bodyType

customContents

entityId

entityUuid

articlePageQuery

filter

article

articleBaseAdvertisingInfoArticle

articleListArticle

articleSeoArticle

helpersCheckIsPostiesArticle

hooksArticleAcknowledgementGateOverlayArticle

hooksTrackPageViewArticle

hooksContentInterestArticle

articleLinkingDataContent

hooksAmpRedirectArticle

articleSchemaContent

liveArticle

advertZone

sentiment

contentLock

topics

types

sections

moreOnThisArticles

urlAlias

commentCount

authorLocations

authors

paywallTypes

corrections

sponsorType

displaySlideShow

multimediaEmbed

printHeadline

seriesContainer

socialHeadline

headline

flag

firstTopic

glossary

flattenTypeIds

publishedDate

additionalInfoBoxes

images

image

relatedLinks

relatedNewsletters

__typename

createdDate

sponsor

pdfFiles

seriesReverseOrder

series

disableOffPlatformContent

published

updatedDate

summary

subHeadline

body

keywords

readingTime

customTimezone

liveContents

Associated Press

Officials in Beijing have announced a new environmental police squad to root out illegal burning, the latest government response to the widespread public anger over China’s persistent problems with smog.
Beijing’s acting mayor, Cai Qi, said at a meeting on Saturday that the force would target open-air barbecues, garbage incineration and the burning of wood and other biomass, according to the state-run Xinhua news agency.
Cai announced several other measures, including a target of cutting the use of coal by 30 per cent in 2017 to shutting down 500 higher-polluting factories and upgrading 2,500 more.
About 300,000 high-pollution vehicles will also be restricted from entering the city starting next month, he said.
Act earlier to ease smog’s grip on Beijing, scientists urge authorities
Beijing and dozens of cities in China spend many winter days under a thick, gray haze, with air pollution levels that routinely exceed World Health Organisation guidelines. Beijing spent part of last week under an “orange alert,” the second-highest level in China’s four-tiered air alert system. More than 20 cities were on the highest “red alert”.
Smog is an acutely felt issue in China’s cities, where a “red alert” can lead to the closure of schools and businesses, flight cancellations and shutdowns of highways to keep cars off the roads.
During a red alert in Beijing last month, the authorities banned construction crews from spray-painting and even seized the charcoal grills from some restaurants.
But enforcement remains an issue. China’s environmental ministry said during last week’s red alert that its inspection teams found companies resuming production despite a government ban. Many factories remain under severe pressure to meet production targets regardless of air pollution.
Cai blamed polluting activities like burning garbage or wood on “the result of lax supervision and weak law enforcement”.
‘What have you gone through?’: Photos of China’s smog-covered high-speed trains go viral
But China’s pollution is caused chiefly by its thousands of coal-burning factories and a surplus of older, inefficient vehicles. While it tries to answer the loud public calls to tamp down on pollution, China’s Communist government is also grappling with an economic slowdown and the challenge of maintaining growth.
China is also the world’s largest producer and consumer of coal, and measures like capping production days or shutting down older coal mines run the risk of driving up energy prices and further slowing the economy.


Smog and silence: does halt to global air quality monitoring signal end of US engagement?

Beijing seeks to drive up China’s much-needed consumption by upping NEV number plate quota

Link between clear air and fewer suicides is another reason to act

2 dead and dozens hurt in China after blast tears down 4-storey building near Beijing

Beijing air pollution

Beijing sets up ‘environmental police’ squad to tackle smog

A woman braves the smog in the centre of Beijing on Friday. Photo: AP

epa05697311 A woman wearing a mask crosses a road amid heavy smog in Beijing, China, 04 January 2017. China issued its first-ever national red alert for severe smog on 03 Jan 2017, after 24 of its cities across the country has issued red alerts for air pollution problems. Red is the highest level in the country's four-tier warning system. EPA/HOW HWEE YOUNG

News

China

People & Culture

Officers to enforce regulations aimed at reducing the capital’s chronic air pollution
