Roadside Air Pollution In Central HK Reached Life-Threatening Levels One Day In Eight In 2009 - AFP

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Hong Kong's air pollution continues to worsen, with the city wrapped in a thick blanket of haze for most days in recent months. Statistics from the Hong Kong Observatory show that the annual number of hours of "reduced visibility", which refers to visibility of less than eight kilometres (five miles) in the absence of fog, mist or rain, jumped from 295 in 1988 to 1,139 in 2009.

Roadside air pollution in the city's Central district reached life-threatening levels one in every eight days last year, the South China Morning Post said, citing figures obtained from the government. Critics said the problem has caused a huge economic and public health impact on society and driven talented people away from the international financial hub, with an increasing number of families -- especially expatriates with children -- relocating elsewhere.

Authorities often blamed the deteriorating air quality on emissions from the southern Chinese factory belt over Hong Kong's northern border.

But a study conducted by the Civic Exchange think-tank last year showed that Hong Kong's own road emissions were the dominant source of air pollution.

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