Schools in smog-choked Beijing to install air purifiers
Capital’s education commission bows to parents’ demands for clean air in classrooms
Education authorities in Beijing have bowed to public pressure and agreed to install air purification equipment in schools and kindergartens in the pollution-plagued capital after smog levels continued to soared in the first days of the new year.
The decision, announced by the Beijing Municipal Education Commission on Thursday night, was made as Beijing yet again extended an orange alert – the second-highest on a four-level scale, with severe air pollution forecast to envelop the city at least until today.
Beijing issued a two-day orange alert on December 30 as a new round of heavy smog descended on Beijing, Tianjin and surrounding Hebei province. The alert was extended for another three days on New Year’s Day and again on Wednesday. The smog forced shutdowns of factories and building sites, and led to massive traffic jams in the region.
Environmental Protection Minister Chen Jining also met the media late last night in Beijing to explain the government’s measures to tackle the smog and other air pollutants. The Beijing News reported that Chen also inspected monitoring of emissions on highways and industrial areas on Thursday night.