China appears to be &quot;winning&quot; its war on air pollution, making so much progress that life expectancy could rise by more than two years, according to a US university study.

The Chinese government has been waging a battle to clear its skies of smog that has cut life expectancy in some regions and prompted its citizens to buy masks and air purifiers to protect themselves during peak pollution days.

The University of Chicago says in its study released Monday that while the world&#39;s biggest polluter faces a long road to reach national and international air quality standards, the results &quot;suggest the country is winning its war on pollution&quot;.

Based on daily data from more than 200 monitors across China from 2013 to 2017, the analysis found that cities have cut levels of PM 2.5 -- the tiny airborne particles considered most harmful to health -- by an average of 32 percent in just four years.

If sustained, such reductions would increase the life expectancy of the average Chinese citizen by 2.4 years relative to 2013. PM 2.5 can play a role in heart disease, stroke, and lung ailments such as emphysema and cancer.

Another study published by the university last year had found that air pollution in northern China had cut life expectancy by three years compared with the south of the country.

&quot;We don&#39;t have a historical example of a country achieving such rapid reductions in air pollution. It&#39;s remarkable,&quot; Michael Greenstone the economist and director of the Energy Policy Institute at the University of Chicago who conducted the studies, said on Tuesday.

By contrast, it took the US a dozen years and a severe recession to attain similar improvements in air quality after it enacted its 1970 Clean Air Act, he noted.

&quot;What these last four years have demonstrated quite loudly is that things can change and they can change rapidly &ndash;- it just requires political will,&quot; he said.

As public discontent mounted over the country&#39;s choking smog, China&#39;s ruling Communist Party made clean air a priority.&nbsp;

In 2013, it launched an ambitious air pollution action plan that sought to slash PM 2.5 levels in key regions such as the northern Beijing-Hebei-Tianjin area and the Yangtze River Delta by up to a quarter.

In 2014, Chinese Premier Li Keqiang declared &quot;war&quot; on pollution.

Since then, teams of inspectors have been deployed across major cities in north China to ensure compliance with pollution standards.&nbsp;

Highlighting the challenge facing the country, Beijing&#39;s skies were a dismal grey on Tuesday, as PM 2.5 levels soared to 270 micrograms per cubic cubic metre, more than 10 times the maximum recommended by the World Health Organization for a 24-hour period.

&nbsp;Social costs

But the capital and other places have made progress.

Beijing cut PM 2.5 levels by 35 per cent between 2013 and 2017, increasing lifespans of its 20 million residents by 3.3 years, the study found. Baoding, China&#39;s most polluted city as of 2015, cut pollution by 38 per cent, adding 4.5 years of life.

&quot;China&#39;s not held up as a democratic regime, and yet here we have a clear example of the public demanding something and the government delivering it,&quot; said Greenstone.

Yet the war on smog has come with social costs.&nbsp;

To clear the skies, authorities ordered thousands of polluting factories to leave urban centres, displacing hundreds of thousands of migrants.&nbsp; &nbsp;&nbsp;

They also designated &quot;no-coal zones&quot; that pushed more than three million households in the region around Beijing to abruptly switch over to gas or electric heating, often removing coal boilers before new systems were functional.

In December, schools in Hebei province made headlines after pupils suffered frostbite from attending class outside. Delays to installations of the new electric heating systems meant it was slightly warmer in the weak winter sunshine than in the frigid classrooms.

Greenstone said he hoped to see China move towards more market-based environmental regulations. He recommended measures such as setting up cap-and-trade markets for particulates and beefing up pollution taxes.

The Chinese government has been waging a battle to clear its skies of smog that has cut life expectancy in some regions and prompted its citizens to buy masks and air purifiers to protect themselves during peak pollution days

China appears to be "winning" its war on air pollution, making so much progress that life expectancy could rise by more than two years, according to a US university study. The Chinese government has been waging a battle to clear its skies of smog that has cut life expectancy in some regions and prompted its citizens to buy masks and air purifiers to protect themselves during peak pollution days. The University of Chicago says in its study released Monday that while the world's biggest polluter faces a long road to reach national and international air quality standards, the results "suggest the country is winning its war on pollution". Based on daily data from more than 200 monitors across China from 2013 to 2017, the analysis found that cities have cut levels of PM 2.5 -- the tiny airborne particles considered most harmful to health -- by an average of 32 percent in just four years. If sustained, such reductions would increase the life expectancy of the average Chinese citizen by 2.4 years relative to 2013. PM 2.5 can play a role in heart disease, stroke, and lung ailments such as emphysema and cancer. Another study published by the university last year had found that air pollution in northern China had cut life expectancy by three years compared with the south of the country. "We don't have a historical example of a country achieving such rapid reductions in air pollution. It's remarkable," Michael Greenstone the economist and director of the Energy Policy Institute at the University of Chicago who conducted the studies, said on Tuesday. By contrast, it took the US a dozen years and a severe recession to attain similar improvements in air quality after it enacted its 1970 Clean Air Act, he noted. "What these last four years have demonstrated quite loudly is that things can change and they can change rapidly –- it just requires political will," he said. As public discontent mounted over the country's choking smog, China's ruling Communist Party made clean air a priority. In 2013, it launched an ambitious air pollution action plan that sought to slash PM 2.5 levels in key regions such as the northern Beijing-Hebei-Tianjin area and the Yangtze River Delta by up to a quarter. In 2014, Chinese Premier Li Keqiang declared "war" on pollution. Since then, teams of inspectors have been deployed across major cities in north China to ensure compliance with pollution standards. Highlighting the challenge facing the country, Beijing's skies were a dismal grey on Tuesday, as PM 2.5 levels soared to 270 micrograms per cubic cubic metre, more than 10 times the maximum recommended by the World Health Organization for a 24-hour period. Social costs But the capital and other places have made progress. Beijing cut PM 2.5 levels by 35 per cent between 2013 and 2017, increasing lifespans of its 20 million residents by 3.3 years, the study found. Baoding, China's most polluted city as of 2015, cut pollution by 38 per cent, adding 4.5 years of life. "China's not held up as a democratic regime, and yet here we have a clear example of the public demanding something and the government delivering it," said Greenstone. Yet the war on smog has come with social costs. To clear the skies, authorities ordered thousands of polluting factories to leave urban centres, displacing hundreds of thousands of migrants. They also designated "no-coal zones" that pushed more than three million households in the region around Beijing to abruptly switch over to gas or electric heating, often removing coal boilers before new systems were functional. In December, schools in Hebei province made headlines after pupils suffered frostbite from attending class outside. Delays to installations of the new electric heating systems meant it was slightly warmer in the weak winter sunshine than in the frigid classrooms. Greenstone said he hoped to see China move towards more market-based environmental regulations. He recommended measures such as setting up cap-and-trade markets for particulates and beefing up pollution taxes.

China 'winning' war on smog, helping life expectancy: Study

The 100 million-and-counting views of Chinese air pollution documentary Under the Dome is dramatic, but shouldn&rsquo;t come as any surprise in a country where discussion of smog is more commonplace than discussion of the weather.

It is of course hard to ignore air pollution in most Chinese cities once you step outside. Where Los Angeles in the 70s was famous for its brown skyline, resulting from nitrogen dioxide and photochemical smog, China is now renowned for its white haze of fine droplets, formed when particulate matter pollution and water vapour combine and grow. China isn&rsquo;t alone in having a problem with air pollution, (go visit New Delhi, Mexico City, Lagos or London), but you simply can&rsquo;t ignore it when the impacts on visibility are so great.

Until relatively recently, reliable data on Chinese air pollution was hard to come by, but much changed in 2009 when the US started measuring certain pollutants at their Embassy in Beijing and placing the information online. Soon afterwards there was a rapid expansion in openness and now anyone, anywhere, can see real&ndash;time pollution all over China.

Of course much of this data simply confirms what most residents can tell for themselves &ndash; there are good and bad days (more often bad) but the availability of quantitative information does now change peoples behaviour.

National acceptance of air pollution as a serious problem, via public dissemination and heated debate, followed by mitigation measures and regulation, is a very well-trodden path that virtually all developed nations have gone through during periods of rapid economic expansion. In this respect the pollution problem now in China is systemically no different to the transition periods that led ultimately to the Clean Air Act in the UK, or the introduction of catalytic converters in the US.

<figure><iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="260" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/MhIZ50HKIp0?wmode=transparent&amp;start=0" width="440"></iframe></figure>

An old problem on a new scale

The sources of pollution in Beijing are many and varied, but they have much in common with examples from history. Expanding provision of energy at the lowest possible cost has always been a lever in driving economic growth, and growth in China has been no exception. Its fuel of choice has been coal, and coal used in a somewhat uncontrolled and, until recently, poorly regulated manner.

Increases in transportation infrastructure have also characterised expanding economies; in the 21st century this means private cars, lorries, aircraft and shipping. While there has been moderate progress in reducing emissions on a per-car or per-aircraft basis, this is easily overwhelmed if the absolute numbers of each increase.

Agricultural emissions are a final but often overlooked contribution to pollution, and again China is no exception. Large populations with growing incomes want feeding, and this drives the increased use of fertilisers for productivity. In the atmosphere ammonia from often remote agriculture is a potent contributor to particulate matter found in cities.

There are scant few historical examples of major economic expansion without air pollution as a consequence. In the absence of a really game-changing energy technology or fuel or food source, national strategies need to be designed to transition as quickly as possible through the polluted period, where low cost trumps all other considerations.

This is something that can be see as analogous to the demographic transition that also accompanies economic development. It may be uncomfortable to accept, but the UK probably experienced a transition period of more than 100 years of terrible urban air pollution before the problem was brought under any degree of control. It seems unlikely the government or citizens of China will accept a transition anything like that long.

Not all doom and gloom

Control of air pollutant emissions from coal-fired power stations are effective in other countries, so there is no reason why strong regulation and enforcement can&rsquo;t achieve the same in China. Fertilisers and agriculture have proved technically and politically difficult to control in Europe and the US, but the science at least is understood.

There is also much that could be learned from the recent mistakes of others. It would be disappointing if the poor performance of modern diesel engines seen in European cities were allowed to play out again in China, or indeed in other less reported on pollution megacities in India, Africa and South America.

Although measurement data is sketchy and incomplete it is reasonable to assume that China is now past its &ldquo;peak pollution&rdquo; in absolute terms. The rate of implementation of cleaner technologies is on a scale greater than anything ever attempted before. Things are getting better, but the distance still to travel is pretty vast.

<img alt="The Conversation" height="1" src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/38399/count.gif?distributor=republish-lightbox-basic" width="1" />Investing domestically in cleaner power, cleaner transport, and cleaner urban living has a cost, but so does the healthcare and reduced productivity that air pollution induces. Cleaner air investments should be viewed as part of the engine of economic development, rather than the brake.

&nbsp;

This article was originally published on <a href="http://theconversation.com" rel="nofollow" target="blank">The Conversation</a>. Read the <a href="https://theconversation.com/what-china-must-do-to-fix-its-air-pollution-problem-38399" rel="nofollow" target="blank">original article</a>.

&nbsp;

(Disclaimer: The opinions expressed above are the personal views of the author and do not reflect the views of ZMCL)

&nbsp;

China needs cleaner power, cleaner transport, and cleaner urban living no matter what the expenses are.

The 100 million-and-counting views of Chinese air pollution documentary Under the Dome is dramatic, but shouldn’t come as any surprise in a country where discussion of smog is more commonplace than discussion of the weather. It is of course hard to ignore air pollution in most Chinese cities once you step outside. Where Los Angeles in the 70s was famous for its brown skyline, resulting from nitrogen dioxide and photochemical smog, China is now renowned for its white haze of fine droplets, formed when particulate matter pollution and water vapour combine and grow. China isn’t alone in having a problem with air pollution, (go visit New Delhi, Mexico City, Lagos or London), but you simply can’t ignore it when the impacts on visibility are so great. Until relatively recently, reliable data on Chinese air pollution was hard to come by, but much changed in 2009 when the US started measuring certain pollutants at their Embassy in Beijing and placing the information online. Soon afterwards there was a rapid expansion in openness and now anyone, anywhere, can see real–time pollution all over China. Of course much of this data simply confirms what most residents can tell for themselves – there are good and bad days (more often bad) but the availability of quantitative information does now change peoples behaviour. National acceptance of air pollution as a serious problem, via public dissemination and heated debate, followed by mitigation measures and regulation, is a very well-trodden path that virtually all developed nations have gone through during periods of rapid economic expansion. In this respect the pollution problem now in China is systemically no different to the transition periods that led ultimately to the Clean Air Act in the UK, or the introduction of catalytic converters in the US. An old problem on a new scale The sources of pollution in Beijing are many and varied, but they have much in common with examples from history. Expanding provision of energy at the lowest possible cost has always been a lever in driving economic growth, and growth in China has been no exception. Its fuel of choice has been coal, and coal used in a somewhat uncontrolled and, until recently, poorly regulated manner. Increases in transportation infrastructure have also characterised expanding economies; in the 21st century this means private cars, lorries, aircraft and shipping. While there has been moderate progress in reducing emissions on a per-car or per-aircraft basis, this is easily overwhelmed if the absolute numbers of each increase. Agricultural emissions are a final but often overlooked contribution to pollution, and again China is no exception. Large populations with growing incomes want feeding, and this drives the increased use of fertilisers for productivity. In the atmosphere ammonia from often remote agriculture is a potent contributor to particulate matter found in cities. There are scant few historical examples of major economic expansion without air pollution as a consequence. In the absence of a really game-changing energy technology or fuel or food source, national strategies need to be designed to transition as quickly as possible through the polluted period, where low cost trumps all other considerations. This is something that can be see as analogous to the demographic transition that also accompanies economic development. It may be uncomfortable to accept, but the UK probably experienced a transition period of more than 100 years of terrible urban air pollution before the problem was brought under any degree of control. It seems unlikely the government or citizens of China will accept a transition anything like that long. Not all doom and gloom Control of air pollutant emissions from coal-fired power stations are effective in other countries, so there is no reason why strong regulation and enforcement can’t achieve the same in China. Fertilisers and agriculture have proved technically and politically difficult to control in Europe and the US, but the science at least is understood. There is also much that could be learned from the recent mistakes of others. It would be disappointing if the poor performance of modern diesel engines seen in European cities were allowed to play out again in China, or indeed in other less reported on pollution megacities in India, Africa and South America. Although measurement data is sketchy and incomplete it is reasonable to assume that China is now past its “peak pollution” in absolute terms. The rate of implementation of cleaner technologies is on a scale greater than anything ever attempted before. Things are getting better, but the distance still to travel is pretty vast. Investing domestically in cleaner power, cleaner transport, and cleaner urban living has a cost, but so does the healthcare and reduced productivity that air pollution induces. Cleaner air investments should be viewed as part of the engine of economic development, rather than the brake. This article was originally published on The Conversation. Read the original article. (Disclaimer: The opinions expressed above are the personal views of the author and do not reflect the views of ZMCL)

Opinion: Will world's largest purifier in China solve its severe air quality?

Heavy fog and haze blanketed several cities in north and east China on Tuesday, causing travel disruption on the first day back at work following the three-day New Year holiday.

The city of Shijiazhuang, capital of north China&#39;s Hebei Province, issued orange alerts for heavy fog on Tuesday. As of 16:00 on Tuesday afternoon, a total of 152 outbound and inbound flights were canceled at the Shijiazhuang International Airport.

Fog and air pollution worsened visibility on roads in Shangqiu City in central China&#39;s Henan Province on Tuesday morning, resulting in the closure of all major expressways in the city.

The city also shut down all outdoor activities in local schools to prevent students from being affected by the poor air quality.

In Hefei, the capital of east China&#39;s Anhui Province, heavy fog brought down visibility to less than 30 meters on Tuesday morning. Local traffic resumed as the fog began to lift at around 15:00. But the fog continued to linger in the upper air.

(Reuters)

Fog and air pollution worsened visibility on roads in Shangqiu City in central China's Henan Province

Heavy fog and haze blanketed several cities in north and east China on Tuesday, causing travel disruption on the first day back at work following the three-day New Year holiday. The city of Shijiazhuang, capital of north China's Hebei Province, issued orange alerts for heavy fog on Tuesday. As of 16:00 on Tuesday afternoon, a total of 152 outbound and inbound flights were canceled at the Shijiazhuang International Airport. Fog and air pollution worsened visibility on roads in Shangqiu City in central China's Henan Province on Tuesday morning, resulting in the closure of all major expressways in the city. The city also shut down all outdoor activities in local schools to prevent students from being affected by the poor air quality. In Hefei, the capital of east China's Anhui Province, heavy fog brought down visibility to less than 30 meters on Tuesday morning. Local traffic resumed as the fog began to lift at around 15:00. But the fog continued to linger in the upper air. (Reuters)

China: Heavy fog disrupts traffic

Heavy smog in northern China on Sunday caused hundreds of flights to be cancelled and highways to shut, disrupting the first day of the new year holiday.

Large parts of the north were hit by hazardous smog in mid-December, leading authorities to order hundreds of factories to close and to restrict motorists to cut emissions.

The latest bout of air pollution began on Friday and is expected to persist until Thursday, although it will ease slightly on Monday, the last day of the new year holiday.

In Beijing, 24 flights were cancelled at the city&#39;s main airport and all buses from there to neighbouring cities suspended, the airport said in a statement on its official microblog.

Average concentrations of small breathable particles&nbsp;known as PM2.5&nbsp;were higher than 500 micrograms per cubic metre in Beijing &mdash;&nbsp;50 times higher than World Health Organization recommendations.

In Tianjin, Beijing&#39;s next door metropolis, the smog was not as serious but visibility much worse, with more than 200 flights cancelled at Tianjin airport and conditions not expected to improve in the near term, the city government said.

Some bus routes and highways in Tianjin were also closed due to the smog, the government added.

In Shijiazhuang, the provincial capital of Hebei province that surrounds most of the Beijing, about two dozen flights were cancelled and eight flights diverted to other airports because of the smog, the People&#39;s Daily said on its website.

A total of 24 Chinese cities have issued red alerts for the current round of pollution, which mandate measures like limiting car usage and closing factories, while 21 have issued orange alerts, including Beijing and Tianjin.

China began a &quot;war on pollution&quot; in 2014 amid concerns its heavy industrial past was tarnishing its global reputation and holding back its future development, but it has struggled to effectively tackle the problem.

Pollution alerts are common in northern China, especially during winter when energy demand, much of it met by coal, soars. 
 
The country&#39;s northern provinces mostly rely on the burning of hundreds of millions of tonnes of coal each year for heating during northern China&#39;s bitterly cold winters.&nbsp;

(Reuters)

Alerts were issued in 24 cities, as average concentrations of small breathable particles were 50 times higher than WHO recommendations

Heavy smog in northern China on Sunday caused hundreds of flights to be cancelled and highways to shut, disrupting the first day of the new year holiday. Large parts of the north were hit by hazardous smog in mid-December, leading authorities to order hundreds of factories to close and to restrict motorists to cut emissions. The latest bout of air pollution began on Friday and is expected to persist until Thursday, although it will ease slightly on Monday, the last day of the new year holiday. In Beijing, 24 flights were cancelled at the city's main airport and all buses from there to neighbouring cities suspended, the airport said in a statement on its official microblog. Average concentrations of small breathable particles known as PM2.5 were higher than 500 micrograms per cubic metre in Beijing — 50 times higher than World Health Organization recommendations. In Tianjin, Beijing's next door metropolis, the smog was not as serious but visibility much worse, with more than 200 flights cancelled at Tianjin airport and conditions not expected to improve in the near term, the city government said. Some bus routes and highways in Tianjin were also closed due to the smog, the government added. In Shijiazhuang, the provincial capital of Hebei province that surrounds most of the Beijing, about two dozen flights were cancelled and eight flights diverted to other airports because of the smog, the People's Daily said on its website. A total of 24 Chinese cities have issued red alerts for the current round of pollution, which mandate measures like limiting car usage and closing factories, while 21 have issued orange alerts, including Beijing and Tianjin. China began a "war on pollution" in 2014 amid concerns its heavy industrial past was tarnishing its global reputation and holding back its future development, but it has struggled to effectively tackle the problem. Pollution alerts are common in northern China, especially during winter when energy demand, much of it met by coal, soars. The country's northern provinces mostly rely on the burning of hundreds of millions of tonnes of coal each year for heating during northern China's bitterly cold winters. (Reuters)

Heavy smog in China cancels hundreds of flights, shuts highways

Beijing&#39;s city government has ordered 1,200 factories near the Chinese capital, including an oil refinery run by state oil major Sinopec and a Cofco food plant, to either shut or cut output following its highest possible air pollution warning.

Environmental authorities issued a red alert that started on Friday night and will run until Wednesday after warning of a smog build-up across China&#39;s north. That will mean curbs on traffic and construction work and advisories for schools, hospitals and businesses.

The municipal government said in a statement Sinopec&#39;s 10 million tonne-per-year Yanshan refinery, a Shougang Group steel product plant and a Cofco factory that makes instant noodles and crackers were among 500 companies it had ordered to limit output.

It also listed 700 companies that must suspend operations altogether.

Red alerts are issued when the air quality index (AQI), a measure of pollutants in the air, is forecast to break 200 for more than four days in succession, surpass 300 for more than two days or overshoot 500 for at least 24 hours.

The AQI reading in Beijing on Saturday was 120.

Ten cities in the province of Hebei, which surrounds Beijing and is the nation&#39; top steel-producing region, have been issued with red alerts for smog. Steel plants there have been forced to cut output.

The world&#39;s second-largest economy has been battling environmental degradation left by decades of breakneck economic growth. The government&#39;s colour-graded warning system was adopted as part of its crackdown on smog.

(Reuters)

Environmental authorities issued a red alert that started on Friday night and will run until Wednesday

Beijing's city government has ordered 1,200 factories near the Chinese capital, including an oil refinery run by state oil major Sinopec and a Cofco food plant, to either shut or cut output following its highest possible air pollution warning. Environmental authorities issued a red alert that started on Friday night and will run until Wednesday after warning of a smog build-up across China's north. That will mean curbs on traffic and construction work and advisories for schools, hospitals and businesses. The municipal government said in a statement Sinopec's 10 million tonne-per-year Yanshan refinery, a Shougang Group steel product plant and a Cofco factory that makes instant noodles and crackers were among 500 companies it had ordered to limit output. It also listed 700 companies that must suspend operations altogether. Red alerts are issued when the air quality index (AQI), a measure of pollutants in the air, is forecast to break 200 for more than four days in succession, surpass 300 for more than two days or overshoot 500 for at least 24 hours. The AQI reading in Beijing on Saturday was 120. Ten cities in the province of Hebei, which surrounds Beijing and is the nation' top steel-producing region, have been issued with red alerts for smog. Steel plants there have been forced to cut output. The world's second-largest economy has been battling environmental degradation left by decades of breakneck economic growth. The government's colour-graded warning system was adopted as part of its crackdown on smog. (Reuters)

Under pollution alert, 1200 factories to shut or cut output in Beijing

Environmental authorities in China have advised 23 northern cities to issue red alerts, the highest possible air pollution warning, on Friday evening, against the &quot;worst&quot; smog the country has experienced since autumn, state media said.

China issued its first ever red alert for smog in Beijing, the capital, last December, after adopting a colour-graded warning system in a crackdown on environmental degradation left by decades of breakneck economic growth.

Officials in Beijing issued a red alert on Thursday after the Ministry of Environmental Protection (MEP) warned of a smog build-up across China&#39;s north, saying the alert was expected to run until December 21.

The ministry has also advised 22 more cities reeling under pollution to issue the red alert warning, the official China Daily said on Friday.

Nine cities, including Jinan in the province of Shangdong were advised to issue the lower-status orange alert, Liu Bingjing, the ministry&#39;s head of air quality management, told the paper.

The notification will be the third joint warning by city governments this month, Liu added.

Regular episodes of smog blanketing northern China this year stem from a combination of local emissions, unfavourable weather and pollutants wafted in from elsewhere, Bai Qiuyong, head of China&#39;s Environmental Monitoring Center, told the paper.

Environmental authorities in Hebei province, which borders capital city Beijing, asked for a level one emergency response from major cities in the region to begin from Friday, according to a post on its official Weibo account late on Thursday.

The order requires a&nbsp;large number of heavy polluting industries in these cities, including in Tangshan, China&#39;s steel capital, to cut back or halt production until Wednesday.

Red alerts are issued in Beijing when the air quality index, a measure of pollutants, is forecast to break 200 for more than four days in succession, surpass 300 for more than two days or overshoot 500 for at least 24 hours.

At each level, the colour-graded warning system prescribes advisories for schools, hospitals and businesses, as well as possible curbs on traffic and construction.

Thresholds for the issue of alerts vary among cities, as do the cautionary measures urged on local residents and businesses at each stage.

Residents of smaller cities near Beijing have previously complained that local government bodies failed to issue warnings when pollution was just as severe as in the capital.

(Reuters)

Officials in Beijing issued a red alert on Thursday, saying the alert is expected to run until December 21

Environmental authorities in China have advised 23 northern cities to issue red alerts, the highest possible air pollution warning, on Friday evening, against the "worst" smog the country has experienced since autumn, state media said. China issued its first ever red alert for smog in Beijing, the capital, last December, after adopting a colour-graded warning system in a crackdown on environmental degradation left by decades of breakneck economic growth. Officials in Beijing issued a red alert on Thursday after the Ministry of Environmental Protection (MEP) warned of a smog build-up across China's north, saying the alert was expected to run until December 21. The ministry has also advised 22 more cities reeling under pollution to issue the red alert warning, the official China Daily said on Friday. Nine cities, including Jinan in the province of Shangdong were advised to issue the lower-status orange alert, Liu Bingjing, the ministry's head of air quality management, told the paper. The notification will be the third joint warning by city governments this month, Liu added. Regular episodes of smog blanketing northern China this year stem from a combination of local emissions, unfavourable weather and pollutants wafted in from elsewhere, Bai Qiuyong, head of China's Environmental Monitoring Center, told the paper. Environmental authorities in Hebei province, which borders capital city Beijing, asked for a level one emergency response from major cities in the region to begin from Friday, according to a post on its official Weibo account late on Thursday. The order requires a large number of heavy polluting industries in these cities, including in Tangshan, China's steel capital, to cut back or halt production until Wednesday. Red alerts are issued in Beijing when the air quality index, a measure of pollutants, is forecast to break 200 for more than four days in succession, surpass 300 for more than two days or overshoot 500 for at least 24 hours. At each level, the colour-graded warning system prescribes advisories for schools, hospitals and businesses, as well as possible curbs on traffic and construction. Thresholds for the issue of alerts vary among cities, as do the cautionary measures urged on local residents and businesses at each stage. Residents of smaller cities near Beijing have previously complained that local government bodies failed to issue warnings when pollution was just as severe as in the capital. (Reuters)

China: Environmental authorities advise 23 northern cities to issue red alerts for smog

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