, blanketing the city in a thick, noxious cloud that grounded flights and forced people indoors.
Beijing's pollution problem has caused widespread public outrage.
"I certainly have some worries. It might have an effect on decreasing the amount of time spent outdoors. Yesterday I was on the phone for about an hour and felt very uncomfortable. So I hope this thing will improve soon, otherwise it just can't go on anymore (this way)," said 33 year-old local resident Fan Xing.
The weather forecast said wind would disperse most of the pollutants on Thursday night, which was a relief to many local residents.
"I think that windy and rainy weather might be able to relieve (the city of pollution). I used to hate windy (weather), but for the sake of less smog, I hope to have some windy weather," said another local resident Biao Qing.
At Beijing's children's hospital, parents holding babies and young children sat in the corridor beside the respiratory illness ward on Wednesday (January 30), state television CCTV showed.
The director of the hospital's outpatient department said earlier in the week that the "continuous smoggy weather has significantly increased the number of child patients", the Economic Observer newspaper reported.
One mother said she was concerned the air was exacerbating her son's allergic condition.
"The weather is just too terrible. And a respiratory infection actually has a pretty big effect on these kind of kids. He's got an allergic condition," she said.
High levels of PM2.5 can cause cardiopulmonary disease, lung cancer and acute respiratory infection, according to the Journal of Toxicology and Environmental Health.
Xu Xiaobing, deputy director of the lung and respiratory department of Beijing's Children's hospital, said people who are already suffering from respiratory problems are the most vulnerable.
"Smog may affect people who are more susceptible, like people with allergic condition or patients suffering from asthma. But it does not affect average citizens that much," said Xu.
To combat dangerously high air pollution, Beijing has temporarily shut down 103 heavily polluting factories and took 30 percent of government vehicles off roads, state news agency Xinhua said, but the capital's air remained hazardous despite the measures.
Heavy fog also shrouded other parts of central and northern China on Wednesday.
CCTV reported that authorities had to temporarily close the Qingdao airport in eastern Shandong province on Wednesday morning due to dense fog.
Ground traffic in seven provinces in eastern, central and northern China and Tianjin municipality were affected by fog on Thursday morning, and many major highways in the region were shut down, according to local media reports.
Meteorological authorities expected the smoggy weather to ease by Friday (February 1), following a cold front. - Copyright Holder: REUTERS
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