China’s polluting factories run around the clock while villagers are told to cut household emissions
As government steps up effort to cut use of coal, residents of Hebei count the cost
Every day at 4am, Liu Caixia, 37, takes her tiny jianbing cart to the bustling Handan Iron and Steel factory in heavily polluted Hebei province.
Together with other breakfast vendors, she makes the Chinese-style crepe, with flour, egg and spring onions, for steel workers emerging from the night shift.
However, Liu is worried about the future of her three-year-old business after police warned her two weeks ago to stop using her coal stove because of the smoke it produces.
“Look at how much smoke we are making here, and look at Handan Steel,” Liu said, as the factory’s chimneys behind her belched columns of white smoke. “What they produce every day equals what we produce in a year.”
As part of its battle against smog, China has embarked on an ambitious plan to cut pollution generated by households, banning the use of coal-fired stoves and heating units.