China's Toxic Air An Increasingly Important Driver In Emigration Of Young & Sucessful Citiizens
Toxic smog is forcing a growing number of Chinese into overseas exile, state media has claimed, as the president vowed to attack the “root causes” of pollution after days of putrid skies in Beijing.
Pollution was “driving the affluent and bright overseas” since they saw “no immediate end” to the smog, the Global Times newspaper said in a front page article. “The trend of ‘smog emigration’ is expected to continue, as improvements to air pollution through economic restructuring will not take effect in the short term.”
As hazardous smog covered Beijing this week, relocation agencies “used the opportunity to promote their business,” the Global Times said.
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Chen Zhiyu, whose Beijing firm helps Chinese move to Australia, said 80% of his customers cited pollution as a “major” factor in their decision to leave. Many were couples in their thirties with young children. “Concern over environmental pollution is the primary motivation for emigration,” he said. “They want to provide their offspring a better environment by moving.” The report appeared to support the findings of a January study by the Centre for China & Globalization think tank. It predicted Chinese “disappointment and distrust of the living environment will be a significant driver for a new tide of emigration.”
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http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/asia/china/10664634/Toxic-smog-driving-Chinas-brightest-overseas.html