China Losing Pollution Fight for Olympics

China promised clean air for the Summer 2008 Olympic Games as part of its bid to host them. The International Olympic Committee chose Beijing, in part, based on that promise. With the opening ceremony a week from Friday, it looks like draconian measures will be needed, along with some help from the weather, for the air to be breathable.

Already the government has forced half of the city’s cars off the road, by using an odd-even license-plate system. Factories around the city have been shut. These measures have reduced the pollution in the area, but they haven’t done enough to guarantee that the air will be tolerable for the entire run of the games.

Therefore, the government paper China Daily said on its front page today, “More vehicles could go off the roads, and all construction sites and some more factories in Beijing and its neighboring areas could be closed temporarily.” Professor Zhu Tong, of Peking University, who advises the Beijing government about air pollution, told the BBC as much as 90% of the cars in town may be forcibly parked. He noted, “There is a chance . . . that we cannot meet the air quality standards so stricter measures are needed.”

It’s the small particles (labeled “PM-10) that are the real worry. The World Health Organization says that 50 micrograms of these per cubic meter of air is the standard for which any air pollution control policy should aim. The Beeb reported, “At the Olympic Village on Monday, the BBC found the PM10 level was at least 145, while at the BBC office it was 134.”

There were some heavy rains last week that have left a haze over the city and that is holding the pollution in to a degree. Brisk winds would fix that, but so far, there haven’t been any. Inadequate planning is the culprit here. According to Greenpeace, which as issued a report largely praising the Chinese government for its green-initiative for the Olympics, “Beijing could have adopted clean production measures more widely across the municipality to speed up the improvement of air quality.” Many athletes next month will compete wearing face masks.

© Copyright 2008 by The Kensington Review, Jeff Myhre, PhD, Editor. No part of this publication may be reproduced without written consent. Produced using Fedora Linux.

Kensington Review Home