Beijing Air: leaving people breathless
In 2005, the EPA forecasted that Beijing would be prepared for the 2008 Olympics. Now that they are only 6 months away and there's still quite a bit of work to do.
China is trying to fall in line with latest European emission standards. This includes using more environmentally friendly fuels for cars. However, China's deputy director of the Beijing Environmental Protection Bureau states that, "China is still a developing country and therefore cannot adopt the same standard used by developed countries. It is impossible for Beijing's present air situation to reach the European standard." This is no excuse for poor air quality. If they're not a sufficiently developed country, maybe they shouldn't be hosting the Olympics.
Also, cities around Beijing are working to reduce their air pollution as well. According to scientists, the pollution from heavily industrialized surrounding areas is responsible for a large part of Beijing's air quality problems. Because of this, several facilities will be closing down in Beijing and surrounding areas prior to the Olympic Games. This will cause many workers to be laid off and loose pay. Also, managers of restaurants and night clubs near the Olympic facilities will lose business and possibly workers due to increased security measures when their establishments are temporarily closed.
The Beijing population live, work, and breathe in gray, pea-soup thick polluted air most days. They actually keep track of how many actual “blue sky� days; these are days when you can actually see the sky. Here’s a picture of a leisurely bike ride taken in Beijing.
Yao Ming (the best basketball player in China) is doubtful for summer Olympics participation. Is this due to poor air quality or broken foot..??
Comments
Do you know if the Chinese government set up any temporary jobs or have a plan for the workers being laid off? The olympics generate a lot of income for the host city and it seems reasonable that the workers should get some of the profit
Posted by: Scott Beard | March 3, 2008 7:13 PM
Great picture - I am glad this is now very rare in the US. I remember scenes like this in Detroit, where I grew up as a kid. Though sometimes the air was more colorful - Lots more yellows and reds...
It took about 20 years for the US to clean up its air, though it was all new technology then. I suspect that China could do it in a much shorter time, if they were motivated to do so.
Posted by: Steve Sternberg | March 4, 2008 3:55 PM
Many cities have generated a lot of revenue by hosting the Olympic games, but the Olympics can be a risky investment financially. Once the location is selected, it is the responsibility of the host city’s country to finance the building of venues and infastructure. This means that China may end up losing money if the temporary loss of jobs and environmental preparations as well as venue preparations are too costly. The link attached talks about the Olympic games.
Posted by: Becky Walechka | March 4, 2008 6:34 PM
I found an article through Times Online titled, "Thousands of homes destroyed to make way for Olympic tourists". The article discusses the 300,000 Beijing residents who have been moved against their will with little compensation. And the Beijing government is not accepting ANY complaints, "Those who complain encounter persecution, or even jail."
It gives an example of a Ye Guozhu who had both of his restaurants demolished in preparation for the Olympics, he sought permission to protest against such forced evictions and was sentenced to four years in jail for "disturbing social order".
So, Scott, judging by how they are treating residents who are losing their homes, I’m guessing little, if any compensation will be given to workers being laid off.
And Becky, I agree, China’s space needed to host the Olympics includes 2,800 acres of Olympic Green, 19 sports stadiums and the refurbishing of 13 others. It’s going to cost a lot of money to demolish and start new construction, so the profit many not be as large as expected.
Here is a link to the article:
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/world/article526586.ece
Posted by: Elizabeth Kokesh | March 6, 2008 11:30 AM
I find it hard to blame China. Maybe the Olympic Committee shouldn't have allowed Beijing to host the Olympics in the first place. Was the Committee naive enough to believe Beijing's, or China's, (a city of 20 million) human rights and severe environmental issues would disappear in a few years? And was the world naive enough to expect such? On the other hand, the Olympics creates income and new jobs (through tourism, construction, expansion of city facilities and infrastructure) and cuts down on pollution overall since the subway system being constructed will be the most efficient and effective of any major international city, decreasing the necessity of cars and thus reducing emissions (don't see that too much here).
And Steve, it may have taken the US 20 years to clean up its air, but at that time our population was roughly 200 million, and even though it is now "only" 300 million, we're still responsible for 1/4 of the world's pollution.
Becky, yeah, China may end up losing money, but didn't Utah and Barcelona, and perhaps every other "Olympic City" too?
China does indeed have an iron fist policy. When it wants to get something done, it does so in a very short period of time, with impunity, which, besides the HR abuses, I admire. I sympathize with those whose property or businesses have been malappropriated by the state. At the same time, it happens here in the States as well. In 2005, the Supreme Court allowed a city to "take" peoples' homes, against their wishes, for economic redevelopment of the city (the Kelo case). Of course, nobody was arrested, and they are all getting fair market value for their homes. But remember that in China ownership of land is not the Chinese dream, as it is for us here, and the State reserves the right to usurp it.
Posted by: lino1 | April 3, 2008 7:00 PM