Emergency Beijing Olympic pollution scheme begins - Reuters

[Eugene]

Source: Reuters

Emergency Beijing Olympic pollution scheme begins
Sun Jul 20, 2008 7:01am EDT

By Ben Blanchard

BEIJING (Reuters) - Beijingers breathed easier
on Sunday as traffic restrictions and factory
closures came into effect in a last ditch attempt
to turn the often smoggy Chinese capital into a
pollution-free venue for next month's Olympics.

On a sunny but still slightly hazy day, the flow
of cars was lighter than usual for a Sunday on the
city's wide roads, as vehicles with odd license
plates were banned from the streets for the day.
Tomorrow even-numbered cars must stay in the
garage.

-snip-

The government hopes to take around 60 percent
of the city's 3.3 million cars off the roads, the
official Xinhua agency reported, and reduce
emissions by two-thirds over the two months until
the end of the Paralympic Games in mid-September.

Most building work has also halted and almost all
earth and cement works have been closed, along
with a string of factories -- including many in
other provinces. Some are more than 100 kilometers
away but still contribute to the pollution which
earned the nickname "Grayjing" for the city.

-snip-

Read more: http://www.reuters.com/article/environmentNews/idUSPEK20436020080720