Beijing Air Quality Hits 200 On Smog Index, Thanks To Burning Straw From Surrounding Provinces

[hatrack]

The outlawed practice of burning waste straw in China's farming areas is behind the thicker than normal smog that has choked Beijing in recent days, state media reported Thursday.

A satellite map showed how smoke from five provinces was blown north, causing even more pollution in Beijing's already heavily contaminated skies, Xinhua news agency reported.

"Beijing's high temperatures and sweltering weather these days is bad for the spread of pollutants, and the situation is worsened by the smoke from farmers burning straw," said Du Shaozhong, from Beijing's Environmental Protection Administration.

On Wednesday afternoon the pollution index jumped to 200, indicating air quality was "poor", the report added. Beijing issued a ban on burning straw in 2000, but it is still a common practice in rural areas of the country, according to Xinhua.

EDIT

http://www.terradaily.com/2007/070614034550.k7iashpk.html

[Systematic Chaos]

1. The 2008 Olympics are going to go down in a blaze of glory!

Nothing will ever stack up to the heated competition and visitors coughing up cash to feed into the Chinese economy. When the smoke clears I know the medal winners will be all choked up as they stand proud on the podium in a haze of pride. I just hope that the networks covering the events will coallectively filter out all the impurities and scandal, and belch out coverage that stays true to the spirit of the games. Because hay, if they don't, then I say that's the last straw and we'll know for sure that they just can't hack it!

Sorry NNadir. :evilgrin:

[GliderGuider]

4. You owe me a new keyboard

:yourock:

[madrchsod]

2. that shit comes over to the usa..

they build cheap shit for us to buy and they poison us too....commie capitalists

[Greyskye]

3. pollution in China

Wow. Here is a picture of pollution in Shanghai.

I work with folks who travel here occasionally - they say that sometimes you can't even see the ground during the day from you hotel room windows.

I don't know what the pollution index was when this was taken. I checked todays pollution index, and it's only at 25. Here is Shanghai data from 2004-2007 - it seems to usually stay below 100 with the occasional spike. http://www.zhb.gov.cn/english/air_s.php3?offset=0&city=Shanghai&date_f=2004-1-1&date_t=2007-06-14&affected_rows=1261

You couldn't pay me to attend the Beijing Olympics. I really feel sorry for the athletes who will be there.

[NNadir]

5. I recall something like this when being driven out of Mexico city.

They apparently practice slash and burn agriculture in the Mountains around Mexico City.

I thought I was going to die from lack of oxygen.