Shifting the problem

“This pollution is an extreme case. Beijing’s air quality now is better than in 2008, as can be seen from the average whole-year figure for 2012,” said Su Yang, a senior research fellow at the Development Research Center of the State Council.

The quality of the air in China’s capital has improved for 14 consecutive years, with the number of major pollutants falling.

The municipal government has been taking measures to cut coal consumption in the city for a number of years. Approximately 700,000 metric tons of coal was saved in 2012 alone, thanks to projects that shifted the fuel source to forms of clean energy.

More than 300,000 old vehicles that failed to meet the city’s emission standard, highest number in the country, were taken off the roads in 2012.

Regarding industrial pollution, the ultimate measure may be to ship it to somewhere else, according to Gerard Kuperus, an assistant professor of environmental studies at the University of San Francisco.

“China is today producing most of our electronics and consumer products. Providing electricity for such large-scale production creates massive pollution. In a sense, the way in which the US and Europe ‘solved’ part of their pollution problem is now causing pollution in other parts of the world, such as China. As we ship our products from China, we have, so to speak, ‘shipped’ part of our air pollution to that part of the world. While China has seen tremendous economic growth, the people are paying for it with their health.”

Peng Yining contributed to this story.

Contact the reporters at wuwencong@chinadaily.com.cn, tangyue@chinadaily.com.cn and zhangchunyan@chinadaily.com.cn